I get exasperated with what passed for cooking pots and pans now-a-days. The accent seems to be on light weight and the functional aspect comes in way second. What I've wound up doing is going to the local thrift shop and adapting regular cooking ware to my camping needs. Now I absolutely agree it's heavy but I feel it's worth it for a kit that works.
Up till recently I've had only spotty luck with frying pans; a lot of sticking and subsequent scraping. The newest frying pan had been badly abused and after I got it all cleaned up and tried it out, it too stuck with the best of them. It's a quality pan; Revere Ware with a copper bottom to even out the heat so what is/was going on? Well, after asking several good cooks the distillation of advice seems to be: surface of the pan and temperature and oil.
My skillet was clean but the surface had a multitude of small scratches from the scouring. Using very fine (1400 grit) emery paper I polished it to a very passable mirror finish.
Now about the heat and oil; heat the dry pan up to about what the cooking temp will be and then add the oil. Note: if the oil turns brown to black you are way too hot.
Something about the hot pan will allow the oil (pam in my case) to adhere better and then you add the food food to be cooked.
Well, it flat blew my sox off, the eggs and then the cornbread slid off the skillet so slick! Now, no doubt in the future I'll manage to stick things again but at least I have a direction to work towards.
Best Wishes, Rob

Not very familiar with SS but have heard the same timing suggestions about cast whatever pans and not to wash them with detergent. Nonstick coatings IMO don't like to be heated empty and on a campfire. They might get too hot if you don't pay attention.

Never used 1400 grit wet/dry but I know a buffing wheel and various polishing compounds (up to Jewelers Rouge) can do great things to embossed glass bottles after grinding off the embossing. I assume SS could take the same treatment. Whatever works for you is great!

I currently have a small/light no stick pan I kept because it snuggled my pots really well. It still works as advertised after I don't know, 3, 4, 5 years? It's thin though so it requires attention.

All I know for sure is if it ain't broke, count your blessings and enjoy.

I was told; "hot pan - cold oil" when using a SS fry pan.  And, I bet Snow_Dog can give you the best method for seasoning a SS pan.

Actually I never use stainless steel.  I got a quality non-stick pan quite a few years ago (I forget what the name of the good stuff was at that time...it constantly changes) and I keep it wrapped in a cloth dishtowel for travel. I bet I've had it for 15 years and it's still going strong.  For that longevity, it was worth shelling out a few bucks over the minimum.  Plus, it performs flawlessly.  Nice, even, steady heat with no hotspots.

The thicker the metal the better.  Heavy, yes, but won't warp under high heat.  With non stick, you put the oil in the cold pan.  It's not good to heat nonstick without something in it.

I use a T-Fal non-stick skillet. Have had it for many years, and like SD, I keep it padded with dishtowels or hotpads. Mine is square, which I'm not sure is made anymore.

I "borrowed" a ten inch Ross Guss Italian made non stick pan from my wife's kitchen supply a few years ago. It's wooden handle come's off so it nests in my bucket near the top. I could never find any more but lately she has found some at T-J-Maxx. It is a smaller version of the one I borrowed from her. This is 8 inches and is the same die cast aluminum. I will need to fashion a lid for baking and steaming but for $10 sale price these are quite a bargain.

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I use an REI teflon fry pan. It's been through the wars and despite my lack of care, the pan still manages to do just fine. 

I agree with DB... I don't think heating a "teflon-type" fry pan dry on the fire would be advised. 

prouboy

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Almost all my tripping is tandem with my wife.  The problem with most camping fry pans is they don't come bigger than 10 inch and are desperately thin.  In the end I just went and got a T-Fal 12" non stick and removed the handle.  Like SD and OS I keep mine in a bag for protection and have been using it for years without a problem.

Kerry -- got a picture of the pan?

prouboy

I do.  But can you tell my how to post a photo like you did?

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Aha, figured it out.  The pan has the fish in it and you can see that it is just a regular 12" T-Fal nonstick with the handle removed.  I then use one of those portable pot holder things that grip on to the lip of the pan.

Nice, simple solution Kerry.  Like Prouboy, I have a REI pan - the Campware Nonstick @10".  They do carry a 12" as well for those wanting a larger one.  I found it quite durable too, had it for about 6 years now and lots of use.  The handle folds or quite nicely, comes off all together, which is how I store it...allows better nesting of other gear.  My GSI plastic plates fit right into it and protect the surface at the same time.  The 10" fits great into a 30L blue barrel, which I've switched to, with just a little extra coaxing to get past the barrel mouth (like 9.75 inches). 

pd

Nice pic Kerry. A handle-less frying pan with the pan holder is a great idea.  I like my frying pan, but I get tired of frying endless rounds of fish fillets.

Another great idea of putting a large frying pan on the bottom of the food barrel.  I have the large barrel (I painted it green as I can't stand the blue color) which should accommodate a large frying pan.

Thanks for the ideas!

prouboy   

You know, PB, I looked for a frying pan for years.  It's hard to find a camp fry pan bigger than 10", at least around here.  But in any case, in the end I figured for the few extra ounces I'd rather have a pan with some thickness on the bottom, it just distributes the heat better and I like my fish just perfect!  This handleless pan has worked well for me and when I pack it, it also helps to keep my pack squared up.

Prouboy,

Just be careful putting that fry pan (or other pots) at the bottom of the barrel.  Those 'dimples' in the bottom of the barrel can put 'dimples' in your fry pan.  With a T-fal or another tougher pan, it might be ok, but the REI one is a bit softer.  Voice of experience here....fortunately, I caught it before it got seriously dented.  Place something beneath it...some foam padding, some food items, or whatever to keep that from happening.

pd

Thanks for the tip Portage Dog.  I'll heed your advice.  I'm thinking of a piece of an old closed cell foam sleeping pad.  By the way, what exactly is T-fal?

I'm looking at frying pans at my local Goodwill.  Lots of choices!

prouboy

T-fal is just a popular, fairly inexpensive brand of non-stick cookware.  You can pretty much find them anywhere but I'm sure other brands will do just as well.  T-fal type cookware will be much sturdier than the very thin made for camping variety.

Much has been made of using thicker pans for even heat distribution and I agree if you are using a stove a thicker metal is a must.Thin metal pans excel when used over a fire however.

I observed as much with KF this past summer.  I quickly grew to admire the pan he had.......square shape, thin metal and folding wire handles (no rubber or plastic to burn). I have used square cast iron to fry fish at home for some time now and is my favorite shape bar none. If I could find a pan like he had I would get it in a split second but I can't find it.

Yeah, my "Goodwill hunting" hasn't turned up any square frying pans, which is something I've been wanting.  Then again, the hunt is as much fun as the finding.

prouboy

Square fry pans?  Here you go boys and girls:
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Good work Kerry! I am mostly interested in the fry pan but will probably be glad to own the set. This would be the type of set that would excel over campfire cooking with an open flame/grill IMO.

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Another option to consider for a square fry pan - convert an old electric skillet:
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Whatever your pan material of choice, you want to season it and like a non-stik pan, wipe clean sans soap. If you use soap, you have to re-season.

This video shows you how. She explains the physics behind how the seasoning process works as well. Check out the omelette at the end, made without addtional oil. 8-)

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I used to use a cast iron frying pan - never washed it, just cleaned it with oak leaves and sand.  In those days I just car-camped and had a lot of Spam and pancakes.  There was enough grease in the Spam that I didn't need oil.

Nowadays all I ever use a pan for is pancakes, fruit compote, thick and thin bannock, scrambled eggs, pizza, and such stuff.  There's no need to use oil for any of that, either, as long as you have a good pan.  I learned about using oil in a frying pan the hard way.

I once had a cheap non-stick pan (Open Country brand) that I used for my first few attempts at bannock.  I added oil to the hot pan and the bannock stuck so badly I had to scrape it out.  I felt guilty tossing the ugly, charred remains into the woods.  It was my only camp cooking failure, and to top it off the pan was ruined.

Now I have a couple different sizes of a pan I got at REI.  I don't recall the brand, but I don't believe they're MSR.  I've been using them for a few years now and they're so good they don't need to be washed - just wiped out.  The key is - start with a cold pan and don't use any oil.  Every meal is a success.

End of brag.

My ultimate "over the fire" square fry pan showed up today......Hurrah! All metal, non stick, folding metal handle, no rubber or wood to catch fire or melt.

Upon opening the box I believe an expletive might of leaked out :P. My 13 x 13 fry pan was in centimeters, not inches (For crying out loud!). It just might be able to fit a single egg inside......

OK......the joke is on me and a rather pricey joke at that. I'm starting to laugh about it now because it is so ridiculous.........do not buy this set online, it is available at 1/2 price from MT enterprises  ;)

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Eco-Japan should of been your first clue that the measurements might be in centimeters. ;D

Description of product clearly says CM.

At 86 US dollars I'd say you got screwed or whatever the Japanese word for that is. :-[

I'll stick with the MADE IN AMERICA stuff or at least the MADE FOR AMERICA in a pinch. ;)

MT, did you ever see the movie, This is Spinal Tap?  It’s a comedy about an over the hill heavy metal band planning a last big show.  They are going to have this incredible stage set, a model of Stonehenge with dry ice and the whole deal.  On the day of the performance the set arrives except the measurements were in cm instead of feet so instead of a full scale Stonehenge they get something not much bigger than your head.  And so they go on stage with the big musical build up, smoke rising and the Stonehenge is lowered onto the stage – all of 2 ½ feet tall.  That’s what your story of opening the box brought to my mind.  How deflatingly disappointing.  But also pretty funny.

ya the whole thing is sort of hilarious........I keep supressing a smile every time I look at the pan. Now I keep thinking about how I can somehow make use of the dang thing.

I'm very busy right now so its either pull the trigger or forget....I click on the product, see 13x13.......non-stck, folding handle....exactly what I wanted........click on pay-pal and rationalize that i don't smoke or drink or gamble and if I want an $86 fry pan that I would use 7 times a year well by golly I work 12 hours a day so fine.........also included would be the nice big pot to boil dish water. Hey I could be like Mike (er make that KF who owns exactly what I'm looking for).

Good story Kerry........I can relate  ;)

AHA!!

I took a good critical look at the tiny fry pan and have decided that it would be the perfect little pan to take on backpacking trips to use when frying the little trout that I every so often come into contact with. Perfecto-mundo! (that's Spanish...sorta)