Best for: Almost any food that needs frying, browning, or searing. Because it’s ovenproof, stainless is also a good choice for foods that you start on the stovetop and then move to the oven to finish, like thick pork chops.

The details: Nitahara says that 95 percent of the pans used in the CIA’s teaching kitchens are stainless steel because they can take a lot of punishment. “The only time we don’t use them is on egg day, when we use nonstick,” he says. He adds that the shiny surface of a stainless pan makes it easy to see whether your food is browning.

In CR’s tests of stainless steel pans, we measure heating evenness by cooking pancakes, and we gauge how evenly a pan sautés by cooking potatoes until they’re tender. We also conduct a cleaning test to see how easy it is to remove cooked-on food. You’d think that all stainless pans would be about the same to clean, but our tests show that some require a lot more scrubbing than others.

Here are two recommended stainless steel pans from CR’s tests.

Uses of Sizzling Plates:

Can You Put a Cast Iron Skillet in the Dishwasher?

Another notion is that they were created during World War II when steel was short. Cast iron skillets with enamel were produced as an alternative, making them weigh less than typical pans and pots during those days.

Aluminum is lightweight but strong and doesn't warp when exposed to high heat. Since they're such good conductors of heat, aluminum frying pans are great for frying and sautéing foods. The main drawback of aluminum is that it reacts with alkaline and acidic foods. This causes corrosion and leads to leaching of the metal into the food, which acquires a metallic taste.

In order to achieve the balance of perfectly crispy skin and tender, flaky interior without sticking, fish should be prepared in a pan with superior temperature control and retention. Our 5-ply Stainless Clad base distributes heat evenly and effectively, promising flaky fillets and crispy skin without running the risk of overcooking.