When I first got this pan, I was extremely excited. I love my cast iron, and this seemed like the natural step up. So imagine my surprise when I tried to season it like cast iron, and then with the first thing I cooked, the seasoning flaked, the food stuck to the bottom, and my fingertips were bleeding and pruned from having to attack it with steel wool.
Naturally I began to hate it. But not wanting to write off my expensive new purchase, I decided to do a little research. Skeptical, I seasoned it by puttting a couple cups of grapeseed oil, a few cups of salt, and a handful of potato peels in the bottom, put it on the heat, and waited for the oil to smoke. Let it cool back down slowly by reducing the heat a tiny bit every few minutes. Let it rest until it was completely cool, then poured off the weird concoction I had seasoned it with into a jug for proper disposal. Wiped it clean with a piece of cheesecloth and then set it aside for a while, not wanting a repeat of the first experience.
Finally the day came when I wanted to cook crepes. Lacking a dedicated crepe pan, I pulled this behemoth from the cabinet. For good measure, I filmed it with some oil, heated it to smoking, then turned the heat down to a more appropriate crepe cooking temperature.
And holy cow, best crepe cooking experience ever. Being carbon steel, the bottom doesn't warp the way aluminum non stick pans do, leaving me with perfectly flat, thin crepes. No sticking or tearing. Now this beast is my go to saute pan.
It is definitely the only piece of kitchen equipment I have ever owned that will let you know immediately, and with emphasis, when you are not treating it right. If you don't film it with oil when you are done with it, it will rust. If you don't film it with oil and heat it to smoking before you cook, your food will probably stick. It looks ugly as it patinas. Acidic food will destroy your patina if it is not sufficiently well established. But if you treat it right, and give it the respect and maintenance that it is due, it will be the last and only saute pan you will ever need. It will not warp, it distributes heat evenly through its thick base, it retains heat like cast iron. Now that I know what I am doing, I can't believe I ever used anything else.
For:
1. People who are passionate about cooking
2. People who have the patience to maintain it properly. All in all, this is not any more time than it takes to scrub a traditional pan, but it is different, forcing you to develop new habits around its use.
3. People who cook a lot. This thing is an investment, and will outlast just about anything else in your kitchen. Your great-grand kids will be using this pan, and will likely pass it down to their great-grand kids.
Not for:
1. People who lack the time/patience to initially season it and let it develop a good patina prior to making marinara sauce
2. People who can't lift heavy things (seriously, this thing weighs probably 12 pounds)
3. People who don't cook that often. It needs regular use to really begin to shine.
4. People who want super attractive, clean looking cookware. While this thing develops its patina, it is one of the ugliest looking pans I have ever used. Now that I have used it a ton, the bottom is a handsome matte black, but the sides look, well, less than appealing.
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