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How do you cook eggs in a non-nonstick pan?

post #1 of 42
2/9/08 at 6:30pm
Thread Starter 
I see steel (i.e. not teflon) pans labeled as "omelette" pans all the time. What's the trick to get eggs to slip off the pan easily?
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post #2 of 42
2/9/08 at 6:38pm
I use non-stick spray, such as Pam, on a well seasoned steel skillet. And I never wash the pan; just wipe it down with a clean disposable towel.
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post #3 of 42
2/9/08 at 7:24pm
Use oil. Seriously, though, the way chefs prepare omelettes is vastly different from how most people do it at home: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QMK9QLfRmag If you're too lazy to do that, stick with teflon or finish in the oven to get the omelette to steam off the pan.
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post #4 of 42
2/9/08 at 7:28pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by quevola View Post
I use non-stick spray, such as Pam, on a well seasoned steel skillet. And I never wash the pan; just wipe it down with a clean disposable towel.

Thats the secret right there. If you scrub the pan too much it will eventually take the non-stick coating off. Also a little olive oil doesnt hurt either.
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post #5 of 42
2/9/08 at 8:08pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jared View Post
Seriously, though, the way chefs prepare omelettes is vastly different from how most people do it at home: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QMK9QLfRmag If you're too lazy to do that, stick with teflon or finish in the oven to get the omelette to steam off the pan.
Huh? That is a teflon pan. How do you season steel? Same way as cast iron?
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post #6 of 42
2/9/08 at 8:14pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jared View Post
Use oil. Seriously, though, the way chefs prepare omelettes is vastly different from how most people do it at home: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QMK9QLfRmag If you're too lazy to do that, stick with teflon or finish in the oven to get the omelette to steam off the pan.
Heh. A majority of people would not be able prepare them that way. I use olive oil or butter (the real stuff) to coat the pan.
Quote:
How do you season steel? Same way as cast iron?
Pretty much, but in most cases you don't really need to.
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post #7 of 42
2/9/08 at 8:21pm
Yeah, that's a non-stick egg pan he's using. When I was an egg cook, making hundreds of omelettes and over mediums etc. every morning, I had six of those -- one for each burner -- and even if you are real careful and only use a spatula, still they would only last a few months before they would scratch and/or start to lift.

Cast iron is good for eggs. Never wash with soap, never scrub too hard, and as you are building up the "seasoning" or tough greasy non-stick surface on the cooking surface, make you sure rub the pan down with oil when it is 100% dry. Cook with it, rinse it out, rub it down with a towel, then put it on the stove over a flame for a minute or so, wait for it to cool off, then rub down. You don't want to trap water between the oil and the pan. Also the pan is kinda porous so that's why you have to torch it up a bit to get it thoroughly dry. Once you have a good surface, it's enough to rinse/scrub out and hang to dry.

The downside to cast iron is that you can't flip the eggs which is pretty necessary to making nice stuffed restaurant omelettes or perfect over easy.

Pam in steel is OK, but not any better, in my experience, than oil in steel. This works OK but it's a little harder to clean and you have to use kind of a lot of oil (i like olive oil) if you want to be flipping whole eggs over easy.
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post #8 of 42
2/9/08 at 8:57pm
Just get a non stick one and be done with it. It's not worth all the effort to season a pan IMO, and you know someone will come along and wash the thing and ruin it anyway.
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post #9 of 42
2/9/08 at 9:02pm
I have a non-stick pan just for doing eggs. While I have a mix of cast iron and commercial grade steel (the bonus is, they're also cheaper than the consumer brand names if you shop at a restaurant supply store!) for 99% of my cooking, eggs are one of the few things that you just need to go with a non-stick to get just right.
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post #10 of 42
2/9/08 at 9:03pm
fat + right temp = no sticking no matter what.
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post #11 of 42
2/10/08 at 7:19pm
butter butter butter butter butter, it's an egg's best friend. Put in about a half tablespoon of butter in the pan for an omelet, swish around to coat and then make your concoction in there. Use low heat so you don't scorch the eggs. Alton Brown, from Good Eats on Food Network, did an episode on omelets. Google the recipe and technique (good eats fan page has a good writeup of it) or download a Torrent of the show and check it out.
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post #12 of 42
2/10/08 at 8:00pm
I use my cast iron pan every day. I just made french fries in it. With regular use, maintaining a well-seasoned pan a pan is not harder than using shoe trees. If someone scrubs it with soap, it only sets you back about a week. You can get back in shape real quick. So it's no big deal. I use it for eggs if I want to scramble six at once. Otherwise, we have a small non-stick. I can understand not wanting to have any non-stick in the house, but there's nothing like non-stick for frying two eggs for a quick sandwich.
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post #13 of 42
2/11/08 at 4:26am
Quote:
Originally Posted by ken View Post
I see steel (i.e. not teflon) pans labeled as "omelette" pans all the time. What's the trick to get eggs to slip off the pan easily?

Lots of butter.
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post #14 of 42
2/11/08 at 5:50am
Quote:
Originally Posted by ken View Post
I see steel (i.e. not teflon) pans labeled as "omelette" pans all the time. What's the trick to get eggs to slip off the pan easily?

Exactly as stated -- they are well seasoned, and the chefs are using butter.

Quote:
Originally Posted by robin View Post
Heh. A majority of people would not be able prepare them that way.


Why? What did he do that was so hard (except for the massive flame)? I prepare omelettes this way all the time. They're beautifully textured, and you can have fine or coarse curd as suits your taste.

I do admit that, like Piobaire, I have a special non-stick omelette pan, which no one ever touches and that I only use for eggs and crepes. It is cleaned with just a paper towel and soapy water, and is only used wiht silicone spatulas. Lasted me years now.

~ Huntsman
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post #15 of 42
2/11/08 at 6:24am
I refuse to use nonstick. Plain steel lasts forever, is cheaper, and is quite sufficiently nonstick with a bottle of oil and some attention to temperature. Cast iron, while kind of cool, is entirely too fussy for me, personally, and nonstick creeps me the fuck out.
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