# aluminum vs. carbon steel - pan searing & pan sauces



## rob ring (Aug 15, 2009)

Lately I've been doing a lot of pan-searing / sautéing and pan reductions. I really like the versatility of the technique and the ability to free-lance / experiment with ingredients. I've done some chicken breasts, pork loin, sea scallops and duck breast. Generally pleased with the results. The other night I did a 16 oz rib eye using BDL's step-by-step pan-seared steak with pan sauce instructions (thanks, BDL). Definitely a winner.

I've used a tri-ply stainless fry pan which did a great job on the cooking end but required a bit more elbow grease on the cleaning end (baked-on oil spatter on the sides and edge). I had better luck on both ends using a carbon steel fry pan, which is fast becoming my go-to pan. I have 9" and 11" pans in carbon steel which can handle most meals for my wife and me. But they're a bit too small if I'm cooking for more people, so I decided to get a 14" carbon steel pan - holy cow it weighs a ton! It's heavy enough to discourage me from using it. So I'm considering replacing it with aluminum (natural finish). My question is how much (if at all) would aluminum restrict my ability to use wine or other acidic ingredients for pan sauces? I know carbon steel is reactive too but the seasoning helps mitigate that. I'm not looking to do a long simmering wine reduction or tomato sauce - just a quick deglazing and brief reduction. I know aluminum is standard in restaurants, so I'm guessing (hoping?) that its reactivity is not much of an issue with such quick cooking techniques. What has been others' experience? 

Thanks,

Rob


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## foodpump (Oct 10, 2005)

Nope, alum. won't react badly when deglazing or adding acid ingredients like tomatoes or vinegar, dunno, something to do with oil/butter in the pan.

When searing with high heat you will find both carbon and alum will warp--both badly. Carbon tends to form a "bubble" and alum just goes bowl-shaped.

After a while you will notice on most alum pans is that the rivets holding the handle wil work themsleves loose, giving you a "loosey-goosey" handle and dribbling liquid all over-- your hands, your stove, etc.. On cheaper carbon pans the weld breaks off--particularily if it's spot welded.


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## lee.erin (Oct 24, 2009)

I would say carbon over aluminum if I had to choose.


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## rob ring (Aug 15, 2009)

Thanks for the responses. If I'm inferring correctly that there aren't any significant performance differences between the 2 (at least not for this application), I'm inclined to go with aluminum in the 14" size. The weight of the carbon pan that size makes it a bit more challenging to manuever. I also don't expect it to get a ton of use since my smaller pans will usually suffice, so I'm thinking the durability issue is less of a factor. And given the price, replacement is less of a concern. I just wanted to be sure that aluminum was compatable with quick wine reductions, and I think the answers I received indicated that it's fine.

Thanks.

Rob


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