Sometimes in this wild life you stumble upon a rabbit hole that ends up being more like a vast chasm. Such is the state of interest and appreciation for the world of carbon steel pans. One might think this humble node of cookery might be overlooked in favor of heritage-credited cast iron, utilitarian nonstick, or trending hexagon hybrid pan technologies. You would be wrong; carbon steel is no also-ran, no runner-up.
There is an intense, rabid fandom for this style of cookware that shocked even me, and I write about, like, mineral water influencers. From a busy subreddit to a secret world of obsessive home and professional chefs to in-demand artisan carbon steel craftsmen who sell their wares by raffle ticket, the dedication and appreciation to carbon steel runs deep. It is a roaring American foodways subculture that has gone largely uninvestigated by the wider press, and I can only hope to scratch the surface of doing it justice with this guide (after the surface is scratched, of course, I advise reseasoning the pan with grapeseed oil over high heat).
What is carbon steel? It’s a kind of in-between style of pan (made of an iron-carbon alloy) that splits the difference, more or less, between the easy utility of stainless steel and the long-lasting hardiness of cast iron. With the right care and use, carbon steel pans move effortlessly between various styles of cooking, allowing you to fry an egg and sear a steak, all using the same skillet. There is a slight learning curve to using these pans, for which YouTube and forums (like the above Reddit hub) are your friends. But they’re also tanks—they stand up to use and wear, and can be reseasoned again and again to get the most out of your cooking experience. 
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What Kind of Carbon Steel Pan Should You Buy?
Carbon steel panmakers run the gamut of size and style, from tiny craftsman operations to heritage brands gone big-time to crafty Instagrammy upstarts (it’s like looking at a pan-shaped mirror of America). Price of course plays a major role in selection, and as I tested and cooked with pans over the course of a few months, I was surprised and impressed at how well some of the pans at the lower end of the cost spectrum cooked.
Take it from me, and from the carbon steel nerds online, when I say that your first carbon steel pan will not be your last carbon steel pan. Because this cookware varies so greatly in size, depth, and best intended purpose, it’s hard to stop at just one. A flat skillet works great for some styles of cooking; for other styles, a big, deep pan or even a wok is what you’re really looking for. My advice would be to start with one of the entry-level pans in this guide, then—when you’re fully #CarbonPilled—consider investing in an heirloom, small-production pan from an independent maker. Treated right and well-loved, a carbon steel pan can become a family heirloom, the sort of thing you’ll pass on to your kids and display proudly in your home.
I cooked and cooked and cooked with these pans over the course of three months, putting various models and styles through their paces and coming out with the recommendations above. Every single pan in the guide was given a couple of baseline cooks—a fried egg, a sauteed onion—and then as I got to know the pans better, I began thinking about them in terms of certain dishes and applications, poaching chicken in the deep Smithey Forge pan, for example, or using Lodge as my go to for frying bacon.
Multiple pans were tested for each product category, with a focus on under-$55 pans as well as “deep” pans and flat skillets.
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Photograph: Jordan Michelman
The Perfect Entry-Level Carbon Steel Pan
Merten & Storck 10-Inch Frying Pan Skillet
The entry-level category is where I shopped the most, trying out a total of seven different carbon steel pans in the under-$55 range. This Merten & Storck skillet didn’t just outshine the rest of the budget-friendly pans; it’s unexpectedly become my utility go-to for home cooking over the past couple of months, performing admirably across a broad range of cooking projects.
I like that this pan comes pre-seasoned, and that it walks the line between sturdy and lightweight. You can cook with this on an induction burner, in the oven, on the stovetop, or wherever, as it’s graded for up to 600 degrees Fahrenheit and doesn’t have any components or materials that should be kept away from high heat. The brand uses the term “Black-Rolled Carbon Steel” for this pan, which helps conduct heat evenly and build up a natural nonstick patina over time. More than anything, this pan felt intuitively easy to use for a carbon steel novice like me, and I’ve gone back to it again and again over other entry-level models—the pan loves bacon, loves chicken thighs, loves anything with a sear or a crispy edge, even a good grilled cheese. Plus the price is right. This is the ideal carbon steel pan to get you started.
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Photograph: Jordan Michelman
A Carbon Steel Pan Like no Other
Copper State Forge 10-Inch Hybrid Carbon Steel Skillet
Cooking my way through all these pans, there was one offering that pretty quickly emerged as my own personal favorite, and it’s this one from father-son duo Copper State Forge of Goodyear, Arizona. Functionality is important in cookware, as in life. But so are the aesthetics of it all; I’m not made of stone, and my capacity to be moved by cooking with what is an undeniably beautiful object is clear and present. Of all the pans I tried, of all the pans I researched, the work they’re doing at Copper State just feels so deeply beautiful and artistic, like a fusion of functionality and expression in the form of a copper steel pan. I know I sound crazy; I would have thought I was crazy for writing this three months ago, but here we are. This pan is *vibes* —it’s gorgeous, it feels so clean, is beautiful to cook with, and it photographs beautifully.
There’s something about that hexagonal shape, but there’s an intense workmanlike quality to the pan as well—you can sear proteins, you can sauté vegetables, you can work with sauces and stocks. Those hexagonal-shaped edges function as pour spouts, making it easy to pour off a little broth to dress the greens or get rid of the extra bacon grease before you finish crisping things up. The pan’s design is simultaneously useful and aesthetically pleasing, which is really, at the end of the day, all any of us can ever truly hope to be. I cooked with 20 pans for this story, but it’s the Copper State Forge pan I’ve found myself most excited about cooking with again, to the point where I’m like, shopping for it at the grocery store—imagining how the black cod might crisp up in it with a little miso and mirin, or anticipating the crispy sear on a split sausage for my next big family breakfast.
Good carbon steel pans have this way about them—they seep into your mind, into your life, and this pan is fully inside my head now, living rent-free. If I could only cook with one pan from this story for the rest of my life, it would be this one.
