so my nonstick pan i bought from target for upwards of 40-60

Well being a decent chef and learning to cook without memes like nonstick would be a decent start.

The majority of your cookware should be mulitlayer stainless steel. You should also have a cast iron skillet.

I keep a single ~$100 All-clad nonstick skillet for the times when nonstick makes sense (frying an egg without a shit ton of grease or something)

>>9080707
For nonstick? Brands from a restaurant supply store. Tramontina, Eagleware/Alegacy, etc.

Also, the obvious:
1) stop overheating your nonstick cookware
2) stop using metal utensils in your nonstick cookware
3) stop stacking hard objects inside your nonstick cookware when you put it away.

Nonstick has a delicate surface. You need to treat it carefully. If you don't you will fuck up even the most expensive of pans.

>>9080725
im pretty sure it wasnt me who fucked up the pan, but i do high heat cooking with it a lot of the time might be why

>>9080707
Buy a cast iron pan from someone whose grandma just died. They won't know the value (probably) and I assure you that it will be at least decent if it has lasted this long.

>>9080707
buy cast iron and read online how to properly care for it
sounds annoying but you basically don't clean them so its actually easier
there is literally nothing that can happen to cast iron skillets that you can't fix and re-season

>>9080826
This. I was given a cast iron frying pan that was rusted to shit and hadn't seen any good treatment for decades. After a few hours of steel wool, salt, and heavy scrubbing, it's as good as new.

I make fried chicken in it all the time.

>>9080707
A lot of what keeps the nonstick non sticky is care after you cook. Try not to use soap, immediately rinse the pan and use something soft to get the hard shit off. I just scrape it with my fingernail. My nonstick pans last quite a while doing this

>>9080718
>>9080781
>>9080826
>>9080854

>cast iron
Definitely a wise investment. Don't be afraid to pay good money here, and get yourself a heavy duty one. They last forever and the care is super easy.

>>9081235
>good money
>cast iron
Don't listen to this guy, a $10 skillet will give you the exact same results as an $80 skillet. Cast iron is cast iron, and it improves with use as fats polymerize on the surface, which forms a nonstick coating. I would be wary of anything pre-seasoned, so if that's the cheapest you can find, scrub it off with steel wool and reseason with Crisco at high heat.

>>9081235
I wouldn't ever pay "good money" for cast iron.

I've gotten literally dozens of vintage cast iron skillets and shit for under $15. All they needed was sanding and reasoning at most.

>>9081258
Don't forget to salt it first or it's a waste of time.

>>9080707
the amazon brand stuff isnt bad

>>9080765
>but i do high heat cooking with it a lot of the time might be why
many people ruin the pans by heating them over 250 °c ..They are not made for that

and use wood or special plastic utensils, never metal

>>9080707
I bought that copper pan that's seen on tv from Walmart for like $20 or something. Best nonstick I've had and I've bought more expensive ones. Other posters are right, do not overheat it. Don't ever use it on high heat, medium high max then turn it down. Don't dry heat it for that long either. They get hot quick so you shouldn't have to preheat it for longer than a few seconds.

>>9081370
What does the salt do? I've always done oil to season but never salt.

>>9080725
This post was good advice. Go to Costco and buy the 3 pack of nonstick Tramontina pans if you want nonstick. Use wooden or plastic utensils. Never heat them above 375F.

>>9081475
If you overheat it the pan will get warped and not heat properly. You will also break down the coating to fumes which can be toxic to exotic birds (I loled when I read that in the manual) and also it's probably not great for you and will make the coating not as non stick.

>>9080725
/thread

>>9081483
he's been memeing that for weeks, ignore him

>>9081489
as a bird owner, fuck you :c