For anyone who cooks regularly, owning both nonstick and stainless steel pans is essential for recipe success. Price and stock could change after publish date, and we may make money off these affiliate links.
When you purchase cookware, whether youre stocking your kitchen for the first time or buying something for a specific dish, the goal is efficiency and longevity. You need to purchase the right equipment for the right job and make the concerted effort to use tools the way they are meant to be used. With all this in mind, when buying pans, should you buy nonstick pans or stainless steel pans? If you’re someone who cooks regularly, the short answer is you need both. Nonsticks cover kitchen bases that stainless steel pans can’t, and vice versa.
Nonstick-Safe Utensils
Finally, I think it’s important to remember that as much as we may try, it is a big ask to never go above a medium flame, or to always remember to use certain utensils, and avoid certain foods. Sometimes the nonstick is the only pan that is clean, sometimes all the rubber spatulas are in the dishwasher, and sometimes you forget that you can’t add a jar of tomato sauce. Even with our best efforts, the coating on these pans wears down. It is not a failure on anyone’s part, it is the reality. If the food starts to stick, you cannot stick with that nonstick. This pan has one quality that makes it worth your kitchen space. Once that quality is not in play, it needs to be replaced. Spare yourself the next couple of years (or decades) of scraping scrambled eggs off with a wooden spoon.
Our Top Stainless Steel Pan Picks, Tested by Food Network Kitchen
You can cook practically everything in a stainless steel pan. They can be harder to clean, but if you use enough heat and enough fat, most foods will not stick to the pan because they will sear, which creates a crust that will release from the bottom. Foods that require higher heat aren’t the only items you can trust here: acidic foods, metal utensils, and nonstick sprays are also welcome. Additionally, these pans can tolerate much higher heat on the stove and in the oven, which makes them ideal for menu items that need a high sears and an oven finish like steaks, chicken, pork, and braises. You could even use the larger versions as roasters if you were cooking something like a small, whole chicken.
When it comes to cleaning stainless steel pans, youll want to wait for the pan to cool before you wash to avoid warping or damaging the pan. We dont recommend putting stainless steel pans in the dishwasher. When cleaning, if something is a little tougher to remove, a soak will likely get you sorted, but if not, we swear by a good Bar Keepers Friend scrub.
Nonstick Cookware and Your Health
What is a nonstick pan used for?
Most home cooks find that skillets and sauté pans are the most useful shapes for nonstick cookware, as they can be used to fry or scramble eggs, cook pancakes, or sauté delicate foods like fish. A nonstick saucepan can also be useful for cooking rice or making custards, allowing for easy cleanup.
What is a nonstick pot & pan?
Nonstick pots and pans are typically aluminum or stainless steel with a slick, nonporous chemical coating over the interior that makes a slick, nonreactive surface that keeps food from sticking to the bottom of the pan. If scratches or chips appear in the nonstick surface, it’s time to replace the cookware.
Do you need a nonstick pan?
If you’re someone who cooks regularly, the short answer is you need both. Nonsticks cover kitchen bases that stainless steel pans can’t, and vice versa. At their core, nonstick pans are generally made of aluminum, and then coated with a nonstick material (either PFOA-free Teflon or ceramic).
What makes a pan nonstick?
What makes a pan nonstick is its coating, usually a synthetic polymer called polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE). This coating, of which Teflon is the most well-known brand, is not particularly durable and, handled improperly, it scratches and flakes. According to most manufacturers’ recommendations, nonstick pans can’t be heated above 450° F.