Customer Reviews

Paderno Heavy Duty Carbon Steel 9.5 Inch Frying Pan

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

My husband is an Alton Brown (Food Network) fan. Alton said that carbon steel pans were great so I decided to get one for my husband. I bought a Paderno Heavy Duty Carbon Steel Frying Pan, World Cuisine brand from Amazon and a Matfer brand Black Steel Omelet Pan from another retailer. The Matfer Black Steel Pan was more expensive. More expensive is usually better. It wasn't better. I conditioned both pans in an identical process according to the three step conditioning recommendations that I found online--(oil, heat in oven, wipe out with paper towels and lots of salt to get the stickiness out; oil, heat on the stovetop, wipe with paper towels and no salt; oil, heat on stovetop, fry potato peelings). I even repeated the potato cooking process a second time, switching burners because there was an enormous difference in quality and I didn't want to dislike an expensive new pan when the fault might have been my stovetop. By the time I was done with the potatoes, I could tell a huge difference. The potatoes in the Paderno/World Cuisine pan were crispy on both sides, they didn't stick to the pan at all and they were of the quality of what you could expect at a restaurant. In the Matfer Black Steel Omelet pan that I bought from a different website, the potatoes got a little crispy and then proceeded to get mushy. No matter how long I cooked them, which burner I cooked them on or how high the heat was, they just became mushier and lost their texture, whereas the potatoes in the Paderno/World Cuisine Carbon Steel pan got crispier with more cooking but didn't burn. The potatoes stuck to the Matfer Black Steel Pan in spots and I had to scrape it to get the potatoes off of the pan. The Paderno/World Cuisine Pan didn't stick at all, like a teflon pan. Another thing I noticed was that the Matfer Black Steel pan seemed to concentrate its heat in a 4" radius in the center, whereas the Paderno/World Cuisine carbon steel pan spread the heat out evenly. I look forward to using the Paderno pan and will probably not use the Matfer black steel pan very often.

I am a big fan of these carbon steel pans. They season much the same as cast iron pans and need to be taken care of in the same manner as cast iron. Once they are nicely seasoned they are virtualy non-stick. They distribute heat very rapidly and evenly and work well on any burner surface from gas to induction glass top. They are perfect for sticking into the oven or running something under the broiler. The big advantage over cast iron is the long handle that makes them much easier to lift and handle, these pans are heavy, and the shape with the rounded sides.

If you screw up the seasoning by burning something, simply run the pan through a cycle of a self cleaning oven. All the accumulated grease and crud will come off, rinse off and carefully dry. The pan will be as new and will need to be re-seasoned much as a brand new pan. With a minum of care these pans last a lifetime.

Do not confuse these pans with much less expensive and much lighter weight French style steel pans. Those heat unevenly and get hot spots.

These are really nicely built pans. I got the 12.5 and the 7.25 and both are great. I will say however that the 12.5 is really big and the 7.25 is about the size of one cracked egg in the bottom. If I were to do this order again I would get the next size up and down from these sizes for more average sized pans. This has nothing to do with the quality of the item. It is a very good pan.

This pan is very heavy duty. I bought the 12.5 inch pan. I bought it because we are getting rid of our teflon nonstick pans for good. I considered cast iron, but I did not like the rough surface the new ones have and the weight. Carbon steel pans season just like cast iron, but are extremely smooth and not as heavy. Ironically the cast iron pans our grandmother's used (Griswald especially) were lighter in weight and were very smooth, similar to this carbon steel pan. I like heavy cast iron pans, but anything over 12 inches is way too heavy especially once the pan is full of food. Tip on seasoning. wash pan well with soap and water and dry well. over high heat, heat pan until it darkens (you will have to move pan around some to get the corners and sides). Cool to medium low. Cut a potato in half and rub the cut side all around (it might smoke some). Potato starch acts like a glue which helps hold the layer of oil on the pan. If you did not do this, the layer of oil will begin to flake with repeated use. Some people will fry bacon or other food stuff, then scrape it clean and season it. Then rub a very thin film of oil in pan (I use flaxseed oil that you get at healthfood stores. And I mean thin, pretty much wipe it all out. I prefer flaxseed oil because it polymerizes extremely well) and heat for 30-40 minutes and cool. VERY IMPORTANT use a flat metal spatula and scrape the pan (not too hard, but how you would flip food in normal use. Repeat the potato rub and then the oil rub and spatula scraping to smooth the surface (high heat is not required at this point). now it is ready to use It will look uneven for awhile, but with repeated use and repeated seasoning, it will turn jet black and have a dullish shiny surface. To clean, most things will simply wipe clean. If some food sticks, I salt the pan and use the salt as abrasive, then wipe clean. Don't be afraid to quickly use soap and water if things stick really bad, just dry it out and wipe a thin film of oil. Keep using the metal spatula!!!!!!!

I've been around enough chefs in my life to know that "carbon steel" equals "Hardcore" in the kitchen, from pans to knives, etc. But it was only recently that I decided to go Hardcore in the pan department, having been a bit intimated by the seasoning and maintenance responsibilities. Not sure why, since I've had my trusty cast iron pans for years, and the commitment is pretty much the same. The Paderno 12.5" has become an almost mystical object in our kitchen. It really seems to have a certain magical property with proteins in particular. Seared at high heat, and then thrown into the oven, steaks, burgers, pork tenderloin,salmon, etc. come out just amazing. This pan also seems to have a particular affinity for eggs, and makes truly profound omelets. This size is quite large and hefty, and I plan on adding a smaller size or two, but it serves well for dinner for two, with ample room for dinner for four. As for the anxiety over seasoning and maintenance, it was all for naught. Wash it, dry it, rub it with oil, and give it some time in the oven. Don't cook anything particularly liquid or acidic in it right away, reserving it for animal proteins / fats during it's initiation. It soon develops a miraculous non-stick, easy clean surface that will have you suspecting some sort of witchcraft. Beats the pants off *non-stick* environmentally unfriendly coatings. It's also very responsive to temperature / burner change settings, allowing for very fine heat control ( I speak only for gas stoves). You can easily pay the same price for a crap non-stick pan that is destined for the land fill after a year or two of duty, Why not treat yourself to a genuine quality item, that will last virtually forever, and make you feel all Chef-like and stuff?a

If you want polished and shiny pans to impress others, then this isn't for you. But, if you want the best tool for cooking good food, this is what you want. It takes a little care, but not that much, and it won't wear out, ever. I had never even heard of carbon (or blue) steel pans until recently, I could have saved money if I had. I've lost track of how many non-stick pans I've bought and thrown out over the years -- never again. Seasoning these is even easier than cast iron -- oil, heat, cool and wipe, is pretty much all it takes. If you don't put it away wet and it won't rust. To summarize: inexpensive, indestructible, excellent at low to high temperature, perfect shape, non-stick when seasoned properly, and easy to care for. So what if it's not shiny?

I'd never heard of these carbon steel pans before; I stumbled onto them while researching Amazon for a stainless steel AllClad pan ("customers who bought this item also bought..." etc.). I thought I'd try one just to see what it was like, and it's been a real treat. The thing is solid, that's for sure--it weighs 5 pounds--which means nice, even heating and great results when searing/browning. And it really is virtually non-stick, without any toxic coatings. It cleans up easily with water and a Dobie pad (no soap, that will undo the seasoning). I've enjoyed it so much I ordered another one, the next size up, and would use carbon steel exclusively except I've read that deglazing the pan with, say, wine, will eat away the seasoning. So I'll still need to rely on a stainless steel pan for sauces and braising, but the carbon steel has become a mainstay for me.

This is a first impressions review. I just received the pan yesterday. This is my first carbon steel pan, but I'm a long-time cast iron user. The pan is beautiful and looks like it will be indestructible. I think it would stop a bullet. It's pretty heavy. The 9.5 inch pan actually weighs a bit more than my 8 inch cast iron skillet. I don't mind that, as it makes for an even-heating pan. It seasoned beautifully, and this morning I made an omelet in it, which cooked perfectly with no sticking. Since nobody makes a decent cast iron skillet any more (by decent, I mean one with a smooth machined cooking surface; Lodge and other new ones available have the rough sand-cast finish), this seems to be a very good alternative. The long riveted handle doesn't get nearly as hot as the cast iron handles. Even when I was seasoning on the burner, with the pan much hotter than it would be for normal cooking, I was able to pick it up bare handed, which is not something I would want to try with a cast iron skillet.

Our relationship with this pan got off to a rocky start. First try at seasoning we burned everything, including the sticker on the bottom. The second try went better but the pan was sticky and the seasoning kept flaking off. Take 3, we stopped using vegetable oil, got some peanut oil and seasoned it on the stove four or five times. Enter the magic.

This pan warms up really quickly, responds to changing the heat,and heats evenly. It is practically non-destructible and can be used at high heat or for batting people on the head(thanks Tangled). This pan won't buckle when you drop it, turn the burner on high, or put in the sink after using (all of which I've had experience with).

Also, it really is non-stick. It's much better than the store seasoned cast iron. Scrambling eggs, cooking pancakes, frying ham, sausage, etc... nothing has stuck. To test, I fried some sausage in this pan and in a cheaper stainless steel pan at the same time, next to each other, in order to compare. This pan heated faster, cooked more evenly, stuck not at all (which that blasted stainless does no matter how much i preheat and use butter), and spat less grease at me. I think because it doesn't have hot spots this pan is less inclined to shower molten lava, hot grease, or invectives.

All this has made this pan my go to pan for cooking, well, just about everything. I have the 9.5in pan which is hefty but not depressingly heavy. It is however, only about 6.75in wide at the bottom. This makes it a little smaller than I'd wanted and so my wife will probably get the 11in pan for her birthday, probably an early birthday present. However, despite the size, this is still the pan i reach for when its time to cook.

I ended up buying this because of a roomie situation where cookware was not cleaned and most of the frying pans that were clean were teflon and flaking. Uh, I was scared. Since most of the cookware I adored in the past I could no longer afford, I just assumed I'd end up being disappointed with this pan, but I was willing to deal with the shortcomings in order not to have teflon flakes in my food. I honestly bought this simply because I felt my roomie would not be willing to put in the effort to keep it up and I would always have a good pan. So, falling in love with this thing was a delightful surprise.

Tonight, I seasoned it (and after researching for a bunch on the internet learned that uneven coloring isn't horrific; the pan is UGLY right now) and fried an egg. Well, dang. Perfect. I want more pans in more sizes. It takes upkeep. But, this thing was better than the scary nonstick, after one seasoning. I did end up using seasoning recommendations off of the web that advised using the oven for longer periods of time, and I think it's spot on. It's this odd (read: WONDERFUL) combination of the food not sticking, and it not being so slippery that you lose control. It ain't pretty (and I ADORE pretty), but I'm hooked. I'm thinking the silicon handle sleeves would be advantageous, as the handles get damn hot. I'm also waiting for the day when someone comes out with an awesome pan that doesn't have exposed rivets. They are SUCH a pain, but haven't seen good pans without this.

I can deal with the heat up the handles, having to buy a sleeve...my only reservation from keeping this a 5 star is that the rivets were not totally flush with the pan. Yes, I want the whole rivet thing solved, but if we are dealing with rivets, having a gap there that can collect gunk and such is a huge turn-off. The rivets were far from flush, and left it impossible to assign 5 stars.