Depends. If I’m just making a quick omelette, I’d much rather use nonstick. If I’m actually cooking something that requires some sophistication, I always use stainless steel. I’m fond of fond.
I use nonstick for eggs (and maybe reheating stuff) and enameled cast iron for “wet” stuff and stainless steel for everything else. Sure, it’s not REAL cast iron if it’s enameled, bite me.
Unfortunately at the moment I don’t have anything that can get really really hot (500°F or more).
@awk I used nonstick for tortillas, back before I gave up and started buying them from the place I was buying my masa. Dough from the mix didn’t give me fits with sticking (and, really, I don’t need advice about using a plastic bag and stuff, thanks), but it didn’t taste as good as the ball I brought home from the supermercado, and that stuff, well, I gave up. Their tortillas taste great. But I’ve still got the cast iron (back on track!) press if I need it.
Nonstick for things that like to stick, like omelets and other egg dishes.
Cast iron for things like steaks that do better in cast iron, mostly stuff where I’ll just turn the gas all the way up and set off the smoke detectors.
Stainless steel for most things, especially when I’ll be making a pan sauce.
Cast iron, enameled cast iron, or occasionally carbon steel. Never had enough stickage problems with any of the above to warrant any nonstick pans. The handful of times I have used nonstick pans, I just haven’t liked working with them. I loathe the texture of eggs cooked on nonstick.
I use both.
My vintage cast iron pans are amazing and I use them a lot, but we have our non-stick pans also.
For non-stick, we have the TFal Professional pans, which are much different from the cheaper stuff they make. Those pans seem to be lasting a long time with no scratches at all…
@daveinwarsh We recently had to give up our French-made T-Fal Professional pans after 15+ years of use; the non-stick finally gave out and started flaking off. All we can find on the market now, professional line or not, are chinese-made and the reviews in various places have suffered so they’re apparently (and unsurprisingly given China) not made the same any more.
We have a bird and some are sensitive (read: die) to nonsticks that let off fume when hot. So i havent used nonstick in 20 years. Dont miss it too much: soak a cooled stainless pan with eggs for 10 minutes and the egg almost pops off usually.
@cranky1950 my bad, should have said “pet bird and some are sensitive to nonstick even when bird is elsewhere in house.” What was i thinking with this crew?!?!
each type you mention serves a purpose that each can do better than the others. depends on how adventurous you are with your cooking. for a general kitchen a non stick pan will suffice for most uses.
@cranky1950 I tried my first cast iron seared steak a month or two ago. Ever since then I’ve had a box fan in my kitchen - ready to turn up and point at the smoke detector.
I just want a reasonable expectation that I’m not eating too much of something that will eventually give me cancer. Never really got that with nonstick.
Cooking is one of the things that reminds me of how much better my life could be, if I owned a series of robot slaves.
@sammydog01 Should’ve sent it to me. A cycle through the self cleaning oven, a run through the dishwasher, and then that dreaded re-seasoning. All set.
Got rid of the 90’s stove, bought an induction plate and new and vintage cast-iron. Then got a Wisco semi-pro counter-top forced air oven and I bake in the same stuff.
All of the above. They each have their place on a cooktop.
Whatever’s appropriate for the task at hand.
Depends. If I’m just making a quick omelette, I’d much rather use nonstick. If I’m actually cooking something that requires some sophistication, I always use stainless steel. I’m fond of fond.
I use nonstick for eggs (and maybe reheating stuff) and enameled cast iron for “wet” stuff and stainless steel for everything else. Sure, it’s not REAL cast iron if it’s enameled, bite me.
Unfortunately at the moment I don’t have anything that can get really really hot (500°F or more).
@awk enameled cast iron still counts as cast iron. We’re talking about heat retention.
@awk It’s still got the heat retention of cast iron. I’m not sure I’d run it up over 500 degrees the way I do my normal cast iron, though.
@craigthom Can’t really go past medium on my stove. I’ve been making corn tortillas lately and I need a hotter surface so they puff up properly.
@awk Enamel is great when you don’t want acidic foods reacting to iron.
@awk I used nonstick for tortillas, back before I gave up and started buying them from the place I was buying my masa. Dough from the mix didn’t give me fits with sticking (and, really, I don’t need advice about using a plastic bag and stuff, thanks), but it didn’t taste as good as the ball I brought home from the supermercado, and that stuff, well, I gave up. Their tortillas taste great. But I’ve still got the cast iron (back on track!) press if I need it.
Nonstick for things that like to stick, like omelets and other egg dishes.
Cast iron for things like steaks that do better in cast iron, mostly stuff where I’ll just turn the gas all the way up and set off the smoke detectors.
Stainless steel for most things, especially when I’ll be making a pan sauce.
What are you cooking? Answers depend on information not in evidence. But cast iron is awesome, heavy stainless is great, and nonstick has its place.
Cast iron, enameled cast iron, or occasionally carbon steel. Never had enough stickage problems with any of the above to warrant any nonstick pans. The handful of times I have used nonstick pans, I just haven’t liked working with them. I loathe the texture of eggs cooked on nonstick.
I use both.
My vintage cast iron pans are amazing and I use them a lot, but we have our non-stick pans also.
For non-stick, we have the TFal Professional pans, which are much different from the cheaper stuff they make. Those pans seem to be lasting a long time with no scratches at all…
@daveinwarsh We recently had to give up our French-made T-Fal Professional pans after 15+ years of use; the non-stick finally gave out and started flaking off. All we can find on the market now, professional line or not, are chinese-made and the reviews in various places have suffered so they’re apparently (and unsurprisingly given China) not made the same any more.
Favorite pan here is an 8" Griswold skillet.
We have a bird and some are sensitive (read: die) to nonsticks that let off fume when hot. So i havent used nonstick in 20 years. Dont miss it too much: soak a cooled stainless pan with eggs for 10 minutes and the egg almost pops off usually.
@mollama Mine usually die when I cook them in non-stick.
@mollama Switch to ceramic non-stick. None of that lethal PTFE.
@cranky1950 my bad, should have said “pet bird and some are sensitive to nonstick even when bird is elsewhere in house.” What was i thinking with this crew?!?!
@cinoclav thanks
each type you mention serves a purpose that each can do better than the others. depends on how adventurous you are with your cooking. for a general kitchen a non stick pan will suffice for most uses.
It depends on what I am cooking: vegetables - stainless steel, bacon - stainless steel or cast iron, most other stuff - non stick.
I’m still wearing-in my cast iron; it has been twenty years. In another decade or two, it will be perfect.
I only use cast iron to oven sear steaks, really smokes out the kitchen.
@cranky1950 I tried my first cast iron seared steak a month or two ago. Ever since then I’ve had a box fan in my kitchen - ready to turn up and point at the smoke detector.
I just want a reasonable expectation that I’m not eating too much of something that will eventually give me cancer. Never really got that with nonstick.
Cooking is one of the things that reminds me of how much better my life could be, if I owned a series of robot slaves.
Everything has its purpose. Non-stick egg pans, 5 layer stainless otherwise. Cast iron “griddle” pan (pancakes and cornbread) and dutch oven.
Ceramic.
People don’t wash soap to wash cast iron pans. Gross. Of course they’re “non-stick”…they’re still all greasy from the last thing you cooked!
@medz I just sent mine to Goodwill. It was nasty.
@sammydog01 no that can’t be it is a treasured hairloom.
@cranky1950 Nope, don’t need any hairlooms.
/giphy hair loom
@medz Not true. Done properly a seasoned pan is covered with a polymer that started off as fat but is now something completely different.
Also once seriously seasoned there’s no harm in using soap, since it’s not going to wash the polymer off.
If there’s food in the cleaned cast iron pan you’re doing it wrong.
@craigthom “seasoned” is a nice word for “years of baked-on grease”.
@medz Not when done properly. It changes molecular structure.
But don’t let facts get between you and your snark.
@sammydog01 Should’ve sent it to me. A cycle through the self cleaning oven, a run through the dishwasher, and then that dreaded re-seasoning. All set.
@craigthom Its still baked on grease and why you need lye or a self-cleaning oven to get it off.
Got rid of the 90’s stove, bought an induction plate and new and vintage cast-iron. Then got a Wisco semi-pro counter-top forced air oven and I bake in the same stuff.
I wonder if this is the closest poll we’ve had. I think maybe cast iron is just barely beating non-stick but it’s hard to tell.
@dave According to MehStalker, there is a one vote difference, with cast iron having the advantage:
Cast iron by 3 votes
@lichme Wow, that has got to be the closest one. Crazy.
I don’t the the poll generated the argument it was supposed to. Most people provided reasonable answers to what is not a black and white issue.
@craigthom I only use stainless, goddammit, and anyone who doesn’t is a total loser. Better?
@craigthom What if the purpose of the poll is actually to generate discussion?
(Ok, that’s a snarky way of saying “you’re right, but I like the comments in here”.)
@sammydog01 I thought this was about cookware not race relations? Oh another metaphor.