All-Clad Stainless Steel Frying Pan Review

I’ve devoted my entire professional life to cooking. Not only did I attend culinary school, but I also worked in restaurants before spending years developing recipes in the Food & Wine test kitchen, like these standout brown butter blondies. And, of course, there’s the work I do now, which necessitates my putting kitchen gear through its paces to determine what’s worth recommending to all of you. 

I must confess that not everything I’m sent is a winner. Many of the overhyped gadgets I receive underdeliver, while a good portion are nice to have on hand should I need them, but aren’t worth the space they occupy in my drawer. But there are those rare kitchen pieces that continue to impress even after months (or years) of using them. The Ooni stand mixer is one such example that comes to mind, as is Shun’s Japanese paring knife and AirHood’s portable countertop hood. Naturally, I have to also add my All-Clad stainless steel frying pan to this list. 

All-Clad Stainless Steel 12-Inch Frying Pan 

Unlike a nonstick skillet, high-quality stainless steel can last a lifetime. Its hard surface doesn’t scratch when paired with metal kitchen utensils; it won’t react to lemon juice, tomatoes, or other acidic foods; and it transfers seamlessly from the stove to the oven and back again. The pan is also easy to use. Despite what you may have heard, cooking with a stainless steel frying pan is all about intuition. If you allow the pan to heat up for 3 to 5 minutes, add some form of fat, and then introduce your chicken thighs or salmon burgers, they will naturally release when they’re ready to be turned. While this wait-and-see approach requires more patience than cooking with nonstick, it also utilizes fewer brain cells. The food does the hard thinking for you, meaning that if it resists flipping, all you have to do is let it be until it detaches on its own. 

Of the many stainless steel cookware companies, All-Clad is known as one of the best. We at Food & Wine consistently recommend the D3 12-inch skillet to friends and readers thanks to its long-lasting construction. (We also tested the brand’s more expensive D5 pan, with its five layers of metal to this one’s three, and preferred the D3, finding it to be “lighter and more comfortable to handle.”) As unbelievable as this sounds, our testing editor, Jennifer Zyman, has owned and used the same All-Clad pan since 2002. While I haven’t had my skillet for nearly as long, I can personally attest to its impressive design, impeccable searing capabilities, and even heating. I had one mishap with too-cold tofu in a too-cold skillet, but the rest has been smooth sailing.   

Not just for professionals, thousands of Amazon shoppers also swear by this All-Clad frying pan. One reviewer even called it a “workhorse in the kitchen,” writing that it has “good weight, balance, heat distribution, and handling.” They went on to add that the pan has “elevated” their cooking. A second shopper wrote that the “craftsmanship makes it worth every penny,” and a third declared it their “go‑to” pan for eggs, steak, and one‑pan dinners. They love that “it heats up quickly and evenly, thanks to the tri‑ply construction,” and that it has “no cold spots, just perfect sears and beautiful fond.”  

I couldn’t agree more.  

Shop More All-Clad Cookware 

Stainless Steel Cookware Set, Set of 10 

Specialty Stainless Steel Roaster

Stainless Steel Sauté Pan

Stainless Steel Saucepan

8-Quart Stainless Steel Stockpot With Insert

At the time of publishing, the price was $150.