De Buyer 5610.24 Mineral B Element Round Frying Pan, 24 cm Diameter, Silver Grey

This was my first foray into the world of carbon steel cookware and it was a couple of months before I screwed up the courage to season my shiny new pan, having read everything I could find about the process, large swathes of which were contradictory! At least there was general consensus that it was impossible to make a mess of the pan: just strip it down and start again. Thankfully, I found a method that worked well (everyone seems to have their own, often idiosyncratic, method) and, after carefully only using the pan for meat, bacon and other highish fat content produce for the first few times, I ventured into pancakes. Then omelettes. Then plain old eggs. Then anything I could think of! I haven't cooked anything yet that has stuck even just a little bit. These pans are wonderful! The thickness and weight create an evenly-heated cooking surface and the high temperatures that can be achieved result in gloriously seared steaks. I've bought two more in different sizes/styles since and I felt so confident in their performance that, with the second one, I went straight for fried eggs immediately after seasoning. Perfect!If you have the patience to look after these pans properly - season them well initially, rinse after use with hot water and dry thoroughly - they will become your best friends! There are a lot of myths knocking around about how fragile and sensitive the seasoning can be with dire warnings regarding use and care. It's mostly nonsense put about by posers who think that making a mystery out of something that was an everyday occurrence before Teflon made an appearance makes them seem like some sort of culinary guru! If you read about the science behind seasoning you'll understand why. Carefully done (and rocket science it ain't), the seasoned surface is as hard as the steel pan itself and as slick as ice: you can only really damage it if that's your intention. Here are the only things I've found that can cause damage, and none of it is irreparable:1. High concentrations of acid. Some say you should never put tomatoes or wine into a seasoned pan, which makes whipping up a well-flavoured pan sauce a little tricky. Small amounts for a short time will do no harm whatsoever. I'll deglaze with a little stock then add my wine and whatever else is going into the sauce, cook it on a high heat until it's reduced enough, serve it and rinse the pan immediately. No problem.2. Digging at it with sharp stabby things. Obvious really. However, a good quality, flexible stainless steel spatula will serve you well. Using one to lift and turn your food makes sure that all the lovely little bits of crusty goodness are on your steak and not left behind on the pan. It's the single most important way I've found of keeping the seasoned surface smooth and gunk-free. Just don't dig!3. Dry cooking. This won't actually damage anything but it will make avoiding (4) difficult. Always at least lightly brush your pan with your cooking fat of choice before cooking otherwise you'll have burnt bits adhering to the pan that even your spatula might not be able to handle.4. Elbow grease! If fingernails can't pick the burnt bit off then you can use a scrubber or even wire wool but with a light touch. Remember, you'll be reseasoning your pan with subsequent uses so there's no harm in smoothing out any rough bits as long as the elbow grease stays under the kitchen sink! If you find you have to put in some effort to remove a spot then stop: it's probably supposed to be there.5. Soap. Again, some will say you should never, ever use it. A long time ago, dishwashing soaps contained lye which would strip the surface off anything! Not any more though. It's best avoided on a regular basis but if you want to give your pan a good clean once in a while it won't hurt. Rinse well and wipe the pan with a drop of oil and a paper towel afterwards.Having become used to them and learning that they're not the fragile little hothouse flowers the Internet would have me believe, I can't recommend carbon steel, and the de Buyer brand in particular, highly enough.

Having gone through two non-stick frying pans over the last 10 years, I decided to buy something a little more long lasting. I looked at some non-stick pans made from titanium, but they were roughly 30-50% more expensive than this De Buyer pan. I also considered the enamelled cast iron frying pans from Le Creuset, however, the cost and the sheer weight of the pans put me off.The De Buyer pan looks great to me. Functional and stylish. The handle is riveted onto the pan and the whole thing feels weight enough to be solid, but without the enormous heft of a cast iron pan. The handle has a smooth coating on it that feels nice, though be aware that it still conducts heat. If you are frying over a high heat, it is advisable to wrap a cloth over the handle or use oven gloves.The pan heats up quickly and is ideal for searing meats. 24cm is a good size when cooking for one or two people. This pan is not non-stick - you must season the pan and use it over time in order to build up a patina. The pan comes with some basic instructions on how to season. The more you cook with it, the darker the surface of the pan gets. This is normal and will help build your non-stick coating.Do not worry about it being unhygienic. Frying will kill anything on the cooking surface, though of course you should still wash the pan. De Buyer recommend purifying the pan occasionally to stop residues and odours from previous uses seeping in. You simply heat the pan over a high heat with cooking salt in the pan, and then wipe clean with a kitchen towel.You can use metal utensils on the surface, but also use your common sense. Hard and abrasive scraping will damage the coating you are trying to build up, and you risk scratching the metal.Cleaning is simple. Wash with hot water, a soft sponge and a tiny amount of washing up liquid. Wipe the pan dry all over, otherwise the pan may rust. Any bits of food that stick can be picked away with a plastic scraper or a slightly rougher sponge. Never use a metal scourer.Before you put it away, pour a little oil onto a kitchen towel and wipe the surface of the pan. Do not put it away without the cooking surface being oiled. Before you use it again, you can rinse it with hot water (and then dry).A few things to note if you are used to using non-stick pans:- the surface of the pan will darken and colour. This is a gradual process and the colouration does not happen evenly. If you like your pans to look beautiful and pristine, then these pans are not for you;- they take more looking after. You cannot use a dishwasher with these pans and you need to dry them thoroughly; and- as stated above, when cooking over a high heat, do not grab the handle without protection.For those that are fine with the maintenance aspect of these pans, I recommend them very highly. They are well made and do an exemplary job.

I'm a fan of traditional cookware such as cast iron and have never really liked non-stick pans as they are quite fragile. This is very nice quality pan, even the packaging is nice in a rustic french way, it comes in a brown paper bag with their stampings. The pan itself is very solid and robust, quite heavy as the steel used is about 3mm thick, the finish on it is beautiful, it appears to have been machined to get a smooth surface. The handle is heavy duty, it will get hot after a while but if you're used to these kinds of pans it's not a problem.I'm quite familiar with seasoning as I've owned cast iron cookware and woks before, so I was able to quickly season this with some oil. Pretty soon I was able to cook omlettes, pancakes and eggs no problem with no sticking. The great thing about this pan is the thermal mass, heating this up takes a while but it will stay at that temperature even when you add food to it, so excellent for searing steaks. I was surprised how even the heat on this is as well, pancakes came very evenly brown (steel is not the best conductor of heat compared to aluminium or copper), I think this is due to the thickness of it.The only downside is that since it is heavy it is hard to flick or handle. Also the handle is not too ergonomic, I had an issue when tipping it to the side it would sit on a nerve in my finger and make it go numb. However holding it with a pot holder or tea towel solves this problem.Overall I really love this pan, I made a Tarte Tatin the other week and it came out beautifully. It's main strength is that you don't have to baby it, if you accidentally scratch off the seasoning you just re-season it, it won't get damaged by too much heat or putting it in the oven. I can tell this pan will last a long time.