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What Are Some Good Substitutes for a Cast Iron Skillet?

No cast iron skillet? No problem! Try using these alternatives instead.

Steaks sizzling in a cast iron skillet | Craig Britton / Tastyble
By Dim Nikov,
editor-in-chief of Tastyble, formally trained chef, and author of Cooking Methods & Techniques: A Crash Course on How to Cook Delicious Food at Home for Beginners.

Tell me if this sounds familiar: There’s this recipe you really, really, really want to try. You have all the ingredients on hand. But there’s one problem—the recipe calls for a cast iron skillet, which you don’t happen to own.

So you did what anyone else in your situation would do. You pulled out your phone, or maybe you made your way to the computer, and started searching for cast iron skillet alternatives. If my crystal ball is finally working correctly, that’s actually how you ended up here reading this article.

As someone who reviews cookware for a living, I can relate. Not because I don’t own cast iron pans and pots, but because I’ve been in this situation many times before, whether at friends’ homes, beach houses, or Airbnbs.

If you’re looking for the best alternatives to cast iron skillets, see my recommendations below.

Why Cast Iron Skillets Are Difficult to Replace

Ever wondered why so many recipes call for a cast iron skillet?

Contrary to what many people think, cast iron is actually a poor heat conductor. Ironically, this is exactly what makes cast iron so good for cookware. Allow me to explain …

Cast iron skillets take a while to heat up. If you’ve cooked with one before, you know it takes a good 3 to 5 minutes to get it up to temperature. But once they’re hot, they stay hot—and they do an excellent job of transferring that heat to your food.

Why is this important?

Because unless you’re cooking on gas, where the flame continuously heats the sides of the skillet, all other cooktops have a thermostat that cycles the heating element or induction coils on and off. By being slow to accumulate and let go of heat but great at holding it, cast iron skillets even out the temperature fluctuations caused by the stovetop’s thermostat and provide a steady cooking temperature.

This is also true when you add cold ingredients from the refrigerator or ingredients at room temperature to the pan. A cast iron skillet’s temperature won’t drop as quickly as that of a thin and flimsy ceramic or non-stick pan.

The Best Cast Iron Skillet Substitutes

Cast iron skillets may be difficult to replace, but they’re not irreplaceable. Below are my go-to alternatives whenever a recipe calls for cast iron but I don’t have one on hand.

Carbon Steel Pan

Browning chicken tenders in a carbon steel pan | Dim Nikov / Tastyble

A carbon steel pan is the closest alternative to a cast iron skillet because both behave very similarly when it comes to holding heat and transferring it to your food.

Like cast iron, carbon steel is ideal for searing steak, sautéing mushrooms, preparing breakfast—from sunny-side-up eggs and streaky bacon to crêpes and pancakes—and even baking flatbread or pizza in the oven.

But that’s not to say that you can swap out a cast iron skillet for a carbon steel pan for every recipe. Carbon steel is a reactive metal that needs to be seasoned, just like cast iron. Using it to simmer highly acidic foods, such as dishes with large amounts of citrus juice, tomatoes, or vinegar, can cause the pan to leach iron into your food and give it an unpleasant metallic aftertaste.

So if you’re planning to cook something highly acidic, you’re free to do it, but I personally wouldn’t. Try using a stainless steel frying pan instead.

Which brings us to the next best substitute for a cast iron skillet …

Stainless Steel Pan

There’s a stainless steel pan tucked away in a drawer in almost every kitchen. So if you need to substitute something for a cast iron skillet and you don’t have a carbon steel pan available, you can’t go wrong by reaching for stainless steel.

I use stainless steel frypans whenever I have to cook something highly acidic, even when I have the option to use cast iron instead. Unlike cast iron and carbon steel, stainless steel is non-reactive. Even if you simmer tomato sauce for pasta or a vinegar-based sauce for a chicken braise in a stainless steel pot for a long time, it won’t make the sauce taste metallic.

Stainless steel frying pans have one major drawback, though: They’re very—and I mean very—prone to sticking. You can counter this by cooking with plenty of oil and waiting for the underside of the food to brown, especially when cooking sticky foods like eggs or fish fillets.

However, if you’re making pancakes, a stainless steel pan just won’t cut it. That’s when you want to go for ceramic or non-stick.

Ceramic or Non-Stick Pan

Stir-frying chicken with vegetables in a non-stick wok | Craig Britton / Tastyble

I’m not a big fan of Instagram cookware. You know, those fancy ceramic and non-stick pans? But as a trained cook, I have to admit that they do serve a purpose in both professional and home kitchens—preparing sticky foods.

Whether we’re talking eggs, crêpes, pancakes, or fish fillets, foods high in protein and low in fat quickly bond with metal surfaces, making them naturally sticky. Ceramic and non-stick pans prevent these foods from sticking thanks to the slick coating that acts as a barrier between the food and the metal.

If you do opt for ceramic or non-stick cookware as a cast iron alternative, remember to adjust the preheating time specified in the recipe. While most cast iron recipes call for 3-5 minutes of preheating an empty pan, doing so with ceramic or non-stick cookware can quickly overheat and damage the coating.

Instead, heat ceramic or non-stick pans for only 20-30 seconds before adding the food. (Don’t worry if this time seems too short; it isn’t. Almost all ceramic and non-stick pans are made of aluminum, which heats much faster than cast iron, carbon steel, or stainless steel.)