What is your go-to pot or pan? What are you missing most?

Advertise with us
Japanese Knives - by Tokushu Knife
Kitchen Knife Forums

Help Support Kitchen Knife Forums:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
Corradobrit1 said:
Has anyone used these Mineral B deBuyer pans?
Click to expand...


yes. it is my one and only Carbon pan. my friend described it best. he said, "i dont know what it is like to raise a child, but owning this pan gives you the glimpse into the work, heartbreak, frustration and love that is required.

there were days i wanted to SHAKE the pan! (just kidding..never shake your pan). it was a tough seasoning effort. i cant stand that oven oil repeat thing.. i just cooked with it. twice i had to take it all back down when it got to crusty. NOW? it is a good pan. a great pan. i think keeping it CLEAN is more instrumental in non-stick than keeping it perfectly seasoned. the season comes from use. i clean it..keep it clean. i have even used a scrubby pad on it on occasion. mine is pretty dark these days.
 
HumbleHomeCook said:
Pick up a good carbon steel pan, get it seasoned properly and you'll never have to waste time, money or materials on cheap non-stick stuff again. ;)
Click to expand...

Well I was fairly easily convinced that I needed a new pan so I have a carbon Matfer on the way. Should be here Monday. The seasoning instructions manufacturer recommends are odd to me (oil, salt, potato skins) but I am going to try it unless someone has a better rec.
 
TM001 said:
Well I was fairly easily convinced that I needed a new pan so I have a carbon Matfer on the way. Should be here Monday. The seasoning instructions manufacturer recommends are odd to me (oil, salt, potato skins) but I am going to try it unless someone has a better rec.
Click to expand...
Do it. Just look at the results in post #73. They speak for themselves.
 
TM001 said:
Well I was fairly easily convinced that I needed a new pan so I have a carbon Matfer on the way. Should be here Monday. The seasoning instructions manufacturer recommends are odd to me (oil, salt, potato skins) but I am going to try it unless someone has a better rec.
Click to expand...

It does seem odd but it actually makes sense. The potato skins act as a vehicle for the oil and salt. Sort of like a sponge. The salt is the abrasive to scour the factory coating off. The oil both suspends the salt and also helps to start the seasoning.

Now, I have not found it to be all that is needed but it definitely is needed. I still season afterwards and generally in the oven. But the single most important thing you can do after that initial prep is to cook in it. And just keep cooking in it. If anything sticks, make sure you clean it out well so there isn't something left behind for the next thing to stick to, then a light seasoning and repeat, repeat, repeat.

Another thing that really helped me was to abandon notions of fried egg tests and instant slick surface and all of that. It's unreasonable and if you don't achieve it it makes you doubt yourself and get flustered.

Don't bother with flax seed oil as it is a waste of money. Canola oil will do, although my wife recently got me some Knapp's Cast Iron Seasoning Wax and I'm pretty impressed. And cook with canola oil. Early on use more if you have to.

My co-worker bought some Matfer's on my recommendation. He watched some YT videos and after a couple weeks he confided in me that he was flustered as they were still sticking. And he has a very nice house with a commercial-grade gas stove/ovens. I told him all the stuff I typed above. We didn't talk about it for several months and I actually thought maybe he'd given up on them but didn't want to hurt my feelings for recommending them. Honestly just a few days ago he mentioned how much he loves the pans and has bought a few more since.

Sorry, if that is a repeat of stuff me and others already said. :)

Here's my two from last night on an old coil stove top. Love 'em.

tdZIN0N.jpg
 
Last edited:
TM001 said:
Well I was fairly easily convinced that I needed a new pan so I have a carbon Matfer on the way. Should be here Monday. The seasoning instructions manufacturer recommends are odd to me (oil, salt, potato skins) but I am going to try it unless someone has a better rec.
Click to expand...

My matfer I got last beginning of last month. I used the oil, salt and potato skin method too. Was like this after 3 rounds. Cooked some salmon on it a week ago no problem.
 

Attachments

  • 20210109_083519.jpg
    20210109_083519.jpg
    51.1 KB · Views: 22
HumbleHomeCook said:
It does seem odd but it actually makes sense. The potato skins act as a vehicle for the oil and salt. Sort of like a sponge. The salt is the abrasive to scour the factory coating off. The oil both suspends the salt and also helps to start the seasoning.

Now, I have not found it to be all that is needed but it definitely is needed. I still season afterwards and generally in the oven. But the single most important thing you can do after that initial prep is to cook in it. And just keep cooking in it. If anything sticks, make sure you clean it out well so there isn't something left behind for the next thing to stick to, then a light seasoning and repeat, repeat, repeat.

Another thing that really helped me was to abandon notions of fried egg tests and instant slick surface and all of that. It's unreasonable and if you don't achieve it it makes you doubt yourself and get flustered.

Sorry, if that is a repeat of stuff me and others already said. :)

Here's my two from last night on an old coil stove top. Love 'em.
Click to expand...

Good to hear the advice from multiple sources and can't wait for my pan to get here. Almost as giddy as waiting for first J knife. I plan on using sunflower rather than canola as that is my standard higher smoke point oil and what I use for anything I am not doing in butter or olive oil. I like the smell.
 
YumYumSauce said:
My matfer I got last beginning of last month. I used the oil, salt and potato skin method too. Was like this after 3 rounds. Cooked some salmon on it a week ago no problem.
Click to expand...

I am feeling a lot better about it this time round. I don't think I knew about proper seasoning when I had one the first time a long time ago.
 
TM001 said:
Good to hear the advice from multiple sources and can't wait for my pan to get here. Almost as giddy as waiting for first J knife. I plan on using sunflower rather than canola as that is my standard higher smoke point oil and what I use for anything I am not doing in butter or olive oil. I like the smell.
Click to expand...

That should work fine but remember, for seasoning, you want to get it 20-25F above the smoke point of the oil.
 
The two items I use the most are a both Le Creuset 3 Ply Stainless Steel a 20cm Saucepan and 28cm Non-Stick Frying Pan. I need a cast iron skillet in my life, but am putting this off until the kids leave home. At least I know my wife will never go anywhere near cookware.
 
Carbon Matfer got here a day early, heavier than I thought it would be.

Took more work to scrub of coating than I thought but otherwise cleaning and seasoning went well.
pan1.jpg


Cooked potatoes and steak in it for dinner. Worked great.
pan3.jpg

I am a convert.
 
My most used: a Zwilling sauté pan, a 3-ply type similar to All-Clad. I can't remember the model name, but it has a weird looking down-curved handle. Cooks well, holds a lot of food, goes in the oven including the steel lid which fits well and isn't flimsy. It's good for a lot of different things and it's easy to clean.
 
DavidPF said:
My most used: a Zwilling sauté pan, a 3-ply type similar to All-Clad. I can't remember the model name, but it has a weird looking down-curved handle. Cooks well, holds a lot of food, goes in the oven including the steel lid which fits well and isn't flimsy. It's good for a lot of different things and it's easy to clean.
Click to expand...

Is it the Zwilling TruClad?
 
chiffonodd said:
Does it count if I intend for it to become one of my most used pans?
Click to expand...
Not yet? I've intended for things to become my most used, and they don't always work out.

Some say a wok is hard to use on an electric stove, maybe because the heating elements are too flat and change temperatures too slowly. (I don't know how to use a wok no matter what kind of stove it's on, so I can't prove that. And people can be kind of superstitious about stuff that actually works fine.)

Also, it may be just coincidence that that's where your wok was sitting when the picture was taken, so this comment may have been completely useless.
 
DavidPF said:
Not yet? I've intended for things to become my most used, and they don't always work out.

Some say a wok is hard to use on an electric stove, maybe because the heating elements are too flat and change temperatures too slowly. (I don't know how to use a wok no matter what kind of stove it's on, so I can't prove that. And people can be kind of superstitious about stuff that actually works fine.)

Also, it may be just coincidence that that's where your wok was sitting when the picture was taken, so this comment may have been completely useless.
Click to expand...

Your comment is right on the money - I am sure it is more difficult on an electric stove. However, I ordered a flat bottom wok for this exact reason, so at least it has a fighting chance.
 
AT5760 said:
This time of year, my Le Creuset round dutch oven is in near-constant use. Lots of soups and braises this time of year. Runner up would be my Lodge cast iron skillet for pancakes, steaks, and plenty of other things.
Click to expand...

Me too on the LC dutch oven. That actually is my favorite/most used piece of cookware this time of year so dunno why I didn't post that one first 🤣 Also have an LC enameled cast iron skillet that I love but it's just too big for daily home cooking. I've been eyeing the Lodge "chef collection" 10" and 12", sort of torn on which way to go. How large is your lodge skillet?
 
chiffonodd said:
However, I ordered a flat bottom wok for this exact reason, so at least it has a fighting chance.
Click to expand...
I had to look twice more to see the flat bottom - the smooth surface looked round to me at first. (Plus I see what I'm expecting to see rather than what's really there)
 
A main go-to pan for me is my 2 quart all clad saucepan. Being extremely sturdy and useful it makes just enough soup for about one or two servings and can easily double for making a hearty bowl of noodles.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Back
Top