Make Stainless Steel Great Again or How to Use Stainless Steel Skillets Like They Are Non-Stick

We have lost a lot of skills with the onset of technology. Non-stick cookware has been around so long that most people don't know the proper technique for cooking in stainless steel skillets. Stainless steel is probably the safest, cleanest way to cook, provided you maintain the pan. I'm going to walk you through using a stainless steel skillet in such a way as to eliminate the need for non-stick coatings.

For equipment, you will need:

1. A stainless steel skillet. I will be using a 10" 3-ply from Henckels.
2. A paper towel to clean the water out of the skillet.
3. Hot pads. Mine are from Dollar Tree.
4. A silicone basting brush that will take temperatures up to 400°F.
5. Because someone will troll me if I don't mention it, you will also need a heat source, such as a stove top.
6. A slotted turner. When I was a kid, we used to call this a spatula.

For ingredients, you will need:

1. Water.
2. Oil. I use olive oil.
3. Something to cook. I am using a tuna steak; it was cheaper than a dozen eggs.

Put the skillet on your heat source, and turn on the heat to medium-high.

Use the water to test if the skillet is hot enough. Place a few drops of water into the skillet. If the water boils off, the skillet isn't hot enough yet. The water should bounce around the pan like marbles, which I tried to show in the second picture. That is when you know the pan is hot enough. Before going to the next step, use a paper towel to soak up the water.

This is an important step that most people skip. TURN DOWN THE HEAT! If the pan stays too hot, then the oil will catch fire or burn before you even add the food.

Pour your oil into the pan. You don't need a lot, just enough to coat the bottom of the pan. What is in the pan is a little too much. Now, coat the bottom of the skillet by either rotating the pan (like in the pictures) or by using a heat-safe silicone basting brush. If, when you cook, there is spattering hot oil, then you used too much. Use less next time.

Add your food to the pan. DON'T TRY TO MOVE IT! Initially, the food will stick to the bottom of the pan. This is because the proteins are heating up. As they do, they start to form bonds with other proteins instead of the pan. Eggs will stick quickly because of the thin layer of proteins, while veggies won't stick as much because they are relatively lower in protein. Be patient, and let the proteins process before going in with your spatula. In the pictured example, my tuna steak released without sticking after less than 2 minutes of cooking. Flip or stir your food to make sure all sides sear and it cooks evenly. Just remember that it will stick again on flipping because those proteins aren't processed yet.

DO NOT put your stainless steel in the dishwasher. Most dishwasher detergents have abrasives (read that as "sand") which will pit the surface of your skillet. The best thing to do is allow the skillet to cool completely, soak the pan in warm water with Dawn or other grease-lifting detergent, then clean with a non-stick-safe sponge, such as a Dobie. Occasionally you may need to use a little bit of Bar Keeper's Friend to deep clean the surface, but this should be done only when necessary. Another tip: Keep an old toothbrush at your sink to get into those tight areas around the handles and rivets.

I have used a variety of pans in my 55 years of cooking, both at home and in a commercial kitchen. Aluminum damages too easily. Teflon wears out quickly. My ceramic-coated pans started to chip after less than 2 years, becoming unsafe to use with food. (Who wants to eat ceramic pot chips?) When I worked Bristol Renaissance Faire, I cooked in a lot of cast iron, including a 10-gallon cauldron. It takes a lot of time to keep cast iron properly seasoned and ready for cooking, and I am not inspired enough by the results to allocate that time. Even my enameled cast iron has disappointed by becoming stained and/or chipped.

With stainless steel, there are no coatings to chip, and a little elbow grease is all that is needed to keep them clean and functional. I even bought a 2-gallon, full-clad, heavy-bottom, 3-ply, stainless-steel stock pot to replace my enameled Dutch oven for making soups and stews. This cost me only $25 at Target. Will your first uses of stainless come out looking this good. Of course not! You have to practice the technique and learn from your missteps, just like any other skill.

All things considered, I am extremely happy with my stainless steel cookware. If you are serious about fewer chemicals in your life and don't mind a little occasional scrubbing, you should consider it as well.