When it comes to cooking delicate food items like eggs, fish and pancakes, the difference between a successful outcome and an unpleasant one is ensuring that ingredients don’t stick to the pan. One way to accomplish this is to add oil or butter to create a greased, slippery surface. Another more healthy option is to find yourself the best nonstick cookware set for your kitchen, so everything is optimized for quick and easy cooking.
There are many advantages to pots, pans and skillets made from nonstick materials. For starters, rather than adding a fat-filled ingredient to coat and reduce friction, nonstick surfaces will do most of the work for you, resulting in overall healthier dishes. In addition, the nonstick coatings inside these pans will also aid in the after-cooking cleanup. It’s simple to wipe away food and char marks, then clean and sanitize. It can be as quick as a matter of seconds.
Likely, you’re already familiar with the concept of nonstick cookware. After all, it’s been around for decades. But how long exactly have you had that nonstick pan in your kitchen cupboard? Older nonstick pans, especially those made before 2013, used perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) as a nonstick surface, which is suspected to be carcinogenic. When using older nonstick pans for cooking at too high heat, toxic fumes can release and penetrate the food.
If any nonstick pan isn’t carefully taken care of, regardless of its manufacture date, tiny flakes of the nonstick coating, often Teflon, can come off in your food, potentially causing you and your family health issues. Luckily, most producers of nonstick cookware have now phased out the use of PFOA, giving you one less thing to worry about as soon as you update your collection.
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So, if you’re fed up with scrambled eggs sticking to your pan or the deliciously crispy skin separating from your salmon fillet, it’s time to invest in some nonstick cookware. The sets below include our picks for the best nonstick cookware, so your kitchen will be fully decked out in nonstick goodness. If you prefer to invest in a nonstick frying pan only, we have a whole other piece for that on the site.
Whether you’re a fresh college graduate looking to invest in your first cookware set or a seasoned chef looking to upgrade your worn-down pans that have seen better days, we’ve got options for everyone. Here are the best nonstick cookware sets.
1. All-Clad Hard Anodized Nonstick Pan Cookware Set
BEST OVERALL PANS
The All-Clad Hard Anodized Nonstick Pan Cookware Set includes two flat pans, making a great addition to any kitchen arsenal. The eight-inch pan is ideal for smaller items, like frying an egg, while the 10-inch pan is excellent for more significant foods, like crepes or pancakes. The hard-anodized aluminum delivers fast and even heating, and the scratch-resistant nonstick coating means you don’t need to add as much butter and oil to your dishes. Both pans are also dishwasher safe and oven safe to 500 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Calphalon Simply Pots and Pans Set
BEST OVERALL SET
This 10-piece set is perfect if you’re moving into a brand new house, condo or apartment and need an entirely new set of cookware. It includes two fry pans and a variety of pots with glass lids for stirring and stewing. All of the pots and pans in this set are made of hard-anodized aluminum that’s strong and resistant to corrosion. The pans also have a durable double layer of nonstick that prevents food buildup. The long handles feature an easy-grip silicone surround, and all of the pans are oven-safe up to 400 degrees.
3. Our Place Always Pan
EDITOR’S CHOICE
If you have social media, watch Youtube, or even if you just have friends, chances are you have heard about the Always Pan from Our Place. Not only does it do what it sets out to do well, but it also looks damn good doing it. “Just one pan?” you say? Well, this nonstick pan is designed to replace eight items in your kitchen right now, so we figured we should include it when talking about the best nonstick cookware reviewed. Read about our first-hand experience in our nonstick Our Place Always Pan review here.
4. Ninja Foodi NeverStick 8-Piece Cookware Set
BEST NONSTICK TECHNOLOGY
This nonstick cookware set from Ninja has NeverStick technology designed to *never* chip, stick or flake, and many of the near-perfect reviews confirm they deliver on their promise. This nonstick cookware is created at 30,000 degrees and is highly durable. The lids, handles and nonstick pans themselves are all oven-safe up to 500 degrees, and the stainless steel handles are built for comfort thanks to their ergonomic design. Each pan has a 4.5-millimeter aluminum base, so the heating is even, and the shot-blasted, hard-anodized pan exteriors are made to resist scratches like their stainless steel counterparts. These can take a serious beating and still perform.
5. Made In The 7-Piece Nonstick Set
BEST TRENDY SET
Made In is having a moment and quickly establishing itself as *the* “It” cookware brand, offering high-quality, long-lasting products designed for the seasoned professional chef for the trendy amateur chef alike. This seven-piece nonstick set is no exception, showcasing a stunning midnight blue among five-ply stainless clad construction that will guarantee crunchy grilled cheeses and perfectly seared filets every time.
6. HexClad Cookware Set
BEST STAINLESS STEEL SET
You read that right — stainless steel. Featuring proprietary stainless steel construction with nonstick properties, these pans from HexClad are some of the most advanced options on the market right now. Aside from sporting a lifetime warranty (we couldn’t believe it either), HexClad pans will work on any stove, whether gas, electric or induction. This cookware set makes a great housewarming gift because you don’t have to know which kind of stove your friends and they’ll still work. What’s more, HexClad pans are PFOA-free, dishwasher safe, oven safe, induction-ready, scratch-resistant and feature stay-cool handles. Sure, they’re pricey, but the best part of HexClad is the valley technology within each pan that extends the nonstick surface area and cooks in a way no other brand does. To learn more about HexClad, visit its homepage.
7. Utopia Kitchen Nonstick Frying Pan Set
BEST LOW-COST SET
If you often find yourself sautéing multiple things at once, you’re obviously going to need to invest in more than one heavy-duty pan. The
includes three different pans, meaning you’ll have one for every kind of dish. The set also comes at an affordable price, at less than $25 for all three pans. The pans range from eight to 11 inches in diameter, and all sport an induction bottom. They’re also constructed from professional-grade aluminum, meaning they’re sturdy, durable and lightweight.
8. Zwilling Forte Nonstick 10-Piece Cookware Set
BEST SPLURGE
These nonstick pans from Zwilling are made with five layers of nonstick that are resistant to scratches and made to last for many years. The pans boast cold-forged aluminum that gets hot quickly and transfers this heat evenly while cooking. After manufacturer tests, these pans displayed nonstick capabilities 20 times stronger than traditional nonstick while still being PFOA-free. They’re all induction-compatible, dishwasher safe, and metal-utensil safe, as well.
9. Caraway Nonstick Cookware Set
BEST DESIGN
This Insragramable cookware set from Caraway is sleek and beautifully crafted and comes in a selection of different colors that will make a statement in just about any kitchen, so you can find the exact one that matches your aesthetic. It’s the ceramic-coating that keeps this cookware set nonstick, so it works without using any questionable chemicals, and the materials are completely non-toxic and free of PTFEs. The entire set is stovetop agnostic, so they work on gas, electric and induction burners. They’re even oven safe up to 550 degrees.
Read more: The Best Ceramic Cookware
10. T-fal ProGrade Titanium Nonstick Cookware Set
BEST FOR EVEN COOKING
This nonstick cookware set from T-fal is more durable than other brands using similar technology and better at conducting heat using a hard titanium-reinforced nonstick interior. Each pan in this set has a hardcore nonstick coating made to last, and each pan has thermo-spot technology with a heat indicator in the center that turns red when the pan is hot enough to start cooking. The induction base on each pan is thick, so there are no hot spots, the cooking is even (making it great for Sunday morning pancakes), and the silicone handles give you a secure grip.
11. American Kitchen Cookware Frying Pan Set
BEST FOR EXPERIENCED COOKS
If you want to cook like the professionals (or already are one), the American Kitchen Cookware Frying Pan will work nicely for you. These dishwasher-safe pans are available in three different sizes and sport a tri-ply stainless construction made up of two stainless steel layers and a layer of aluminum, which assists in heat conduction and retention. The nonstick coating means you require little-to-no butter or oil when you cook, while the stay-cool handles let you move your pan when it’s hot.
12. Granite Stone Mini Stackmaster 5-Piece Set
BEST FOR EASY STORAGE
Whether you live in a college dorm or a small apartment, this five-piece will fit in your kitchen. Not only do you get a diverse line-up of pan types (there’s a griddle *and* a wok), but they’re easily stackable, storable and reinforced with ceramic and titanium for ultimate food release. They’re perfect for single portions — and exceptionally stylish if we say so ourselves.
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