The Best Frying Pans in Canada

The OXO Good Grips Non-stick is also our choice for the Best Teflon frying pan. 

The OXO Good Grips non-stick frypan is one of the better-performing frypans on this list. Made from hard-anodized aluminum, which strengthens the aluminum and improves the heat exchange, this OXO frypan maintains an even heat distribution, with excellent non-stick performance. America’s Test Kitchen even named the 12-inch version of this Good Grips non-stick pan as their favourite non-stick frypan in a head-to-head comparison with other cookware companies.   

This pan has excellent non-stick performance, enough to fry a perfect egg without oil. Combined with the heating distribution that browns pancakes to perfection, the Good Grips non-stick can be an excellent addition to your breakfast toolkit. The slightly angled sides are conductive to flipping or evaporation.  Overall, the pan is durable while being light enough that taking this pan out is not a chore in itself.  

This pan’s quality speaks to itself, however, there are a few nitpicks about the companies claims. Users who washed this pan in the dishwasher have noticed that the non-stick coating wears quickly, while hand washing this pan keeps the non-stick layer intact. While this is not too bad, claiming it is subsequently dishwasher safe is. For the most part, if you want long-lasting performance from any type of pan, hand washing is advisable. It is also worthy to note that this pan is not induction-friendly. 

Overall, users love the OXO Good Grips fry pans, as durable and quality pieces of kitchen equipment that should typically retain their non-stick coating for a while. Users have found that if you treat this non-stick well, it should last you years.  

Tefal, or more commonly known in Canada as T-Fal, is one of the more reputable makers of non-stick fry pans and loved by many. As someone who has used a T-Fal non-stick pan every day for years, I can firmly recommend T–Fal for your kitchen. Not only do they tend to last decently long and are solidly non-stick, but they can be had for affordable prices and can be found nearly everywhere. Collaborating with celebrity chef Jamie Oliver on this pan, you can expect quality.  

There are many reasons why T-Fal is a good buy: they feature solid non-stick performance, their signature Thermo spot that lets you know when the pan is ready to start cooking, and for the most part, they are very affordable. This 11-inch pan is primarily constructed from stainless steel, with a thick bottom to redistribute heat, as well as a long stainless-steel handle that is solidly bolted on. The Prometal Pro non-stick coating is durable and PFOA-free and can last a long time with solid, non-stick performance if treated carefully. Additionally, this pan works on all surfaces, including induction stovetops. 

However, this pan is on the heavy side, which may be an issue for certain chefs, but the weight is manageable, compared to heavier materials like cast iron.  

Users overall wrote many positive reviews, noting this pan has even heat distribution, a great non-stick coating and overall a great cooking surface for all non-stick needs, even browning meat impressively well for a non-stick. For the price, this is an excellent option for a non-stick pan.  

The more I write about kitchenware, the more I realize how essential stainless-steel pots and pans are in the kitchen. While everyone clamours for a non-stick, and cooking aficionados may hold cast-iron in high regard, there are many things a stainless-steel pan can do that neither can optimally. While getting a quality stainless steel tri-ply frypan might be expensive, we feel Tramontina offers an excellent range of affordable stainless-steel frypans.  

Tramontina’s Stainless steel is affordable for a quality piece of tri-ply cookware, meaning an aluminum core between a layer of 18/10 stainless steel, and magnetic stainless steel, for the optimal results of each material. Due to this configuration, the pan is oven safe to 500 degrees, making it a great tool for dishes that need to finish in the oven, like pork chops or lamb shanks. 

One of the biggest flaws of this pan is how sloped the edges are: while sloped edges are great for sauteing food, the degree that this pan slope reduces the cooking surface on the bottom of the pan drastically. A standard 12-inch pan with sloped sides will usually have 9.5 inches of cooking space, but how angled this pan is mean you lose about a full inch. With a full–clad construction, pushing food more onto the edges of the pan will not risk your food burning, but unfortunately, even the 12-inch pan is on the smaller side and might struggle cooking 4 portions of a meal. 

Users are generally big fans of these Tramontina pans, getting excellent quality for an affordable price. Users find this pan heats evenly, cooks food well without sticking for the most part and is easy to maintain and clean, as long as you follow directions. While users wished the sides did not slope as much, this Tramontina pan delivers in every other way you want a stainless-steel pan to deliver. 

All-Clad is perhaps the most respected name for stainless steel cookware, trusted by cooks everywhere. While All-Clad is a premium product at a premium price, All-Clad boasts superior durability, making it a great “buy-it-for-life” stainless steel fry pan. If you are thinking about kitchen essentials that will last you years down the line, All-Clad is an excellent choice.  

All-Clad features excellent heat distribution and sturdy build quality, albeit it seems to require upkeep to keep in solid conditions.  With three-ply bonded construction of stainless steel, aluminum and excellent 18/10 Stainless steel that lines the pan, you get the best of both materials. The interior is smooth enough to cook eggs with just a little oil, and the heat retention of these pans is excellent, due to its thick bottom.  

However, buying a pan of this price requires a little know-how and dedication. Users will need to be careful cleaning, letting the pan cool first to prevent warping. Discoloration may occur and turn your shiny stainless steel into something far less attractive, but products like Barkeeper’s Friend can be used to reinvigorate the look of your pan. However, overall cleaning is easy, and upkeep will be minimal, compared to a cast iron, for example.  

Users love these pans as long-term investments that improve their enjoyment of cooking. Users recommend following washing instructions and cleaning will be a breeze. While pricey, these are great pans to buy for long-term use, and users will attest to the quality of All-Clad pans.

The GreenPan SmartShape is also our choice for the Best nonstick pan without Teflon. 

Ceramic non-stick pans popped up when it was first revealed how damaging PFOA commonly found in non-stick pans was. While no non-stick pans today contain PFOA, companies like GreenPan continue to offer pans featuring ceramic coatings that are certainly safe to cook with, even if you overheat your pan. If you are looking for an alternative to your standard non-stick frypan, we think the GreenPan SmartShape is the one to beat.  

The base of the green pan is aluminum, for even heat distribution, and the GreenPan features a non-stick coating that is derived naturally from sand, which is diamond reinforced. The natural construction of this pan means zero toxic fumes even on the highest of heats, as well as a durable coating that is metal utensil safe. However, while advertised as oven safe, only being safe up to 320 Fahrenheit is not oven safe as far as we are concerned – way too low for most foods that benefit from additional cook time in the oven.  

As far as performance goes, this is a very non-stick pan that should successfully be able to fry an egg without any oil. While the non-stick surface is in fact very good, the pan reportedly does not retain its heat very well, which may pose an issue if you are doing batches of pancakes or something that requires a little more consistent heat than an egg.  With SmartShape’s Magneto Induction Base, this pan should be compatible with all cooktops including induction, however, some users have had issues with the pan’s induction capability. 

Users are generally impressed with the quality of the GreenPan SmartShape, as an easy-to-use, easy-to-clean non-stick pan. However, there are a few design flaws that have been noted. While the handle has a heatproof grip, beyond the grip the handle gets very hot, and no colour differentiation makes it easy to burn your hand if you are not careful. Additionally, this is still a non-stick pan with the weaknesses of a non-stick, and if you do use metal utensils or use a dishwasher to clean, the coating will wear quicker.  

Another solid ceramic non-stick on this list, this Blue Diamond pan features a stainless-steel construction with a diamond-infused ceramic coating – claiming the coating is 5x times harder and 10x longer lasting. Since diamonds are superconductive, this pan is also better at heating up quickly and cleaning. While there are some issues with what the pan claims it can do, this is still a solid ceramic non-stick to consider if you want an alternative to Teflon.  

Typically, pans constructed from stainless steel will incorporate a layer of a more conductive material, like aluminum to counterbalance stainless steel’s issues with heat distribution. This Blue Diamond pan seems to forgo the aluminum, opting for a triple layer of stainless steel. While Blue Diamond seems to imply that their diamond-infused non-stick coating help distributes the heat instead, this is concerning due to the degree to which these pans seem to wear out. However, this pan seems to provide a solid non-stick surface when new that is free from toxins and is oven safe up to 600F – which is by far the hottest temperature I have encountered writing this list, meaning you can put this under the broiler with no doubt in your mind. 

The biggest issue with the Blue Diamond nonstick is the degree of non-stick: while some users who are careful have gotten many uses of these pans, others who have exercised caution in caring for these pans have noted the non-stick coating already scratching or sticking within a few uses. While many users have had long-term success with these pans, there at least need to be a big asterisk beside their longevity claims – it is clear that the 10x longer non-stick is a marketing claim rather than being the truth.  

Users were overall positive with the result, but the degree of users stating how rapidly this pan wore make me doubt the company’s quality control at the very least. Users overall seem to like these pans, as they provide a solid non-stick performance and look nicer than other non-stick pans. 

Granite pans are another type of pan that is getting attention as a non-stick alternative to Teflon. While a little on the expensive side, this Ballarini frypan aims to combine the heat distribution of aluminum with a more durable non-stick surface utilizing granite.  

The Ballarini Parma utilizes the company’s Gratinum non-stick coating, with impressive non-stick results, as well ease of cleaning, it seems that this coating is successful. With forged aluminum construction, you get great temperature control as well, but in exchange, these pans are thicker and heavier than other non-stick pans. On the handle, a heat-sensitive zone turns red when hot and green when cool to try to help reduce the guesswork in the kitchen, however, it seems like this device fails in time.  

However, there are issues that the Ballarini pan has. The granite coating is not particularly stain-resistant, so users who bought this pan for the aesthetic quality as a contributing factor. There are also concerns with quality control, with loose handles and banged-up cookware coming out of the box – but this might be on the shipping process.  

Users seem to enjoy cooking this pan, as an effective alternative to Teflon non-stick pans, and clean up seems easy as well if you follow the instructions. While quite expensive for a non-stick, some users swear by these pans, especially if they are treated right.  

While you may be able to secure an heirloom cast iron from a family member that is pre-seasoned from years of use for free, not everyone has access to this holy grail of kitchen kit. Cast Iron skillets are loved due to their unique properties, simplicity and durability, given you take the right steps to season and clean the pan. If you are in the market for a new Cast Iron, Lodge is renowned for making quality cast iron for 120 years.  

Cast Iron is one of the simplest pieces of equipment in the kitchen because they consist of only one piece, and they have evolved minimally in hundreds of years of human use. This Lodge cast iron features a thick enough base for excellent heat retention and a slightly pebbled texture within the pan, so seasoning this pan is essential for optimal performance (check out question section for more information on seasoning a cast iron or another type of pan).  

Users find that these are great cast iron pans, especially after seasoning. However, there is an assumed level of care that is required when using a cast iron: even if the cast iron comes pre-seasoned, you will need to perform a certain amount of seasoning to maintain the coating. Another big one is cleaning, as you should avoid leaving anything to dry in this pan, which may lead to rust. Placing it in an oven or on a burner to dry will keep this pan from oxidizing,  

Users overall are very happy with the Lodge Cast Iron, which provides a certain level of brand quality while being affordable to boot. The one complaint common among users is that Lodge currently employs a pebbly finish on their cast iron, which can increase the stickiness of stuck-on food. While some users have turned to belt sanders (not recommended if you are not handy with the tool already), but as someone with a pebbly cast iron (made by another company), extra seasoning can help this as well.  

While the Amazon listing considers this a non-stick pan, this is more just a testament to the smooth surface of carbon steel. While it may require some of the care that cast iron requires to keep, this Mauviel Carbon Steel pan offers improvements on lightness and heat conductivity over cast iron.  

Carbon Steel is similar in material makeup to cast iron, with slightly less carbon in carbon steel and a different manufacturing process. The result is a pan that is harder with less heat retention, so it heats up and cools quicker. Just like a cast iron would, Carbon Steel needs seasoning of its own to really shine, but users have found that as long as you use minimal amounts of oil, the seasoning process is an easy one.  

Unfortunately, Carbon Steel is not some miracle material that solves all of Cast Iron’s issues. Users who used this Carbon steel over gas find that this outperforms other pans, but uneven heating as found on glass stovetops leads to warping of this pan, where cast iron retains its shape well due to the thickness of the material. Also like cast iron, foods with high acidity should be avoided. Also, this pan only marginally improves the weight issue of cast iron, and it is still heavy compared to some other pans. 

Users like how non-stick a seasoned Mauviel carbon steel fry pan is, and find that with care, it offers the longevity of a cast iron. However, this pan only offers marginal improvements over cast iron, and with issues cooking on electric or induction burners, this pan is not an option for everybody.  

Searching for “Copper” cookware on Amazon will lead you to many cheaply made copper-coloured cookware – but real copper cookware is easily one of the more expensive materials to cook with. Copper is highly regarded for its unparalleled heat conductivity, which reduces the amount of heat needed to warm it up to a certain temperature and gives the cook unparalleled control over temperature. If you are looking into a copper frypan, I would recommend going with a reputed company like All-Clad, so you know that you are paying for quality.  

 With copper layers of 100% pure copper, and 4-ply bonded construction with a premium stainless steel interior, no corners were cut in the creation of this pan. The result is an incredibly responsive pan that gets hot quickly and stays hot – amazing for searing meats.  

With copper, there are a few things that are important to note. Firstly, copper requires hand washing and care, whether you want it to patina or stay polished. Either or, you will want to take care of it because this pan is also $300. While its quality is undeniable, a copper fry pan might be too good for some chefs, myself included. I doubt I could do a pan this premium pan justice. 

However, if you disagree or think this pan is the right level of good for your kitchen, you will certainly be blown away – reviews unanimously claim this as one of the best pans they have used.