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Steel pans, meaning steel-clad aluminum pans, are great. They are durable, have good heat retention and distribution, and you don’t have to treat them with kid gloves. But they are notoriously sticky. We all battle with food sticking to our steel pans. There are many old wives’ tales and pseudoscientific explanations as to why food sticks and how to prevent it, but what about seasoning? We season cast iron and carbon steel pans and this helps keep food from sticking to them. Can you season a steel pan?
The first important point to keep in mind is that the purpose of seasoning is not to make pans nonstick. It is to prevent rust and corrosion. Cast iron pans, especially, will rust very easily. However, a properly seasoned cast iron pan, while not necessarily being as nonstick as a Teflon-coated pan, is about as nonstick as a conventional pan can get. This makes people want to reach for their trusty old cast iron pan instead of a steel pan, but steel-clad aluminum is much better for certain types of cooking as it is more responsive to changes in heat.
See also: Should You Season Nonstick Pans?
So, yes, you can season a steel pan to make it more nonstick. But, unlike cast iron, the seasoning is not meant to be and should not be continually built up. You don’t want a thick carbonized and polymerized surface on your nice shiny steel pan. Instead, you can temporarily season a steel pan to make a smoother glossy surface to help keep foods from sticking.
Stainless steel may look smooth, but even a brand-new pan will have an imperfect surface, full of little pores and crevices when viewed under a microscope. Of course, your older, beat-up pan has perfectly visible scratches and perhaps even a pockmark or two. These imperfections are a big part of why food sticks. The purpose of seasoning the pan is to get oil into these pores and fill them in while polymerizing the oil to create a semi-permanent bond. This is somewhat like spackling. You’re creating a smooth surface by using a fill-in medium, one that is more slippery than the steel itself.
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You will only season your steel pan once rather than multiple times in a row to build up a surface. The seasoning will be much more temporary and will need to be repeated once in a while. There are many proponents who say there is no point in seasoning a steel pan and that you shouldn’t do it, but there is no real downside as long as you do it properly.
You can season your steel pan on the stovetop. And, of course, unlike cast iron, you only need to season the inside of the pan.
Instructions for Seasoning a Steel Pan
1. Wash and dry the pan thoroughly.
2. Heat the pan on medium heat for several minutes until hot.
3. Add a small amount of oil to the pan, enough to coat it with a thin layer. I’d recommend peanut, grapeseed, or soybean oil. Canola oil may work but it sometimes has too low a smoking point.
4. Use a paper towel to evenly spread the oil over the surface, making sure to avoid any excess oil. You want a thin layer and absolutely no puddles of oil.
5. Continue to heat the pan on medium-high to high heat until the oil begins to smoke then remove it from the heat and allow it to cool.
6. When cool, use a paper towel to remove any excess oil from the surface.
