Carbon Steel Saute Pans

[Curt Goodrich]

I've never used one but I'm interested. Anybody have experience with them? Favorite brands and styles? I'm a sucker for French cooking tools.

[mzilliox]

ive been eyeing them... they are supposedly the best, a wok in pan form. ill have one soon.

heres a particularly sexy handmade version for your viewing pleasure

Blanc Creatives Pro Saucier 11" | Eatingtools.com

[guido]

I'm really digging mine...

De Buyer MINERAL B Round Carbon Steel Fry Pan 12.5-Inch

Less liquid tolerant than a black iron pan but for simple "anything in olive oil" saute it owns the category...

[skouri1]

I'm also looking into purchasing soon.
Can't decide yet between an 10-11 or 12.5". I hear they are in between SS and cast iron in terms of weight, so I dont want to get anything too heavy and cumbersome.
Matfer Bourgeat seems like the budget option. I have heard tales of warping but who knows, doesn't really make sense as I think they are all stamped steel? and also comparable thickness. (3mm or so?)
De Buyer Mineral B everyone loves and says is easy to season/maintain, only draw back is an epoxy handle that cannot handle long times in oven temps (above 10 mins). Of course, with a frying pan this may be a moot point because how often am i frying a steak and finishing it a little in the oven...cant think of many times it may go in there otherwise... (frittata?)
I am curious about the Mauviel M Steel (which doesn't have the handle issue). From reviews I see it is on par with the De Buyer, if slightly more difficult to season initially.

That's what I've gleaned from my research, but I would love to hear some real insight from the V SALON owners I trust (not people who dont know how to season a pan). :)

[caleb]

I'm also looking into purchasing soon.
Can't decide yet between an 10-11 or 12.5". I hear they are in between SS and cast iron in terms of weight, so I dont want to get anything too heavy and cumbersome.
Matfer Bourgeat seems like the budget option. I have heard tales of warping but who knows, doesn't really make sense as I think they are all stamped steel? and also comparable thickness. (3mm or so?)
De Buyer Mineral B everyone loves and says is easy to season/maintain, only draw back is an epoxy handle that cannot handle long times in oven temps (above 10 mins). Of course, with a frying pan this may be a moot point because how often am i frying a steak and finishing it a little in the oven...cant think of many times it may go in there otherwise... (frittata?)
I am curious about the Mauviel M Steel (which doesn't have the handle issue). From reviews I see it is on par with the De Buyer, if slightly more difficult to season initially.

That's what I've gleaned from my research, but I would love to hear some real insight from the V SALON owners I trust (not people who dont know how to season a pan). :)

I've had all three you mention, and I like the Bourgeat the best. It's slightly heavier than the others, and it doesn't have rivets.

[Bobonli]

I have a Mafter. $50 or so from Amazon. My FAVORITE pan!!! Once seasoned (America's test kitchen has a good video about using potato skins and salt) it is truly non-stick unless you purposely abuse it. Which every now and then my wife does with tomato sauce or a piece of fish without oiling it a little. Even then it cleans up quickly. Great heat distribution, you can pop it in the oven. Great for eggs. Really the only thing I dont put in it is high acidity products like red sauce. It has the heating qualities of cast iron without the coarse texture of cast iron, which is death to my glass top cooking surface.

I'm an All Clad house. I rarely touch my AC skillet or non-stick/teflon/ceramic pans.

[skouri1]

I've had all three you mention, and I like the Bourgeat the best. It's slightly heavier than the others, and it doesn't have rivets.

Why is the Matfer's heft better?
And are the rivets worse for clean-up is that it?
thanks for the feedback!

[LarryA]

I just acquired 11" and 8" DeBuyers (I blame Dustin).

Seasoned with 6 "wafer thin" layers of canola on the stove-top. Not in love with the visuals of the seasoning, but they are slicker than the Calpalon non-stick they replaced. Really like how easy it is to crate a fond with them. They are HEAVY.

Hindsight suggests a brand I could season in the oven might be better, but that's my only beef so far.

[skiezo]

I am going to have to give one of these a go around. I have a bunch of old cast iron from my grandma that I use frequently for searing,bacon and fried taters. I am trying to get away from non stick coatings. The only thing I like NS for is when I make a pot of oatmeal.
I look at the options on 11" pans and give one a go.

[echelon_john]

I have a couple of Mauviel M’Steel pans (an 8” and a 12”) and reach for them first for everything other than pan frying steak, for which I use cast iron. Great value and excellent non-stick once seasoned.

[COVRTDESIGN]

These are the exact ones that I use in professional kitchens. I normally season them when received, about 10 times, then they normally stay in the oven throughout service. I normally only ever use them to finish food or hot hold before serving.

Paderno Black Steel Pans | knifemerchant.com

[rydesteel]

These are the exact ones that I use in professional kitchens. I normally season them when received, about 10 times, then they normally stay in the oven throughout service. I normally only ever use them to finish food or hot hold before serving.

Paderno Black Steel Pans | knifemerchant.com

Have you tried the Carbon Steel line? Is it thicker than the Black Steel line? I understand what you use the Black Steel for, how does it hold up to a full gas high heat sear? Nice Website BTW lot's of nice toy's there.

[guido]

Way too many nice toys there...

[COVRTDESIGN]

Have you tried the Carbon Steel line? Is it thicker than the Black Steel line? I understand what you use the Black Steel for, how does it hold up to a full gas high heat sear? Nice Website BTW lot's of nice toy's there.

From them, no. I almost always cook on high heat and quickly thanks to way too many years as a chef for most dishes. I haven't ever had a problem with the black steel. I don't think that it is much thicker than the carbon line.

I season all of my pans whether black steel or cast iron, once a week. 450* for one hour coated with flaxseed oil.

As for the website, they are my go to if Carbon Knife Co Japanese Chef Knives, Sharpening Stones, Chef's Supply here in Denver doesn't have what I need. I just spent another $300 on goodies last night. Can't wait for them to arrive!

[rydesteel]

From them, no. I almost always cook on high heat and quickly thanks to way too many years as a chef for most dishes. I haven't ever had a problem with the black steel. I don't think that it is much thicker than the carbon line.

I season all of my pans whether black steel or cast iron, once a week. 450* for one hour coated with flaxseed oil.

As for the website, they are my go to if Carbon Knife Co Japanese Chef Knives, Sharpening Stones, Chef's Supply here in Denver doesn't have what I need. I just spent another $300 on goodies last night. Can't wait for them to arrive!

Nice!

[guido]

I season all of my pans whether black steel or cast iron, once a week. 450* for one hour coated with flaxseed oil.

How much do you grind/scrub the interiors before weekly re-seasoning?

[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.