Why I Season A Stainless Steel Pan Part 2
I love cooking on stainless steel pans, but it took some practice and some tips and tricks to get the hang of using these wonderful pans.
A few months ago, I posted a video and post about Buying and Cooking Tips For Stainless Steel Pans.
In this video I showed you how to preheat your pan and then I added some coconut oil followed by adding my egg mixture and demonstrated how to cook your eggs in a stainless steel pan without having them stick all over the pan.
When A Video Becomes Popular
This video became quite popular and I started to get quite a few tips (good and bad ones), but one stood out to me!
One person commented that you can season a stainless steel pan to create a naturally occurring non stick skillet in less then 5 minutes. This individual also stated that I wouldn’t need to use oils/butters to cook my eggs in, and that the pan would no longer stick.
What? For real? So you know me, I got one of my stainless steel pans out and proceeded with the instructions. I was amazed!
Such little effort and he was right, my pan no longer sticks!! I promise you, after watching this video, you too will be seasoning your stainless steel pans!
A Step By Step Approach To Season A Stainless Steel Pan
Here are the simple steps to create a naturally occurring non stick stainless steel pan!
- On medium to medium high heat, heat your pan for 2-3 minutes.
- Melt a little coconut oil or other high heat oil in your pan and swirl the oil around to evenly coat the pan. Allow the oil to smoke (don’t worry, we will be tossing this oil out)! Once the oil has smoked, turn off your burner and remove pan from heat source and allow to cool completely. You know your pan is seasoned and ready if you can see your mirror reflection of yourself in the pan (more details are in the video about this).
- Once the pan has cooled, pour out the oil and wipe the pan out with a paper towel. You now have a seasoned nonstick stainless steel pan.
- I am going to give you an example on how to cook an omelette in your seasoned pan. Simply preheat your pan on medium low heat for 2 minutes. Pour your egg mixture into your pan with no oil at all! Add desired ingredients (cheese, meat, veggies). Allow the eggs to cook for several minutes without disturbing. After a few minutes, flip you eggs and allow to cook another minute or two. Your eggs will slip right out of the pan, no sticking! (You can view this in the video as well). There is no need to ever wash the pan with soap, just wipe out with a paper towel as nothing will stick in the pan, cleanup takes about 10 seconds. This method is very similar to seasoning your cast iron skillet or wok. As long as you don’t use soap on your pan, your pan will remain nonstick. If you are using higher heat, you might need to add a little bit of oil.
That is it! So easy and no mess! Give it a try, you will be amazed!
Stainless Steel Pans That I Recommend
One last thing, not all stainless steel pans are created equal! Quality is really important when buying stainless steel pans.
I personally have this entire collection of stainless steel pans from All-Clad and absolutely love them! Think of it as an investment. These pans will last you a lifetime!
- If you are looking to try out a piece of all-clad, I highly recommend starting with this one! All-Clad Stainless 10-Inch Fry Pan
- If you are looking to buy a whole set, this is a great option: All-Clad Stainless Steel 3-Ply Bonded 10-Piece Cookware Set
✰ One last thing…there is an incredible sale going on over at Amazon right now! Get 43% OFF an entire set of 10-piece cookware set! Get the details here! (please note sale can end at any time…I do not have control of Amazons sales). ✰
How To Season A Stainless Steel Pan Video
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Wow! I had no idea. I’ve always thought only cast iron was capable of this. Thank you for such an informative post.
Great idea. I bought the entire set of Emeril cookware because it’s made by All Clad and is cheaper than the branded All Clad cookware. The other thing I love about my set is that it has glass lids vice the solid stainless steel lids. I absolutely love, love. love my cookware. I accidentally boiled a pot dry once and I thought for sure it was a total loss, but after soaking it with a thick baking soda paste, it cleaned up perfectly and looks brand new! It pays to have good, sturdy cookware! 😀
I love this idea, but isn’t there some sort of concert about bacteria being on the pan from only being wiped clean, and not being soaped? I suppose I have the same concern about cast-iron pots like that, if you could reply about this, that would be great. Thanks!
Sounds great, but I have a concern. One of my children has a very severe dairy allergy. Usually I cook anything with cheese (eggs for example) I add it at the very end after taking out his portion. If I do not wash the pan well after cooking with the cheese or whatever it might be, am I posing a cross contamination risk the next time I cook something for him? I’m def too scared to try this out without gathering all the information first and learning more. Anyone?
Can anyone tell me if they have used the seasoned pan with steak? How well has it cleaned up after frying steak at a reasonably high temp to get the outside nice and brown and not a wishy washy grey colour….?
This would work great. The pan will get tidbits that will adhere to the bottom and that is fine. When your steak is to the desired doneness, take it off and deglaze the pan and make a delicious sauce. The pan will clean right up!
I have a question about re-using the pan without washing. I know there’s nothing left in the pan, but I would think the contact with raw food would leave some kind of residue that even after you wipe it out could cause someone to get sick when it’s re-used if not washed…. any thoughts?
Why would you be worried about raw food in a cooking pan. First this method requires that you pre heat the pan this would kill any bacteria on the surface of the pan (from previous cooking or from just the air around us). Then the raw food you are putting in the pan is being cooked killing all the bacteria on its surface and tuning it into cooked food , no longer raw. Heat cleans much better than any soap or detergent you would use.
Wow. Great post. But wondering the pan if not washed, doesn’t it collect bacteria/ germs?
I have thick pan for making Dosa (indian pancakes). Ever since I started using ghee/ coconut oil, it sticks to the pan and I cannot take out pancakes (tried onion/ paper towel/ more oil, waited until its hot enough before pouring batter etc.,) any idea how to deal with it? It is I think cast Iron (very heavy and 25yrs old)
Be careful doing this. I let my pan get too hot and when I put the coconut oil in it burst into flames and ruined my favorite pan.
In the video it says to heat the pan on high. I did and got a grease fire in my pan and my stainless steel pan is toast. This might work if you follow the written instructions and don’t pay attention to the video. The lady on the video says high heat while the instructions say medium. I wanted to post this as a warning to all the other folks like me that ain’t too bright.
This is tougher than it looks. I’m sure it’s user error. I don’t know what I’m doing wrong yet. I appreciate the comments from others who, like me, were having trouble but got it to work. Nice to read the troubleshooting, so I’ll keep trying. I have an all clad omelette pan, an apt size gas stove, and have tried flaxseed oil (fail), then after a scrub w/ bartenders friend, used coconut oil (fail). This next time I’ll focus carefully on pan heat.
Make sure you are preheating your pan over medium heat for a minute before adding in any oil. Once the pan is preheated THEN add the oil and continue on with cooking whatever it is you desire. Preheating is key.
I’ve also been having difficulty seasoning my SS. I did it two times carefully following the video instructions. I had a mirror finish and everything, but when I used the pan the egg still stuck with extreme prejudice. I read the comments here and saw that pan heat is critical, so I re-seasoned the pan and heated it until the water drop rolled around like mercury. As soon as the egg hit the pan….STUCK. I’m at a loss.
the music is distracting
noted