J. A Henckels Frying Pan

[Cyrano]

My 8 year old frying pan was beginning to lose its 'no stick' quality after almost daily use. I came home with a J. A. Henckels Zwilling pan with a blue, ceramic coating. it's said to be 3mm thick. Works fine, so far. Anybody have any experience with one of these things? I wonder about things like whether it is brittle enough that the coating will crack if dopped.

 

[Big Stick]

I have several of their knives, many dating back to my cheffing days. Never knew they were in the pan bidness.... Got any pics?

 

[Roadtrash]

I would think that it would crack if dropped or at least chip depending on how it fell and landed.

 

[Texas Star]

I really miss real US-made Revere Ware, stainless with copper bottoms. They quit making it about 1995. Might get lucky and find some at a garage/yard sale.

But that's mainly for pots and pans. I use a skillet that needs replacing, with Teflon ? coating. Doesn't stick, but I wonder if it may cause cancer, especially now that the coating is worn. ??

I have knives by Henckels. Didn't know they made skillets. I think Ed. Wusthof, also from Solingen, makes better kitchen knives, but Henckels are excellent. I have one of their International knives made in China, presumably of German steel. It seems as good as those from Solingen. But if I buy a Henckels knife, I want it to be German, not Chinese. Still, Target had it marked down to about $30 a few years ago, and it's been a terrific value.

 

[Tom S.]

"Limited lifetime manufacturer's warranty; 2-year manufacturer's warranty on ceramic coating."

That scares me. What good is a pan with a lifetime warranty if the inside is only warrantied for 2 years?

 

[chaparrito]

I call the teflon non-stick pans "disposable cookware" because they're going in the trash sooner or later when the coating fails. Then there's the issue of eating little bits of Teflon and breathing its fumes from overheated pans.
The ceramic coatings are marginally better. I got curious and bought a little saute pan with that coating about a year ago. Different label but the same coating. Ceramic, supposedly very durable and no PTFE to worry about or flake off. Cooking ONLY omelettes in the pan it worked very well for a while, but the surface did eventually change. Little pits and divits appeared, I guess from the steel spat I'd sometimes use. I am reasonable certain you cold knock a chunk out of that coating if you dropped the pan.
I'm back to using my well seasoned blue steel saute and omelet pans now. Just have to watch that the wife doesn't scrub them.
Henckles appears to be outsourcing all their cookware. It's all made in China/Viet Nam but carries German prices. Good luck with it.

 

[labworm]

Cast Iron, coating which I created.

 

[vt_shooter]

I think the best bang-for-the-buck non-stick pans out there are the Tramontina Professional Restaurant Fry pans. 12” model is $40 at Amazon; Costco sells a two-back of the 8 inch versions for $30. Great pans, I’ve had mine for not quite a year and they still work really well. IMHO you don’t need to spend $100 on a non-stick fry pan to get a good one.

 

[Cyrano]

Five knives in my kitchen knife block are Henckels, so I wondered about their pans. We'll see. I disposed of my teflon coated frying pan after having used it about 8 years. I guess I'll keep my plastic utensils for use with the new pan.

 

[model70hunter]

Plain cast iron. I have one or 2 of my grandmothers skillets, a few of my Mom's and one from my Daughter n laws Grandpa, age very old.

We are talking many decades, not limited or 2 year. Good stuff.

I once tried a ceramic skillet, sticks, discolors and cracked. Didn't last long. But then it wasn't a 2 year Henkels.... Not trying to be a smarty, mine was a Sears or something brand 20 some years ago.

 

[johngalt]

I like my carbon steel skillet. I thought I would try one out since no one makes smooth cast iron any more. Seasons and holds heat like cast iron, smooth as a stainless steel pan.

 

[BruceB]

My treasure is a Griswold skillet that's a few decades older than me.

For regular use, I've been experimenting with All-Clad hard anodized skillets. I've had a pair for about 2 years now and they show no sign of deterioration and the non-stick properties are like new.

Knives - for the kitchen, all Wusthof, bought a number of them for my wife (she thinks) about 5 years ago. Great knives. For the BBQ hobby, a couple of large french chef knives from China (Kleve), and a Victorinox 12" slicer for brisket, or other large lumps that need slicing.

 

[jcelect]

Cast Iron!

Cast Iron is the best! They must be "seasoned" and when you cook with them leave the oil, butter, or lard(what ever you are frying in) get hot before you put anything in the pan. It becomes "non stick"! When you wash the pan do not scour the fry pan, use a wash cloth and the same dish water you washed the other dishes in. I'm using fry pans my mother used and I'm sure some of them came from the farm(grand parents). I'm older now than my mother when she passed so they are OLD! They will be here when I'm gone and many people have purchased their 43rd "non-stick Limited lifetime manufacturer's warranty; 2-year manufacturer's warranty on ceramic coating" frying pan! ! !
jcelect

 

[chaparrito]

Blue steel pans are a good stand in for cast iron when sauteeing or otherwise needing to pick a pan up and put it down a lot during the cooking process. Season them the same way you'd season cast iron. They are iron, just forged instead of cast and so lighter weight. When I chef'd they were our go-to pans for almost everything.