Tramontina Primaware 18 Piece Non-stick Cookware Set, Red
But we can’t recommend this pan because using it in a home kitchen (as opposed to a restaurant kitchen) voids the warranty. HexClad is a nonstick-coated fully clad stainless steel tri-ply pan with a raised stainless steel grid paving its surface—both interior and exterior. In our tests, eggs stuck to that uncoated grid, which yielded broken yolks and torn omelets.
The first couple of things you cook in the pan should ideally be something fatty (i.e. pan-frying, searing steaks). Every time you cook with fat, you’ll add seasoning (this is true for cast iron, too). While the ideal thickness of a good pan is subjective to a cook’s preference, a quality stainless steel pot will have a certain heft in your hand. Stainless steel is great for all-purpose cooking—it can be used for braising and browning as well as creating sauces and soups. The non-reactive properties of stainless steel make it ideal for cooking sauces with acidic ingredients (think tomato sauce or meats stewed in wine).
They can cook almost anything, or heat up leftovers you want to throw some sauce on. Most stainless steel pans are dishwasher-safe, though we still recommend washing tramontina cookware set by hand for longevity reasons, as stainless steel can rust in the dishwasher. The speed at which a pan reacts to temperature changes is also important.
The company even branches out from cookware, creating trash bins, containers, and even flatware. If it’s good enough for the pros, it should be good enough for home cooks right? That’s the question I’m asking of the Tramontina Professional Nonstick Fry Pan, which is designed to withstand the rigours of a professional kitchen. Let your pan cool before washing it, and if you’re stacking pans, layer them with a paper towel or dishcloth to protect the pan’s surface.
Some pans were so heavy, that they required two hands to lift, which would make tasks like sautéing vegetables and swirling batter pretty tough. In general, we found that pans under three pounds and three ounces were the easiest to lift, even when full of food. After we finished testing, we tried cooking more over-easy eggs in our winning pans and were pleased to see much better results in the form of perfectly cooked eggs (that didn’t stick). The beauty of stainless steel tramontina cookware is that it’s relatively low maintenance compared to carbon steel or cast iron, both of which require seasoning and special upkeep. Oftentimes, the grade of stainless steel is stamped on the cookware, with 18/10 being the most commonly used grade for good quality cookware. This fraction tells you the percentage of chromium and nickel in the alloy used—18/10 contains 18 percent chromium and 10 percent nickel and will resist rust while also retaining its shine and polish.
The 10-inch pan’s surface is the perfect size for cooking a three-egg omelet, and its flared sides are well angled, for easy flipping. We also like that this pan is available in four sizes (8, 10, 12, and 14 inches) to accommodate different cooking needs. Pans that are fully aluminum won’t work on induction because they’re not magnetic. So to find a pick that would work on induction, we also tested aluminum pans with either a bonded steel plate on the bottom or an encapsulated bottom (a thick layer of aluminum encased in stainless steel). We think you’re better off with the latter, since these heavy-bottomed pans are less likely to warp, and they heat up faster on induction cooktops. Cast iron is made from a single piece of molten iron poured into a mold, which means no rivets to trap food particles.
The brand has an international presence, selling products in over 120 countries. Tramontina has a solid reputation for affordable, high-quality cookware. Nonstick food release score reflects the nonstick qualities of a pan’s interior by cooking tramontina pans four eggs consecutively without oil. An Excellent score indicates that all four eggs slid off the pan without assistance; A Poor score indicates that scraping was needed to release any egg from the pan and some egg residue was left on the pan.