ISO induction-friendly frying pan (gift)

[TdeV]

Gift recipient is getting older, so cast iron is too darn heavy.

 

Suggestions?

[lemniscate]

All the frying pans I have seen at IKEA recently are "cooktop agnostic" meaning induction ready.   They range in price for $4.99 to $80 depending on size and materials.   I have had pretty good results with the mid price pans on all my cooktops, induction and traditional.

[weinoo]

Everyone I know who uses them likes the Made In cookware.

 

https://madeincookware.com/products/stainless-steel-frying-pan/10-inch

[Laurentius]

How much do you want to spend, and does your giftee hand wash?  Also, what size are you considering?

[JoNorvelleWalker]

16 hours ago, TdeV said:

Gift recipient is getting older, so cast iron is too darn heavy.

 

Suggestions?

 

Is a wok close enough to a frying pan?  If so I can recommend WANGYUANJI:

(eG-friendly Amazon.com link)

 

I've used mine three times and so far it hasn't needed cleaning.  The pan is very light.

 

[TdeV]

On 11/23/2024 at 9:46 PM, Laurentius said:

How much do you want to spend, and does your giftee hand wash?  Also, what size are you considering?

 

Not sure about price. All pans are handwashed, yes? Somewhere between 10 and 12 inches.

[TdeV]

Tthe Wirecutter (NYT) review website is negative about 5 ply cookware, which they say is slow to heat up. Not sure how important that is? (Made In is 5 ply). @weinoo ?

 

I don't think they would accept a wok in place of a frying pan, @JoNorvelleWalker.

 

 

Edited November 27, 2024 by TdeV
Just attractin' attention. (log)

[Laurentius]

2 hours ago, TdeV said:

All pans are handwashed, yes? Somewhere between 10 and 12 inches.

 

Um, no. A huge % of the pan-buying public is addicted to automatic dishwashers.  If your giftee is among them, the choices for the best (and lightest ones) narrow.

 

If s/he is a hand washer, the next question in the algorithm is what is the household's stovetop heat source.

[TdeV]

@Laurentius, I think they have moved to, or hoping to move to induction.

 

i never saw cooking pans in their dishwasher (some years ago). (Do old dogs develop new tricks?)

 

Wirecutter also says that clad cookware makes a whining noise on induction. (I have All Clad cookware which doesn't make a whining noise, but I'm not on induction 😜)

 

TIA.

 

 

[Laurentius]

18 hours ago, TdeV said:

Wirecutter also says that clad cookware makes a whining noise on induction.

 

Take that with a grain of salt.  I would bet the farm this noisemaking had as much to do with the hob as it did the pan.  All-Clad has good manufacturing, and many giftees are thrilled to get one.  If you go that route, I would stick with the D3 line--no point in spending for pricier lines.  Pick the handle option carefully.

 

Since we're on clad, there are many other makers who do triply on a par with DC at lower prices.  Cuisinart French Classic is one.  Tramontina is also a good entrant.

 

Up a couple clad rungs are the offerings from Demeyere and Fissler.  These would be slightly heavier because they are thicker (thicker is almost always better on induction).

 

Nonstick is sort of a wildcard.  I would only buy a NS skillet for eggs and other low heat applications.  There is one premium pan I would except from this, Demeyere's ControlInduc.  It features technology that prevents the pan from getting too hot.  This is very useful, especially for aged and forgetful cooks.

 

There are many more options.  How advanced a cook is the giftee?

[Rickbern]

Demeyere is kinda heavy for someone getting older. I’d bet the fissler disc base stuff is a good option, when my gas was disconnected for a few months my favorite pan on portable induction was a fissler 24 cm saute pan. I’d give their frying pans a shot. That thick base really preforms well on induction, $100 less and a pound and a half lighter than Demeyere. 

 

https://www.fissler.com/us/p/pure-collection-frying-pan-11-inch/

Edited November 29, 2024 by Rickbern (log)

[Rickbern]

Also, carbon steel really works well for induction, it’s just as good as cast iron. When I turned 65 or so I got rid of all my old cast iron and replaced it with carbon steel. Much easier to handle. 

[Laurentius]

6 hours ago, Rickbern said:

Also, carbon steel really works well for induction, it’s just as good as cast iron.

 

Well, if you mean "works" in the sense of being efficiently induced in the magnetic field, yes.  And neither works very well at spreading the intrinsically uneven heat from induction.

 

Regarding the weight of Demeyere skillets, not all lines are heavy.  Alupro is light, as I believe ControlInduc is.  Certainly not as heavy as Atlantis or Proline.

[scubadoo97]

I own a lot of Darto carbon steel pans.  And unlike cast iron I’m hoping they will do well on our new induction stove top and not scratch the surface.  Looking at mats for our Wolf induction range top.   I know you can use paper towels but my wife said she would kill me if I scratch the cook top 😬

[JoNorvelleWalker]

On 11/27/2024 at 4:45 PM, TdeV said:

Tthe Wirecutter (NYT) review website is negative about 5 ply cookware, which they say is slow to heat up. Not sure how important that is? (Made In is 5 ply). @weinoo ?

 

I don't think they would accept a wok in place of a frying pan, @JoNorvelleWalker.

 

 

 

This may be too late to be useful but I have been evaluating an 11 inch frying pan from WANGYUANJI, the same company whose wok I suggested earlier.

(eG-friendly Amazon.com link)

 

Earlier today I used the WANGYUANJI to make an omelet.  Results were as good as with the non-stick pan I usually use for omelets.  I recently evaluated a more expensive Made In carbon steel frying pan but did not care for it as much.  Both pans were used on induction.  Alas, my Darto pans all rusted.

 

Lastly, the WANGYUANJI pans and woks come in gift boxes.  A nice touch (that may indicate the pans are overpriced).