I think it's a bit disingenuous to say that any other cookware material outperforms Teflon nonstick, and actually harms the conversation when trying to convince people to switch to an alternative. Nothing is going to beat the nonstick performance a fresh nonstick pan, and that's perfectly fine. I don't need a pan so nonstick that I could start an egg in a cold pan with no oil. Well-meaning people run the risk of frustrating less experienced cooks when they assert that they'll get the exact same or better results from a stainless steel pan, which just isn't true, especially right from the start. Stainless has plenty of other benefits that make it more than worth the learning curve to use. Sometimes you want some stick, to build fond for a pan sauce. Or you need a pan that can go from stovetop to oven to finish cooking.

This post wasn't aimed at you specifically, I just wanted to vent at what I feel like has been an uptick in cookware bros flexing their ability to reduce sticking on stainless steel ("I'm so smart I name dropped this little-known thing called the Leidenfrost effect"). I quite like your video and post because they show an alternative way to reduce sticking on stainless that is definitely more forgiving for a beginner than trying to hit a specific temperature range.

It's the simplest thing in the world with a stainless pan. Bring up the heat, add in some oil, wait for it to smoke, wipe it out with a cloth, in with cold oil, add in your food. It won't stick.

Isn't teflon a cancer-causing "forever chemical"?

Don't know who needs to hear this but you don't need to season stainless steel. You just need to pre-heat it correctly for it to gain non-stick properties.

You have to pre-heat to around 400 degrees Fahrenheit before you put anything in the pan - including oil. You know its good when you drop some water in and it immediately beads up and glides across the entire surface. If it boils and evaporates, the pan is still too cold. If it beads up and starts to glide but freaks out in a certain spot, you have a cold spot in your pan. You're trying to achieve the leidenfrost effect

Keep in mind that in a lot of dishes you actually want some of the food to stick to the pan and become [frond].(https://www.thespruceeats.com/all-about-fond-995681) Then you deglaze it later with some kind of wine or stock.

Stainless steel is perfect for this kind of cooking. I've been using it exclusively for years. Its versatility and low maintenance is why all the best kitchens in the world use it.

Sis anyone else watch the video? I was waiting for his”spot seasoning method” until I saw just how much oil he used to cook and egg without sticking to his wok. Dude lost all credibility right there, and I quit watching

I prefer carbon steel. You get the same seasoning of cast iron and easy care, but it’s lighter so it heats more quickly and evenly. It’s a bit more expensive than cast iron but much cheaper than an All-Clad stainless pan.

I only use stainless for acidic foods, like tomato sauces.

I appreciate that people have found solutions for avoiding materials that can become dangerous when overheated. I, too, have gone on PFOA-free journeys.

But oh my god, that egg is swimming in oil! I don't want that many calories, and I don't want to feel a greasy egg in my mouth.

I understand this solution is great for many people, and they should be proud and happy that they have reached their Teflon-free goals.

But as a person who can't digest high amounts of fats without consequences and watches their calories, this is only a solution for people who love bathing their food in oil. I also avoid saturated fats, which are superior for their non-stick properties. I want to use olive oil, nothing else.

But fine, I will try it on my stainless pan and see what happens. Olive oil, heat to smoke, wipe, then a small amount of olive oil again for normal cooking.

If it works I'll be thrilled. If not, back to my trusty teflons that never fail me. Wish me luck! Got any more tips?

I need my pans that need to be treated like a princess and then fail anyway in a few years and need to be thrown and replaced. I need to keep doing it cause those poor people at teflon plants cant have a job creating one of the most polluting chemicals out there

Don't properly nonstick pans mostly not use teflon anymore anyway?

Can someone link to the actual fucking article describing how to do the spot seasoning method?

I keep seeing people urging to go back to cast iron or stainless steel, but when I left the nest 5 years ago, I picked up ceramic pans, and you can use them the same way as teflons and I have yet to lose the nonstick.

Recipe:

1 egg

3/4 cup of your favorite oil

1 medium banana

1 pinch lemon zest

Put oil in pan over medium high heat until oil just smokes, allow to smoke for 15 seconds, then reduce temperature to "egg making temperature". Add egg. Burn the shit out of that innocent bastard and push it around while repeating "egg slide freely!". Remove your egg with a crispy, brown bottom and wet, runny whites from the skillet. Reserve oil.

Into one large coffee mug, pour your oil, add lemon zest.

Last, throw all this in the trash with your Teflon skillet, and eat the banana.

“a stainless… steel… WOK.”

I’m going to need a supercut of this guy saying “WOK”.

Bought a carbon steel pan - never looked back, it is excellent and lasts forever!

my seasoning flaked off and it became metallic appearance. I was struggling with obtaining stable seasoning, but found a reddit post that suggesting Blueing process. You heat-up your clean wok a lot with no-oil the iron reacts with oxygen to form magnetite Fe3O4 which holds seasoning much better. After you blue your wok, you season it by heating up some oil, but generally it seasons itself diring usage. If something starts sticking, more oil and more heat usually does the job.

Wok with Tak is an awesome channel. It's one of those "Bob Ross" style channels that show up every now and then. Full of good information and some decent recipes.

Even easier, heat the stainless steel pan until water balls up and skitters/rolls across it instead of evaporating.

Add oil and you can fry an egg on that pan

For the majority of cooking? Yes, you don't need a non-stick pan. A properly used steel (or even aluminum) pan will work. Cast Iron is obviously loved but Carbon Steel is actually what most people want and has almost all of the same properties. But properly oiling your pan (and I actually love cooking sprays for dishes where I am using a neutral oil. Glug of "real" oil, get it up to temp, and then give a quick spritz just to make sure EVERYTHING is coated) and cooking at a high enough heat that your proteins can properly react and not "stick" to the pan will get you almost the entire way.

That said? Eggs and fish. Eggs very much are in that "nobody ever complained about too much butter" category but there is a lot to be said about a quick egg without any additional fats. And if you are cooking eggs these days, you can afford a 20 dollar specialty pan.... And fish in particular is the kind of food where it is very easy to overcook it while waiting for all the appropriate reactions to occur so you can cleanly flip it.

If I were to downsize my kitchen (which I hopefully will be doing in a few months...)? That shit goes in the appropriate bin. But if you have the space? A 20-ish dollar restaurant supply store non-stick pan is AMAZING. And cheap enough that you can afford to get rid of it the moment you see any scratching.

What's the consensus on ceramic pots? They seem to be easier for nonstick and I don't think they have the same issues as Teflon.

I never used teflon because I read somewhere that you mustn’t heat it up to a certain point. I just used stainless steel all my life until I got a cast iron skillet.

Still use the stainless steel pan for 97% of cooking