How to make a stainless steel pan non-stick

I know non-stick pans can be so convenient, but I’m here to give you that gentle reminder that those non-stick and Teflon coated pans are not great for your body. I haven’t used a non-stick pan in nine years. I now use an old cast iron electric griddle, a large cast-iron skillet, one enameled cast iron dutch oven (my favorite), and the rest of my skillets and pots are stainless steel. I think my griddle is the Best Electric Griddle and the same with my other pots and pans too! I love using them and much prefer them to the Teflon pans.

Do I miss the old non-stick skillets?

Nope. Not one bit. At least not now that my husband taught me this trick for seasoning skillets so that I can make crepes in my stainless steel without them being a stuck-on mess.

Want to know how?

Sure! I’d love to show you. It’s easy and only takes about a minute or two to do.

How to Make a stainless steel pan non-stick

Get your pan hot, in between medium and medium high.

Put about a tablespoon of coconut oil in the pan to melt. Swirl it around and drain out excess.

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Sprinkle a generous amount of salt onto the bottom of the pan.

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With a paper towel or cloth, firmly rub the salt and oil into the pan using a circular motion. Rub the sides and bottom well, like you are polishing them.

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Wipe out the salt and oil and now you have a pan that is seasoned and ready to cook.

Add a small amount of fat to the pan like butter, and you can now make crepes that won’t stick to the pan.

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My husband did that fancy chef flip thing with this crepe and it didn’t stick at all!

See? Easy right? I haven’t used this method for eggs yet, because I cook all of my eggs on my cast iron griddle and can scramble an egg in less than a minute. Why mess with a good thing?

Crepes are pretty egg heavy though, so I bet if you used a fair amount of butter this would work just fine. If I try it, I’ll update the post to report my findings.

2017-01-04T03:57:29+00:00

4 Comments

  1. Tracy February 12, 2017 at 3:17 am - Reply

    Do you have to do this every time you use it?

    • Tara Buss February 12, 2017 at 11:31 pm - Reply

      No, but if you can treat it as much as a cast iron, it is recommended. What I mean is, unless it’s really dirty with stuck on food, I would just wipe clean and rinse with water. If you aren’t salting again, heat your pan on medium heat. You don’t want it super hot, but not cold either. Then add your fat and let it melt. Then add whatever you are cooking, for example an egg. Cook it slowly and you should be ok. If it’s browning or cooking too fast, you have it too hot. Good luck!

  2. John January 19, 2018 at 9:21 pm - Reply

    Most articles I’ve read on stainless steel cookware says using salt causes “pitting” if used directly on the pan or before the pan is hot

  3. Jenna April 17, 2018 at 8:48 pm - Reply

    Good to know! Thank you. I had no idea you could make a stainless steel pan non-stick. I am definitely going to try this as I don’t like using the typical non-stick pans either but get frustrated overcooking food in my stainless steel pan waiting for it to unstick.

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