Which Pan is More Non-stick | Carbon Steel vs Stainless Steel Egg Test

In this video, I'll do a nonstick egg test and compare carbon steel vs stainless steel pans and show you using the thermal imaging camera why preheating your pan is so important and which pan is more forgiving when a critical mistake is made.

Chapters:
00:00 - Intro
00:35 - Great Suggestion
01:34 - A Note on Preheating
01:59 - Non-Stick Properties
04:24 - Visual Tools Can Help You Learn More
05:08 - Common Mistakes Beginners Make
07:27 - My Conclusions
08:28 - Suggest The Next Video
//WHAT I USE: Check Out My Amazon Store!

//Buy My Merch!

//Buy Hexclad Here and get 10% off:

//Discounts:

//Like my sound? All my music comes from epidemic sound. Try them out with this link!

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

[Josh_DoesStuff]

Ngl, mad respect for saying the answer early on. I'll watch the full video now

[beelzeszel]

Big respect and like for the early answear, il watch the rest for the nerdy part

[Grassyfieldsflowers]

I've learnt that metal utensils work much better on metal pans. When you use a silicone or plastic spatula you can't push/scrap along the surface of the pan as the spatula bends and doesn't have a fine edge so it just pushes the top surface of the egg rather than getting between the stuck layer and the pan. Where as with a metal spatula you can shift a stuck egg on stainless or carbon steel without loosing as much egg.

[pavaruremontas]

I bought stainless steel and carbon steel because of your videos :D (cast iron already was in my kitchen)... and I can tell 1 thing : stainless is ok when doing stake and sauce...but carbon steel does all of that, even better, and it is more easy to operate, to clean and its more FUN to cook in it.

[rokkenshin]

Got myself a budget carbon steel to replace Teflon non-stick pan.
Totally happy with it. As non-stick as the Teflon one. When frying tofu in high temp, I don't need to worry about coating will melt anymore.
Just need to caution about temperature & don't forget the oil as the chase for non-stick is a marketing gimmick from Teflon world.
5:11 stick to the basics.
Cleaning is easy with salt, baking soda. Seasoning is not complicated.

I would use stainless steel for steaks, as it get the fond for the sauce.

[eldiosotto]

With carbon steel if it's well seasoned, there's no guessing involved. However, with stainless steel even if you do the water drop test correctly there's a chance that food can stick; at least in my experience.

[shigemorif]

Love these equipment videos! For me, I think having an electric coil stove is a big factor. Since it’s not very responsive compared to gas or induction, I like the more forgiving nature of cast iron (or carbon steel) for pans/skillets.

[MichaelScheele]

Doing a similar test for searing a steak on cast iron vs stainless (vs cast iron) would be interesting.

[trylliumt]

Thanks Tom, great video. I have good luck with my SS for eggs and steaks but have been thinking about trying the carbon steel for versatility, (grill and fire-pit cooking).

[mubbly]

I love an egg around 400, gets the crispy edges! Always using carbon steel here, either my thick griddle from ssfirepits or my small pan.

[barnabychiew]

Hey dude, literally spent hours today watching your videos. I’ve been using non-stick pans at home but a carbon steel at work (chef), I’m looking at the carbon steel ballarini/de buyer or the Tramontina stainless steel 3 ply for home and wondered if you could do a comparison video on which one to go for or at least get your opinion? I completely understand that they have different uses (acidic food vs sauces) but would love to get your opinion on what to use next. I have a cast iron pan at home but honestly don’t use it that much other than the odd steak. Currently swaying towards the stainless but happy for you to change my mind!

Thanks again for the content, love what you do, you’ve got a new subscriber!

[highnrising]

I find stainless steel is the easiest surface for fying and scarmbling eggs. They never stick and the cleanup is so much easier that with carbon steel. When I'm done cooking, I just wash the pan in the sink with a sponge and a bit of dish soap, dry it off and that's it.

I don't know where this idea of stainless steel being hard to fry eggs with comes from . I guess it's from people who don't know that you have to really heat the pan, then drop in the oil/butter, and then drop in the eggs.

[AereForst]

Thanks for cutting to the chase immediately.

[robertdrolet]

Well explain and well done, realy liket it

[geronimoflyingfree]

Thank you so much, this helped me so much! 😊🙏

[lucasvella]

So, the seasoning isn't really non-sticking, as everybody says? Is it just that the carbon steel has better thermal properties? I would be really interested in knowing the real "stickiness" of each type of cooking surface (seasoned carbon steel, seasoned cast iron, non-stick coating, stainless steel, aluminum, enamel, ceramic, etc) without the Leidenfrost effect to help, if "stickiness" can be objectively measured with a number.

[hotmesshomeec]

Do you find that you achieve the Leindenfrost effect at similar temperatures on CS and SS? I've heard 379F is usual, but it seemed much higher (like, 480) in the footage for the CS pan. Also, what would you say are the benefits of heating the pan higher than the target cooking temperature and then lowering. Is it mostly so that you can use some kind of test to make sure it's heated and then adjust? It might be partially due to having an electric stove, but I find that heating high and lowering on CS and especially CI takes longer because of the heat retention. I've figured out through trial and error (largely by melting sugar, making popcorn, and maintaining deep fry temperatures) what setting on my stovetop gets me what heat. So, setting my stovetop to a touch above medium gets me to about 350F. Different pans will take varying amounts of time to reach that temperature, but they won't shoot above.

[hepgeoff]

Great info, Tom! Question: were the eggs cold when you added them to the pans, or did you let them come to room temperature first?

[bngr_bngr]

I prefer stainless steel for eggs. But sometimes I use a stick less pan. I mostly use that pan when I’m making something with tortillas.

[MrMissouris]

Seems like pans used just for one egg frying.. what if I need 4 eggs at once ? What it I want to fry full pan of potatoes chips ? Would your science cope with such tasks ?