Carbon Steel Pan vs Stainless Steel: Which to Buy

Lodge presses this skillet from 12 gauge carbon steel with a riveted steel handle and seasons it at the foundry with vegetable oil, so it arrives with a working finish rather than a bare one. The listing says it suits gas, electric and induction stovetops, outdoor grills and open fire, and that the metal is free of PFOA and PTFE. Lodge's own page adds that it is made in the USA and goes in the oven. The silicone holders that come with it are rated to 500 degrees and should come off before the pan goes in.

America's Test Kitchen weighed the 12 inch Lodge at 4.2 pounds with a 9.25 inch cooking surface and recommended it with reservations: it cooks well for the money, but the testers preferred heavier, more balanced pans such as the Mauviel M'Steel. ATK's broader findings apply here: carbon steel browns deeply and quickly, a fully seasoned pan still needs a little fat, and it can take a year or two of cooking to build a solid black patina.

Care is the whole argument against it. Hand wash, dry at once, rub with a film of oil. Skip the tomato sauce; ATK found that simmering an acidic sauce stripped most of the patina, though restoring it took about ten minutes. Skip the pan altogether if you know you will leave it in the sink.

D3 is All-Clad's original line: 18/10 stainless inside, stainless outside, an aluminum core, bonded rim to rim. The listing states it is made in the USA with global components in All-Clad's Pennsylvania factory, is oven and broiler safe to 600 degrees Fahrenheit, works on induction and must be washed by hand. America's Test Kitchen named it the winner of its stainless skillet testing, weighed it at 2.8 pounds, measured a 9.5 inch cooking surface and found it resisted warping.

Stainless does what carbon steel cannot. Deglaze with wine, reduce a tomato sauce, braise chicken thighs in lemon, and the surface is unchanged. Nothing to season, nothing to rust, and a scouring pad is fine. The cost is that eggs and fish will stick unless the pan is properly preheated and oiled, and even then it is never as slick as seasoned steel.

Skip it if what you mostly want is a pan for eggs and steak and you are willing to look after it. The Lodge does those two jobs better for a third of the price.

Made In's carbon steel comes pre-seasoned with shea nut and coconut oil, and the listing says the pans handle heat to 1,200 degrees Fahrenheit, work on induction, and are made in Sweden. The maker lists the 12 inch at about 4.3 pounds with a 9.25 inch cooking surface and 2.25 inches of depth, hand wash only, with a lifetime warranty. The set pairs it with a 10 inch for eggs and single portions.

America's Test Kitchen weighed Made In's 12 inch blue carbon steel pan at 4.41 pounds with a 9.5 inch cooking surface and recommended it with reservations, the same tier as the Lodge. It is the pick for a cook who wants two sizes of carbon steel from one maker with a warranty behind them, rather than a measurably better pan than the Lodge.

Tramontina's Signature pan is 18/10 stainless around an aluminum core with a riveted stainless handle, made in Brazil. The listing rates it oven safe to 500 degrees Fahrenheit, induction compatible, NSF certified, dishwasher safe and covered by a lifetime warranty.

With the Lodge, it makes the two-pan kitchen this comparison keeps arriving at: steel for the sear and the eggs, stainless for the sauce. Both together cost less than the All-Clad alone.