Best de Buyer French Carbon Steel Fry Pans

Since 1830

De Buyer manufactures one of the best French carbon steel frying pans available today. Cooking with carbon steel pans is something to be experienced. Whether you find cooking with carbon steel pans from the de Buyer’s line of fry pans or crepe pans, you will not be disappointed. All of their products are well made and their pans would be a proud addition to any kitchen.

The carbon steel pans by de Buyer are made in Faymont-Val d’Ajol (Vosges), France.

Here is a picture of my de Buyer pan. As you can see it has been used a lot and the non-stick aspect is almost perfect. I have to admit that this particular pan has been seasoned or re-seasoned 3 times. After the third seasoning, I finally got it right!

It was not the pan’s fault, it was mine. I chose the wrong method to season the pan. If you want to see how I finally got it right you can view my videos here on seasoning a carbon steel pan that really works.

The iron MINERAL B ELEMENT (check Amazon for the latest price) fry pan is a 100% natural material with a protective organic beeswax finish. The beeswax coating helps to protect it from any rust while it is being shipped. It is guaranteed coating-free (no PFOA or PTFE). There are no added chemicals and are made with an environmentally friendly manufacturing process.

PFOA is called Perfluorooctanoic acid, also known as C8. PFOA is commonly used as a fluorosurfactant. Fluorosurfactants are commonly used in car washes to reduce the surface tension of water so that water runs off your car and leaves fewer droplet particles. I have been a doctor since 1974 and I never heard of a deficiency in our bodies of PFOA. The FDA most likely says it is safe, but I do not trust the FDA one bit. Why would you want to take the risk of using PFOA?

PTFE is called Polytetrafluoroethylene. I have never known a deficiency of PTFE in our bodies either. If you want to know more about PTFE then here is a link.

These pans are robust, recyclable, and professional products. The fry pan reaches high temperatures and quickly seals the food, thereby preserving vitamins and nutrients. Ideal for Sealing, Browning, and Grilling.

Seasoning: the more you use the frying pan, the better it cooks. The blacker it gets, the less it sticks. I recommend that the seasoning process of using potatoes, salt, and oil is the method to use for seasoning. I have found this method to be the best and easiest method of seasoning or re-seasoning your de Buyer carbon steel pan.

To enhance your cooking with our French carbon steel fry pans I recommend using our handpicked cooking oils from Amazon. I recommend the following oils to be used because they have a high smoke point and have less tendency to smoke. You will like using the following oils; refined coconut oil, grapeseed oil, avocado oil, flaxseed oil, and ghee to combine with your cooking experience. Try each of these oils to see which one you like best. You won’t be disappointed.

One of the main reasons I like the de Buyer line of carbon steel pans is that they are very rugged. The handle is riveted to the pan and I think you could run over these pans with a fleet of tanks and they would look just as good as new.

Once your pan is well-seasoned, there is little it can’t do very well. Turn out perfect rolled omelets; sear a rib-eye to caramelized perfection; saute a juicy chicken piccata; blacken catfish to make your mouth water; roast Brussel sprouts; bake a Tarte Tatin and be the star of your kitchen.

I also liked the fact that they are the thickest of all the pans I measured. My 10.2-inch pan measured 3.45 mm or 0.1360 inches thick. The du Buyer pans measured the thickest which means that you could sear a thick steak with a slim possibility of the bottom of the pan warping. To me, even if any of my carbon steel pans warped is not a big deal. I have some carbon steel pans that are warped due to high heat. This should not be a problem unless you are using an electric stove with coiled burners.

Manufacturers could keep making carbon steel pans thicker and thicker until the darn thing would weigh 200#..then they most likely would never warp. They could, but let’s get real here. These manufacturers weigh the thickness of the pan to the applications that we use them for.  No one would use a pan weighing 200# or so as it would be too heavy. Everything is a trade-off, just like life itself.

So the bottom line is this. If you are overly concerned with the warping of your carbon steel pans, then buy the thickest pan you can get like this 11-inch pan by de Buyer.

How to Clean Your de Buyer Carbon Steel Pan

My second choice would be the Matfer Bourgeat line of carbon steel pans which I will describe in another post. The handles on these de Buyer pans are very strong as you can see by the rivets on my de Buyer pan below. Please note that I use my de Buyer pan a lot and it, therefore, looks very well used. To me, my carbon steel pans are not showpieces, they are workhorses!

Inside Rivets	Outside Rivets

There are many types and styles of de Buyer carbon steel pans or skillets available at Amazon. Below is a list of a few of them that I would recommend.

Below is the de Buyers 12 1/2 inch pan with the helper handle

  Below is the 11 inch de Buyer pan

Below is the MINERAL B Round Carbon Steel Omelet-pan 9.5-Inch

This is a great pan if you make a lot of Omelets!

Below is the MINERAL B Round Carbon Steel Steak Fry Pan 11-Inch

This is a great pan to use if you are a steak lover.

Below is the MINERAL B Round Country Chef Carbon Steel Fry Pan 11-Inch

If you are looking for a pan that has high sides like this 3.5-inch high-sided pan, then this would be a good choice. Your foods will not splash over the sides. This is a super pan because of the design and size.

I am for sure that no matter what size or style of de Buyer pan you purchase that you will not be disappointed. de Buyer has been around for a long time in the carbon steel manufacturing arena and has developed some wonderful products. I use my de Buyer pans every day and I am never disappointed.

I am sure that you will feel the same once you start using these superb carbon steel pans. For seasoning, instructions go to this link on my site to see a carbon steel seasoning process that actually works.

Be sure to read all the reviews on Amazon about all these pans before you make any purchase.  The review link I provided is for the 9 1/2-inch de buyer pan that I own. Scroll to the bottom of that page to read the reviews. They will help you make an informed decision as to the size, type, and model of carbon steel pan to purchase.

If you have any questions or comments you would like to make about these de Buyer pans/skillets please leave them in the comment section below. Thank you for taking the time to read this article. I have tried to point out the pros as well as some of the cons of these pans. I hope you have enjoyed this article and that it has brought you some knowledge about de Buyer pans that you did not know before. Please remember that I am not an expert on carbon steel cookware. I am a person just like you trying to find some of the hidden answers to many of the questions of the same types of questions.

Here is a short video on how du Buyer pans are made: