Hexclad Pan Review, Real World Real Time - Lots of Pictures!

[bill1]

...I don’t think the Hex are Teflon or variation of Teflon since it’s safe up to 900 degrees...

I think they say to stay under 500F on the surface (the max oven temp as well). Now they may pass the bottoms through a 900F cool flame for a reasonable amount of time, similar to passing a finger through a candle flame, but they might be counting on the low heat conduction of stainless steel in doing so.

Some reviewers (Chris Young being linked here) consider them a hybrid of steel and teflon pans and I think that's a good way to consider them. Hexclad's FAQ admits they use Teflon: https://hexclad.com/pages/faq

I've learned a lot from Greg Blonder and his article on seasoning cast iron starts with a discussion of teflon pan technology which, as usual, is useful. My "ceramic pan" is almost certainly a ceramic-in-teflon surface, and had the unmistakable feel of teflon when new but is now feeling less slippery although eggs (or other proteins) still don't stick as long as I oil it up before bringing up to heat. I've even taken to rubbing in a drop of oil after washing and storing.

Though not a negative review, this is one of the less glowing reviews of HexClad:

Hexclad Cookware: A Review of the Hybrid Cookware Brand

Our Hexclad cookware review looks at this new hybrid nonstick-clad stainless. We discuss the construction, heating performance, price, and more.

therationalkitchen.com

 

[Redicans]

I have looked at them but have only used Cast Iron for years! I only use stainless for soups or boiling. Love my CI and can't break the habit. Great looking Cookware though!!

 

[civilsmoker]

I think they say to stay under 500F on the surface (the max oven temp as well). Now they may pass the bottoms through a 900F cool flame for a reasonable amount of time, similar to passing a finger through a candle flame, but they might be counting on the low heat conduction of stainless steel in doing so.

Some reviewers (Chris Young being linked here) consider them a hybrid of steel and teflon pans and I think that's a good way to consider them. Hexclad's FAQ admits they use Teflon: https://hexclad.com/pages/faq

I've learned a lot from Greg Blonder and his article on seasoning cast iron starts with a discussion of teflon pan technology which, as usual, is useful. My "ceramic pan" is almost certainly a ceramic-in-teflon surface, and had the unmistakable feel of teflon when new but is now feeling less slippery although eggs (or other proteins) still don't stick as long as I oil it up before bringing up to heat. I've even taken to rubbing in a drop of oil after washing and storing.

Though not a negative review, this is one of the less glowing reviews of HexClad:

Hexclad Cookware: A Review of the Hybrid Cookware Brand

Our Hexclad cookware review looks at this new hybrid nonstick-clad stainless. We discuss the construction, heating performance, price, and more.

therationalkitchen.com

Each of these reviews are very interesting to me…the described performance doesn’t matchup to our use over 8 months….. Having cooked 5 - 6 dozen sunny side up eggs in them I know that guy had to do some magic to get that egg to stick like that……as I said above they need oil to perform…if used oil less they will disappoint…….

Since the surface is patented it has to be a different make up than just a stock standard Teflon…… it also has a way different texture and feel to it…. It actually reminds me of the surface on the discontinued Calphalon One pans had. It was a polymer infused anodization, it was very durable but not really non-stick. The Hex is suppose to be infused with diamond powder and was developed in Japan. Based on the performance I have experience with them they seem to be as durable as an anodized surface. Gordon Ramsay used them in his last season of Hells Kitchen so they have been through the paces of a profession kitchen…..

Hopefully they will hold up but I have high hopes…..as I noted above we still have and use our tri-ply stainless, CIs and we always keep our non-stick fry’s

Oh take a look at the new BBQ pan it is rated at 900 degrees…. It looks like they added ceramic to the mix…… I do plan on getting one at some point…just putting nickels in the jar

​

 

[civilsmoker]

I have looked at them but have only used Cast Iron for years! I only use stainless for soups or boiling. Love my CI and can't break the habit. Great looking Cookware though!!

Nothing wrong with CI & stainless, my son was the one that pushed us to fry them……he is a scientist and really nuts over them…..so I blame him…..

 

[DemonPit]

I almost pulled the trigger on this exact set of pans over Christmas holidays last yr. They had their 13pc set for 700ish. I bought the ninja foodie premier instead for 399. I LOVE the ninja set (it's cast iron over ?), but is very easily scratched. No bueno in my kitchen. It does sear and sautee very well, but (imo) the hexclad can take the abuse I would throw at it. And it's metal utensil safe. Ninja is NOT!

Another thing to remember, say you buy a medium level pan set for 450, 4yrs later they are done from the abuse. So you need a new set, another 450. Your at 900 in pans over 8yrs. Why not buy a premium pan set once and it should last well into 10yrs. Justifying the cost of a pricier pan set. I've used all kinds of pans in a kitchen. The top tier pans usually outlast most of the cooks that come thru the doors.

 

[bluesmoke214]

I have gotten a number of questions about our Hexclad pans that have been showing up in many of my posts. TulsaJeff reached out to me about them as well since he is currently doing a review of a set they sent him. I was going to come up with a couple of test to show how they work, however, as I was looking over my photo library, I noticed that I already have a ton of pictures and I can speak to their performance. In transparency, I don't represent them nor have I been ask by them to give a review.

We first saw them on Gordon Rasmey's next level chef show and my son did a little internet look and "encouraged" me and the wife to look at them..... reluctantly I bit the hook (we have many pan sets and have tried many "new things" over the years, we were pretty much new pan fatigued). Looking over their web page and seeing how much Gordon was "all in" we decided to get a single pan to test so if they were a gimmick or not.......We got a 10" fry pan with lid just before Thanksgiving of 2022 (about 8 months ago).

I took these pic last night........we haven't been "rough" on them but as you can see there is NO visible signs of scratches or marks. The close ups show that none of the anodization is failing at the little stainless buttons.
View attachment 668885
View attachment 668888
View attachment 668887

After 2 months us using the above pan, we were convinced that these pans were not a gimmick so we purchased a 13 piece set before Christmas, so we have had the full set for a solid 6.5 months.

Now to point out a few of the hidden design features of the pans and lids:

First off each lid has a vent hole to prevent excess moisture from building up when using the fry pans (ie mess up your sear) as well as not making a mess when boiling pasta and such in a pot.
View attachment 668891

Next the geometry of the of the edge is near perfect for pouring without a mess.....Here it is pour bacon grease....you can start of slow and it doesn't wrap around the edge....
View attachment 668889
This is the 12 inch pan with cut up bacon pieces we use for bacon bits......cooks very uniformly across the whole pan
View attachment 668892
This pic shows how the "young" bacon doesn't stick when in its initial cook...
View attachment 668893
And this shows that the "residual" bacon pours clean from the pan.
View attachment 668890

This next picture shows boiling 1/2 inch of water in the 12 inch pan...it should be noted that both the 10 and 12 inch pans came with a little hump in the center that moves oil and liquid to the outside (it is very slight though and helps with keeping the center section in sear mode)
View attachment 668886

This pic is after my wife made a caramel sauce....ie it does very well at "non" stick for sugar stuff....
View attachment 668884

This picture is an example of making "burn ends" in a pan, ie sugary rub and heat with animal fat.
View attachment 668894
Caramelized red onions (balsamic vinegar and brown sugar).
View attachment 668899

The next three are examples of a nearly dry searing......baby bellas, day old russets, and bellas and roots.....
View attachment 668898
View attachment 668895
View attachment 668902

The last two show "raw" shredded russets and shrimp sautee.
View attachment 668905
View attachment 668904

I will take a picture of the next time I do eggs in them but it should be noted that they do have a "bit" of a stick to them, IE the stainless potions of them but if you giggle the pan and break that then things slide right out. It should also be noted that these do need to be seasoned the first time, ie a little oil and 30 seconds of heat or so. Its also best to use a "dab" of oil when cooking to make the truley non stick. If I use a 1/2 tsp of butter in the small 8 inch fry my sunny side up eggs slide right out. If you do "dry" scrambled there will be a little stick but a Teflon non stick will also have some stick at that point.

In the next week or two I will also take a pic of them searing a chicken breast just to show how well they do. I personally believe they give a better sear and CI because they are more responsive to the heat.

I will be happy to answer any questions as this goes along and I will add to it as we continue to use the. I also wouldn't hesitate to recomend them if you want a high end pan or pan set in the kitchen as they currently do the majority of the cooking in our kitchen now.

Till next time happy cooking

I see they have a BBQ Grill Pan. Do you use that for grilling or can you use the other pans on the grill?

 

[bluesmoke214]

Silicone mostly for me--softer yet. But for a spatula I have to use PE or PTFE.

Ok, I'm a newb...what do PE and PTFE stand for?

 

[OldSmoke]

How romantic can I be?!

I bought a large fry pan for Mrs Smoke for Christmas! I will agree with the write-ups, this is a great pan! It gets used every week and we are very happy with it.

 

[civilsmoker]

I see they have a BBQ Grill Pan. Do you use that for grilling or can you use the other pans on the grill?

I haven't gotten the BBQ pan yet, it is rated at 900 degrees and I believe has a different composition to deal with the higher heat. We have used the normal ones in the oven up after searing many many times so, no issue with the inside oven at all!

How romantic can I be?!

I bought a large fry pan for Mrs Smoke for Christmas! I will agree with the write-ups, this is a great pan! It gets used every week and we are very happy with it.

Thats pretty dang romantic! Time will tell but so far we are fans all around

 

[bill1]

Ok, I'm a newb...what do PE and PTFE stand for?

sorry, polyethylene (typically cheap white slippery plastic) and polytetrafluoroethylene (Teflon).

 

[DemonPit]

We use quite a bit of ptfe vs glass temp probe holders at the lab in various setups. I know for sure 200c doesn't effect them at all.

 

[TulsaJeff]

I have gotten a number of questions about our Hexclad pans that have been showing up in many of my posts. TulsaJeff reached out to me about them as well since he is currently doing a review of a set they sent him. I was going to come up with a couple of test to show how they work, however, as I was looking over my photo library, I noticed that I already have a ton of pictures and I can speak to their performance. In transparency, I don't represent them nor have I been ask by them to give a review.

We first saw them on Gordon Rasmey's next level chef show and my son did a little internet look and "encouraged" me and the wife to look at them..... reluctantly I bit the hook (we have many pan sets and have tried many "new things" over the years, we were pretty much new pan fatigued). Looking over their web page and seeing how much Gordon was "all in" we decided to get a single pan to test so if they were a gimmick or not.......We got a 10" fry pan with lid just before Thanksgiving of 2022 (about 8 months ago).

I took these pic last night........we haven't been "rough" on them but as you can see there is NO visible signs of scratches or marks. The close ups show that none of the anodization is failing at the little stainless buttons.
View attachment 668885
View attachment 668888
View attachment 668887

After 2 months us using the above pan, we were convinced that these pans were not a gimmick so we purchased a 13 piece set before Christmas, so we have had the full set for a solid 6.5 months.

Now to point out a few of the hidden design features of the pans and lids:

First off each lid has a vent hole to prevent excess moisture from building up when using the fry pans (ie mess up your sear) as well as not making a mess when boiling pasta and such in a pot.
View attachment 668891

Next the geometry of the of the edge is near perfect for pouring without a mess.....Here it is pour bacon grease....you can start of slow and it doesn't wrap around the edge....
View attachment 668889
This is the 12 inch pan with cut up bacon pieces we use for bacon bits......cooks very uniformly across the whole pan
View attachment 668892
This pic shows how the "young" bacon doesn't stick when in its initial cook...
View attachment 668893
And this shows that the "residual" bacon pours clean from the pan.
View attachment 668890

This next picture shows boiling 1/2 inch of water in the 12 inch pan...it should be noted that both the 10 and 12 inch pans came with a little hump in the center that moves oil and liquid to the outside (it is very slight though and helps with keeping the center section in sear mode)
View attachment 668886

This pic is after my wife made a caramel sauce....ie it does very well at "non" stick for sugar stuff....
View attachment 668884

This picture is an example of making "burn ends" in a pan, ie sugary rub and heat with animal fat.
View attachment 668894
Caramelized red onions (balsamic vinegar and brown sugar).
View attachment 668899

The next three are examples of a nearly dry searing......baby bellas, day old russets, and bellas and roots.....
View attachment 668898
View attachment 668895
View attachment 668902

The last two show "raw" shredded russets and shrimp sautee.
View attachment 668905
View attachment 668904

I will take a picture of the next time I do eggs in them but it should be noted that they do have a "bit" of a stick to them, IE the stainless potions of them but if you giggle the pan and break that then things slide right out. It should also be noted that these do need to be seasoned the first time, ie a little oil and 30 seconds of heat or so. Its also best to use a "dab" of oil when cooking to make the truley non stick. If I use a 1/2 tsp of butter in the small 8 inch fry my sunny side up eggs slide right out. If you do "dry" scrambled there will be a little stick but a Teflon non stick will also have some stick at that point.

In the next week or two I will also take a pic of them searing a chicken breast just to show how well they do. I personally believe they give a better sear and CI because they are more responsive to the heat.

I will be happy to answer any questions as this goes along and I will add to it as we continue to use the. I also wouldn't hesitate to recomend them if you want a high end pan or pan set in the kitchen as they currently do the majority of the cooking in our kitchen now.

Till next time happy cooking

Thank you so much for posting this.. I am still in review mode but I think your write-up says it all, these seem to be all they are cracked up to be and possibly more. I wouldn't think Gordon would put himself behind something that didn't hold up well in the kitchen.

Your pictures are awesome and I appreciate the time you took to share how well they've worked out in your kitchen!

 

[civilsmoker]

Thank you so much for posting this.. I am still in review mode but I think your write-up says it all, these seem to be all they are cracked up to be and possibly more. I wouldn't think Gordon would put himself behind something that didn't hold up well in the kitchen.

Your pictures are awesome and I appreciate the time you took to share how well they've worked out in your kitchen!

You are welcome Jeff. I'm looking forward to your full assessment once you have had time to work with them. I have a few more pictures to post once I get the chance to snap them will searing and doing eggs.....hopefully some free time will pop up soon. Thanks!

 

[civilsmoker]

Just an update on the continued performance…..my boy seared 15 scallops all together in the 12 inch fry tonight………

So anyone that knows about searing scallops, being able to sear this many including the ones in the center is impressive!!!

A plate of the final scallops……these hexclads are impressive!

 

[civilsmoker]

So one more update from tonight’s dinner…..a seared boneless chicken breast……

Started with just a salt & pepper dressed breast, smooth side down in mid high burner with classic olive. Just a note that our burners are 18ks so the mid high would be around 15k to match most stoves…..

Flipped it between 2.5 to 3 mins…..just money!!!!

Seared it about 60 seconds on the cut side down then I dropped a Tbsp of butter and some fresh herbs to butter bast it!

Basted it for about 90 seconds and in the oven at 325….

I basted it about 5 mins in and then 5 mins more….

Ok now the downside view (bingo)……..the INT is 160 and now the rest……

So here are the bonus shots….. the slicing after the rest…

These slices were used to dress up some Costco Ivars potato soup and topped on my wife’s Cesar

Ok the chicken was pure money in the soup!

Pure magic on the salad….

I will also note that we have not seen any sign of wear on the surfaces and we do stack them so the get abused in the drawer……. At this point we are in for the long game to see if the go the distance, ie beyond the three - five year mark…..

 

[fxsales1959]

I have gotten a number of questions about our Hexclad pans that have been showing up in many of my posts. TulsaJeff reached out to me about them as well since he is currently doing a review of a set they sent him. I was going to come up with a couple of test to show how they work, however, as I was looking over my photo library, I noticed that I already have a ton of pictures and I can speak to their performance. In transparency, I don't represent them nor have I been ask by them to give a review.

We first saw them on Gordon Rasmey's next level chef show and my son did a little internet look and "encouraged" me and the wife to look at them..... reluctantly I bit the hook (we have many pan sets and have tried many "new things" over the years, we were pretty much new pan fatigued). Looking over their web page and seeing how much Gordon was "all in" we decided to get a single pan to test so if they were a gimmick or not.......We got a 10" fry pan with lid just before Thanksgiving of 2022 (about 8 months ago).

I took these pic last night........we haven't been "rough" on them but as you can see there is NO visible signs of scratches or marks. The close ups show that none of the anodization is failing at the little stainless buttons.
View attachment 668885
View attachment 668888
View attachment 668887

After 2 months us using the above pan, we were convinced that these pans were not a gimmick so we purchased a 13 piece set before Christmas, so we have had the full set for a solid 6.5 months.

Now to point out a few of the hidden design features of the pans and lids:

First off each lid has a vent hole to prevent excess moisture from building up when using the fry pans (ie mess up your sear) as well as not making a mess when boiling pasta and such in a pot.
View attachment 668891

Next the geometry of the of the edge is near perfect for pouring without a mess.....Here it is pour bacon grease....you can start of slow and it doesn't wrap around the edge....
View attachment 668889
This is the 12 inch pan with cut up bacon pieces we use for bacon bits......cooks very uniformly across the whole pan
View attachment 668892
This pic shows how the "young" bacon doesn't stick when in its initial cook...
View attachment 668893
And this shows that the "residual" bacon pours clean from the pan.
View attachment 668890

This next picture shows boiling 1/2 inch of water in the 12 inch pan...it should be noted that both the 10 and 12 inch pans came with a little hump in the center that moves oil and liquid to the outside (it is very slight though and helps with keeping the center section in sear mode)
View attachment 668886

This pic is after my wife made a caramel sauce....ie it does very well at "non" stick for sugar stuff....
View attachment 668884

This picture is an example of making "burn ends" in a pan, ie sugary rub and heat with animal fat.
View attachment 668894
Caramelized red onions (balsamic vinegar and brown sugar).
View attachment 668899

The next three are examples of a nearly dry searing......baby bellas, day old russets, and bellas and roots.....
View attachment 668898
View attachment 668895
View attachment 668902

The last two show "raw" shredded russets and shrimp sautee.
View attachment 668905
View attachment 668904

I will take a picture of the next time I do eggs in them but it should be noted that they do have a "bit" of a stick to them, IE the stainless potions of them but if you giggle the pan and break that then things slide right out. It should also be noted that these do need to be seasoned the first time, ie a little oil and 30 seconds of heat or so. Its also best to use a "dab" of oil when cooking to make the truley non stick. If I use a 1/2 tsp of butter in the small 8 inch fry my sunny side up eggs slide right out. If you do "dry" scrambled there will be a little stick but a Teflon non stick will also have some stick at that point.

In the next week or two I will also take a pic of them searing a chicken breast just to show how well they do. I personally believe they give a better sear and CI because they are more responsive to the heat.

I will be happy to answer any questions as this goes along and I will add to it as we continue to use the. I also wouldn't hesitate to recomend them if you want a high end pan or pan set in the kitchen as they currently do the majority of the cooking in our kitchen now.

Till next time happy cooking

Thank you for taking time for a thorough review. I read and gave thought to all the points.
My interest was piqued enough to open a new tab, type in Hexclad, and hit enter.
after I changed my drawers, I went in the kitchen to take a look at my over 20 year old SS Cuisinart full set (When Cuisinart was real). Still looks almost new after all these years of abuse. We do have one 8" non-stick pan mama gravitates to for Sunday morning eggs(over easy) it is a T-fal to show how old it is. Can't/won't even think about dropping 7 bills to replace what works. I will keep watching your cooks and the price. Of course some little guys in Asia will try and duplicate Hexclad
(God bless their little hearts.)
Thank you again for planting the seed.
John

 

[DemonPit]

There's 2 companies I've seen tv ads for the mirror the hexclad pans near 100%. Anolox I think is one, I can't remember the other. I'm 2 weeks past the return policy on my pan set, it's not hexclad :( . Mine was 1/2 the cost of Hc, and I regret 100% not buying hc to begin with. I should have known better, 35yrs I've been cooking.

 

[civilsmoker]

Thank you for taking time for a thorough review. I read and gave thought to all the points.
My interest was piqued enough to open a new tab, type in Hexclad, and hit enter.
after I changed my drawers, I went in the kitchen to take a look at my over 20 year old SS Cuisinart full set (When Cuisinart was real). Still looks almost new after all these years of abuse. We do have one 8" non-stick pan mama gravitates to for Sunday morning eggs(over easy) it is a T-fal to show how old it is. Can't/won't even think about dropping 7 bills to replace what works. I will keep watching your cooks and the price. Of course some little guys in Asia will try and duplicate Hexclad
(God bless their little hearts.)
Thank you again for planting the seed.
John

You are welcome FX! Although, I'm going to say I'm not responsible for replacement drawers! LOL. I will say we do have a full set of stainless and we will always have a set, but we do LOVE the Hex's for sure. I will also note that we use fry pans like breathing air..... We currently have more that 13 in the drawer right now. 4 Hex, 6 non-stick, and 3 stainless..... We can have my wife cooking in one on the front burner and a sauce pan on the back burner, my son in another one and I often will have two on (front and back burner) all at the same time...ie we often use 5 of our 6 burners on a regular basis....... I know we have a problem.......

There's 2 companies I've seen tv ads for the mirror the hexclad pans near 100%. Anolox I think is one, I can't remember the other. I'm 2 weeks past the return policy on my pan set, it's not hexclad :( . Mine was 1/2 the cost of Hc, and I regret 100% not buying hc to begin with. I should have known better, 35yrs I've been cooking.

All I can say is we have gone through "many" previous this is the "magic pan" before, and NONE have been that. I consider non-sticks consumables, stainless are staples, and now almost a year into they Hex, they are looking to be the real deal, so far none of our Hex has scratches or signs of wearing out so far....Something none of the "previous magic pans" were able to do at the same use......

 

[jcam222]

civilsmoker are you still loving these? Neighbor is looking to buy a very nice set for his wife for Christmas.

 

[civilsmoker]

civilsmoker are you still loving these? Neighbor is looking to buy a very nice set for his wife for Christmas.

jcam....... YES! We also just added the 7 Qt deep sauté pan. It is a HUGE pan but sweet, we did chicken marsala the other day and I could oil sear 3 full (pounded out) chicken breasts at the same time. You can see a little bit of the sear in this pic.... I didn't do a post on this cook but it was yummy! The shrooms were seared in a smaller fry as well....just money!