If you’ve been following me for any amount of time, you’ve probably noticed that I’m obsessed with stainless steel pans. I almost exclusively cook with stainless steel because of how easy they are to cook with and clean and because they’re non-toxic. Just look at restaurants: they almost always use stainless steel. If it’s good enough for the crazy things being cooked in professional kitchens, it’s good enough for your home.

The vast majority of home cooks in America use nonstick cookware, and I’ve made it my mission to convert as many people to stainless steel as possible. Nonstick is my nemesis. It’s fragile, chips and stains within months, can be toxic, and you simply can’t cook as well on it because of heat restrictions.

The biggest barrier I hear people talk about is not knowing how to cook on stainless steel,so here’s your guide.

• Preheat the Pan – This is the most important step to making stainless steel essentially non stick. If you add oil and food to a stainless steel that is cold, it WILL stick. Heat your pan over medium heat, and once it is warm / hot, add the oil.
• Water Ball Test – To tell if your pan is hot enough perform what I call the water ball test. We are looking for the Leidenfrost Effect, which is when a thin layer of steam forms between the pan and water, letting it float. At this point the stainless steel pan becomes more nonstick. As the pan is heating, add a few drops of water. If the water droplets sizzle out, you need to heat your pan more. Check every 20 seconds until the water droplets dance on the surface like little water balls. Once this happens, you can add oil.
• Add Oil or Fat – Unlike a nonstick pan, you do need to use oil or fat to a stainless steel pan. Without it, food will stick. You don’t need a ton, just 1-2 tablespoons to coat the bottom of the pan.
• Add Food Once the Fat is Hot – You cannot add food right away when you add oil. If the oil is cold, food will stick. Wait until the fat is hot enough before adding the food. You will know the fat is hot enough when it moves easily and you will be able to see ripples as it moves. Add your food and it will be a breeze to cook on!

My Favorite Stainless Steel Pans:

For many years, my favorite pans were All Clad. It wasn’t until I was working in the restaurant industry during culinary school that I was introduced to Hestan pans and I was immediately converted.

Hestan’s stainless steel pans are unlike any other pan out there. Their design is absolutely incredible, with flush rivets for easy cleaning and sloped sides that make cooking so much easier. They have a few different lines that are amazing, but their NanoBond stainless steel line is by far my favorite.

These pans are scratch proof and stain proof, and even stronger than traditional stainless steel because they have titanium bonded to them. I’ve had mine for many, many years and they still look as good as new. They’re the type of pans that will last you a lifetime and can be passed down from generation to generation. Unlike other stainless steel pans that you’ll eventually need to replace, these are truly a buy once, have them for life kind of pan.

If you’re interested in checking them out, I have a discount code, “KELLYSCLEANKITCHEN10”, that will get you 10% off.