Non-stick cookware with no fluorocarbons or perfluorocarbons

[Bobonli]

The best non stick pan that I have is a $40 carbon steel pan. After you cook in it a few times it is as good or better than teflon and it's much better than a ceramic coated All-Clad that hangs next to it. If I could have one pan it would be the carbon steel: heat retention properties of cast iron but with a smooth finish that won't eff up my glass top cook surface. Scrambled, omelette, sunny side, over easy... carbon steel is the Honey Badger of pans.

[BSUdude]

Pro chefs don't use nonstick, do they? Isn't their method really just a copious amount of oil so that the egg isn't even touching the pan?

[ericpmoss]

Pro chefs don't use nonstick, do they? Isn't their method really just a copious amount of oil so that the egg isn't even touching the pan?

Haha, some more than others. :)

[nick k]

Speaking of omelettes and carbon steel pans, I'm hoping to retire the one non-stick pan in our kitchen. This Matfer was around $40 and was seasoned from new this morning in the oven. First thing I made was this 2-egg test omelet for lunch today, with about 1 tsp of butter. Looks like a win, cleaned up with a spray of water and absolutely nothing stuck. I have no fear of forks or tongs scratching the pan, and I'm now looking for a smaller Matfer as well.

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[dgaddis]

I have two of those pans, they're great. I love the welded on handle - no rivets. The shape makes it so even a no skill fella like myself can toss stuff without making a mess. They work well on the grill too, but the handle does get hot.

[alexstar]

Others have said it already but Scanpan was a game changer for me. I usually cook with stainless and cast iron, but for eggs I now reach for the scanpan every time.

[nick k]

Dustin, speaking of tossing food about, I like the 11 7/8” size but it’s way heavier (about 4.5 lbs) than my All-Clad stainless or aluminum anything. That’s just a little lighter than my old cast iron. Do you have any of the smaller sizes and if so, how is the weight?

[bbattle]

Pro chefs don't use nonstick, do they? Isn't their method really just a copious amount of oil so that the egg isn't even touching the pan?

Yes. Butter is simply awesome and more butter is more better! And then there's bacon grease!! My wife insists on her nonstick pans but I'll keep using All-Clad.

[dgaddis]

Dustin, speaking of tossing food about, I like the 11 7/8” size but it’s way heavier (about 4.5 lbs) than my All-Clad stainless or aluminum anything. That’s just a little lighter than my old cast iron. Do you have any of the smaller sizes and if so, how is the weight?

Haha, yeah I’ve got the same size pan, and it is heavy! The day after making those fajitas in that pic? My arm was sore. I’m not entirely ashamed by that....

I also have a smaller one (8” maybe?) and it’s way easier to handle.

[giordana93]

you can get thinner/lighter carbon steel pans but they are more prone to warping and being wobbly/not flat.
the only teflon pan I have is a little 6" one of fairly good quality (an old t-fal) but when it finally dies it will be replaced with a carbon steel or small cast iron or stainless. teflon is ok if you don't overheat and still on the learning curve of technique but it is utterly ridiculous to spend much money on one compared to the indestructible metals listed above. a little butter/oil on a properly preheated pan goes a long way and there are better places in your diet to save those 30 calories.... (epecially now that fat is good again in diets)s

[Cookietruck]

^ yep
I have a DeBuyer mineral B that is 28cm, looking on their site, it is 3mm thickness. really heavy for holding it with one hand and plating with the other.
Just got a DeBuyer La Lyonnaise pan 20 or 24cm, I forget now, it's only 1mm thick and...thinner than I think I prefer after cooking with it some. It heats up super fast though!! It's mostly flat though so that's nice.

I think I should've gotten a DeBuyer Force Blue at 2mm thick.

LA LYONNAISE round frying pan | de Buyer

[dgaddis]

I mentioned earlier that I've got a Misen non-stick pan that we really like. I see they're now doing some carbon steel pans as well, same shape as the non-stick (which is good) but in carbon steel - The Misen Carbon Steel Pan by Misen — Kickstarter

Not terribly expensive, but they are more expensive than the Matfer Bourgeat pans I already have. One thing I really like about the Matfer Bourgeat pans is the handle is welded on - there's no rivets, which makes cleaning it much easier.

The Misen pans are a smidge lighter than the MB pans, but not by much (~0.1lbs). I like that they're including the silicone handle cover...that's one issue I've found with my pans is the handle gets hot, especially when you choke up on it (which you need to do quite often with the larger and heavier pan). I'm actually going to order a similar handle cover for mine, Amazon has one made by Lodge that apparently fits.

I got my MB pans here, FWIW, their pricing was a bit better than Amazon when I last checked :: Carbon Steel Frying Pans | Carbon Steel Fry Pans

[Blue Jays]

"...There are people out there who are as obsessive as we are. :-)

Good find, @ericpmoss! Cool video and he is also very entertaining with his enthusiasm.

[dgaddis]

FYI the Lodge silicone handle cover fits the Matfer Bourgeat handle nicely for the 12" pan at least. No more hot handle!