For the casual home cook, few pieces of cookware are as mysterious or intimidating as stainless steel pots and pans. Depending on where you shop they can be either wildly expensive or suspiciously cheap, and non-stick cookware just seems easier for many people.
However, stainless steel cookware can give you much better and more consistent results with your cooking than non-stick depending on the dish. Plus if you treat it right'and buy the right stuff'it will last a lifetime. With just a little bit of practical know-how, and an eye for quality and construction, you'll be buying and using stainless steel cookware for decades to come.
Construction Is Key
One of the biggest hurdles to overcome is simply figuring out whether a product is made well. This breaks down into three essential categories: the cladding, the material and the handle.
For the best quality, look for cookware that's "fully clad," a type of construction made famous by All-Clad.
"In general, cookware is about retention and distribution," says Omar Rada, co-founder of the cookware manufacturer Misen. Fully clad cookware was born out of the understanding that different metals conduct heat differently. For the best results you want a cooking surface that heats evenly and retains heat well. You know how some of your pots and pans get really hot in some spots but stay cool in others? That's because of poor heat conduction, which makes getting an even sear on your steak more difficult.
Fully clad cookware avoids this problem by taking different materials and sandwiching them together in alternating layers. Make a pot out of aluminum and you'll end up with a vessel that heats quickly and evenly, but has poor heat retention, is flimsy and is prone to ugly discoloration. Conversely, stainless steel is extremely durable, retains heat well and looks nice, but conducts heat poorly. By layering different metals, fully-clad cookware blends together the best characteristics of different materials for an improved cooking surface. Less expensive cookware is often "bottom clad," meaning there's a disc of aluminum in the base of the cookware but not in the sides. This is still a big step up from no cladding at all, but fully clad is better.
Built to Last
Chef Bruce Mattel, senior associate dean of culinary arts at the Culinary Institute of America, says, "I prefer riveted handles as opposed to spot welded. If you bang those pans around enough a handle will come off." He also prefers cookware with stainless steel handles, which are suitable for being put inside the oven.
If a piece of stainless steel cookware seems light or flimsy there's a good chance it's low quality. Examine the handles: Are they firmly attached with visible rivets? Does the bottom of the pan feel solid and sturdy? If you put the pan on a flat surface does it sit still and not wobble? If the answer is no to any of these questions, you aren't looking at a well-constructed pan. Mattel also says that it's good to look for cookware that isn't overly ornate. Grease will get into nooks and crannies, making it harder to keep clean.
Easy to Use
Perhaps the biggest barrier for most people is that stainless steel cookware seems hard to use. "As a maker of cookware, I didn't fully appreciate that myself until I started putting our products into people's hands and realizing how uncomfortable they were," says Rada.
One issue that beginner cooks might encounter is foods sticking to the pan. "Seasoning, which is commonly associated with cast iron skillets, is actually a process which can be applied to any pan," says Rada. "You can even make a stainless steel pan almost perfectly non-stick, which helps with easy cleanup."
As Rada explains, "Preheat your pan for a few minutes at medium-high heat and get a fat, generally a high smoke point oil, and swish it around the pan until it starts to smoke. Dump the oil out and take a paper towel and rub it around the pan. Once you're done you should have a glossy mirror finish which, if you've done it perfectly, you should be able to see your reflection in. It should be pretty darn non-stick and the cleanup should be a breeze."
It's Pricey, but Worth It
There's (almost) no getting around it: stainless steel cookware can be pricey. All-Clad, often considered to be the gold standard, is one of the most expensive brands available. Same goes for the French brand Mauviel, which is historically known for its copper cookware but also makes fantastic stainless steel pieces. A single piece of cookware from either company could easily cost upwards of a hundred dollars, making it expensive to outfit a kitchen.
For those in search of something more affordable, there are some less expensive brands making excellent products, such as Misen. Rada says the company has kept prices down by existing in the direct-to-consumer space. Tramontina's products are also noticeably less expensive and can be found at stores like Costco and Walmart.
But If you're looking for a real bargain, savvy shoppers should keep an eye out for sales at "off-price" department stores like Marshalls, T.J.Maxx, and HomeGoods. You can sometimes find heavily discount stainless steel cookware, especially leading up to and immediately after the winter holidays.
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The surface finish of stainless steel affects much more than just its aesthetic ' performance, reliability, and other factors can be greatly impacted.
No matter the application or end-use of the stainless steel, its surface finish should be carefully chosen to best meet the requirements at hand. That's because, in addition to providing the desired visual appeal, the choice of finish affects corrosion resistance, characteristics such as electrical properties, impacts weldability, manufacturing operations, and contributes to various economic considerations.
Some applications, such as superconductor components or flexible metal hoses, demand stainless steel with a specific finish for the end-use product to perform as designed.
It's also important to note that not all suppliers use the same terminology to refer to the same finish. Keep reading to learn the subtle differences between each finish to understand better how suppliers may differ.
Surface finish is the visual appearance of the metal and is created through various processing methods, including rolling, polishing, and blasting. These finishes range from dull to bright and include special textures that may be mechanically applied for highly specialized applications.
Several factors can affect surface finish, including the production route, material thickness, the surface finish of the rolls, cleanliness, and mechanical abrading.
Most melt mills can produce all sheet and strip finishes. While some finishes (BA and polished) require specialized lines, most mills have these or a third-party processing partner. However, melt mills won't always be able to meet each customer's unique Ra (surface roughness) requirements, and a precision re-roller may be needed.
Surface finishes are commonly identified by standard industry designations based on process routing (not appearance) and are different for sheet (greater than 24' wide) and strip (less than 24' wide). However, as previously mentioned, some suppliers use proprietary designations or different industry standards, so it's best to double-check that you're on the same page.
Ulbrich's surface finish designations are based on ASTM A480 specifications. Below is an overview of the types of finishes available on our sheet products.
Whether hot or cold rolled, these finishes are the basic supply condition for all stainless-steel sheet products. They are universally used for many applications and serve as the starting point for mechanical polishing and other finishing processes. To maximize corrosion resistance, most are cleaned with acid (pickled) to remove scale that builds up during hot rolling and annealing (a bright annealed finish being the exception!)
A No. 1 Finish is produced via hot rolling, then annealing and pickling the material in acid. This results in a dull finish and is typically used when a smooth decorative finish isn't important, for example, in elevated temperature applications.
A No. 2D Finish is produced via cold rolling, then annealing and pickling the material in acid. The finish is smooth, non-reflective, and dull. It is ideal for deep drawing applications and is found in auto exhaust components, hardware, and chemical equipment.
A No. 2B Finish is cold rolled, annealed, and pickled, followed by a light temper pass using polished rolls. The finish is smooth, somewhat reflective, and bright. It's a general-purpose cold-rolled finish used in cookware, small tanks, and pharmaceutical equipment.
A Bright Annealed Finish is cold rolled, then annealed in a controlled, protective atmosphere to prevent scale formation during annealing. This finish is not pickled in acid because a thin oxide film is formed during annealing, eliminating the need for pickling. It is used in trim appliances, surgical instruments, and cookware.
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These finishes involve using abrasive materials that effectively cut the steel's surface to some degree.
No. 3 and No. 4 finishes are produced by mechanically polishing a No. 2B finish substrate. These finishes have uniform appearances that are produced by an emery cloth belt used for polishing. Each finish has a corresponding grit necessary to create its surface texture.
These finishes are among the most used in stainless steel. Applications featuring No. 3 finishes include architectural and food processing components. Applications featuring No. 4 finishes include architectural wall panels, elevators, sinks, and restaurant equipment.
A No. 6 finish is created by Tampico brushing a No. 4 finish. It's dull, silver-white, and less reflective than a No. 4 finish. This finish was once commonly found on stainless steel architectural components up to the s but is much less used today.
A No. 7 finish is produced by buffing a finely ground surface. The finish is high luster with grit lines still visible on the material. The result is highly reflective, almost mirror-like. Some common applications for No. 7 finishes include column covers, ornament trim, and wall panels.
This is produced by polishing with successively higher grit abrasives and then buffing for a mirror finish. By ASTM standards, they are the most reflective of all finishes.
Because they are so reflective, No. 8 finishes have a lot of notable everyday applications, including press plates, signs, and wall panels. Most notably, Chicago's 'Bean' is stainless steel with a #8 finish.
Custom metal surface finishes allow for specific characteristics to be unlocked that are not available if a standard finish is specified. Engineers for advanced and emerging applications specify the surface roughness in Ra or Rz (see below) that they need to meet their objectives.
For custom surface finishes beyond those mentioned here, contact us to connect with a metallurgical engineer who can assist.
A TR finish is produced when an annealed surface is cold rolled to obtain mechanical properties. The appearance varies based on the alloy and the amount of cold work. Quarter hard, half hard, and full hard are common examples of temper-rolled finishes. This finish is used all the time and is one of the largest categories of stainless steel that we sell at Ulbrich.
An architectural finish can be achieved through special finishes at the temper mill, the final reduction stand, special pickle processes, or a combination. These are typically agreed upon between buyer and producer.
Any discussion of surface finish would be incomplete without mentioning surface roughness. Surface roughness is a measure of the texture of a manufactured surface. RA or Average roughness is most commonly used in North America. It is the average of the peaks and valleys of a surface over a set sampling length. Values are typically given in microinches or micrometers.
Rz, or mean roughness depth, is most commonly used in Europe and is the average of the highest peak to the lowest valley over 5 sampling lengths.
Surface roughness can have a crucial impact on the durability and performance of the material and must also be closely considered and controlled for.
Still unsure which finish is right for your application? Contact us and speak with someone from our metallurgy or product development team. We also offer custom finishes beyond those mentioned here to accommodate advanced and emerging applications, such as superconductors.
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