ironing board cover blue_housse et coussin de table à repasser

Applications in Home Cooking and Professional Kitchens:

Best for: Almost any food that needs searing, including steak and burgers. Cast-iron pans are ovenproof, so you can use them to roast meats like beef or pork and to bake cornbread, deep-dish pizza, shepherd’s pie, and more. And they retain heat so well that they’re a good choice for deep-frying chicken, doughnuts, or other foods because they keep the oil at a constant temperature.

The details: Cast-iron frying pans are practically indestructible, and they’re handed down for generations in many families. That makes their typically low price even more attractive. And if well cared for, cast iron develops a patina that releases food almost as well as nonstick. But the pans are heavy, and you have to be patient when heating them up because they don’t come up to temperature fast. Once they do, however, they retain heat.

Our tests of coated and uncoated cast-iron pans show how versatile this cookware can be. We sear steaks, brown scallops, and bake cornbread to see how well a cast-iron pan works for home cooks. The best pans ace all these tests. We also judge how easy they are to clean. Because of the enamel coating, the coated pans are a bit easier to clean than the uncoated ones.

Here are two recommended cast-iron pans from our tests.

They can also be found in a variety of materials. On the other hand, frying pans are a fantastic tool for frying, blistering, and browning food due to their flat bottoms and lack of a top. They’re ideal for high-heat grilling and frying, as well as shallow and deep-frying. There are also aluminum and stainless steel alternatives.

When Should You Use a Saute Pan and When Should You Use a Skillet?

How to Clean Aluminum Pans