Carbon Steel Saute Pans

[ColonelJLloyd]

I've been using a Matfer Bourgeat 11 7/8" since January. Seasoning rituals are dogmatic so I'm not gonna go there. But, regular canola oil works well for me. Thorough (as usual) article on seasoning from the Serious Eats crew if anyone is looking for a primer.

I clean mine in very hot water with a sponge or kitchen towel (mild abrasives are rarely, if ever, called for), heat dry, and re-season as needed, preferably outdoors. Same as cast iron in that regard.

[skiezo]

I just picked up a couple of used/pre owned Mauviel 1830 Steel Carbon Nonstick Frying Pan 11.5” on ebay. I am looking forward to re-seasoning them and giving them a good testing over the next couple of weeks. I will keep one and give the other to my son.

[gt6267a]

on the cleaning front, not just for carbon steel, we use a hotel room key to get off sticky bits. its like nail but better. not staying in hotels these days to permanently borrow a key? old credit cards work great as well. try it, you'll like it.

[nick k]

I’m on a mission de-glutening the kitchen. I stripped my Matfer down to bare steel simply and easily with a white vinegar soak - about an hour. And then a scrub with steel wool and a baking soda/coarse salt/vinegar paste. I re-seasoned with peanut oil as it seems to work much better for me than canola, or the quality of canola oil we can get is spotty. Did a quick single season on the gas stovetop and it’s perfect again - sautéed salmon fillets as a high stakes first test and then a couple of omelets for the last few days. Clean up with a paper towel. Will try the old credit card trick - great tip!

[dgaddis]

If you don't have any old credit cards laying around, or want something a bit stouter, there are plastic scrappers out there. We have nearly a dozen that came with some Pampered Chef stoneware (about the only Pampered Chef stuff that's worth a damn IME) and we use them on all kinds of stuff, they're super handy. All four corners are slightly different radius too, which is a nice touch as you can always find one that fits the curve of whatever you're scrapping pretty well.

[ArthurHolo]

My friend's wife is Malaysian-Chinese and they cook asian food most of the time. One day we came to visit them and my wife made a compliment about her pan. A few days later we resieved a wok as a gift from our friends. Now comparing it with the old one, we can state that having a good wok/pan is doing yourself a big favor. Our wok is differ from one she has but it's because we have a wok for beginners. Wooden handle makes it easier to use.

We use similar to this one: Robot Check.

I also recommend to get a bigger rather than smaller diameter, as there will be less popping & grease going over the side, and it's a lot more fun & practical to really toss that food around when you're cooking it on high heat. If you want, here 1 Best Woks for Gas Stoves – Expert Reviews [Aug. 22] you can see some proc and cons of different woks.

As for the pan, we have Robot Check. Actually we bought it because it looks cool . It's pre-seasoned and easy to cook everything, whether searing steaks or cooking burgers. But it's expensive and I think we could've found something cheaper and the same quality.