My frying pan is the most reached-for implement in my kitchen (other than the kettle). And I don’t just mean to fry things. I use it to steam, simmer, roast, toast, grill and bake things, too. I’ve had to replace its glass lid, but the pan itself – a Le Creuset cast-iron round skillet – has survived being used daily for a decade, and I’d honestly be quite lost without it.
I’ve focused on Pfas-free frying pans here, for obvious reasons. Ceramic has often been held up as the best non-toxic alternative to problematic non-stick and to be sure, when new, these coatings are quite superbly non-stick. However, manufacturers’ claims that increasingly popular “quasi-ceramic” coatings are “non-toxic” are coming under scrutiny in the US. With that in mind, if sustainability and avoiding toxicity are top priorities for you, it may in fact be best to rethink how much you need non-stick.
