8 ms·

I have a teflon pan with which I can use butter in to make omelettes and I have a stainless pan that I generally use lard (bacon drippings) because the omelette

I have a teflon pan with which I can use butter in to make omelettes and I have a stainless pan that I generally use lard (bacon drippings) because the omelette will stick if I use butter. I am obviously vegawarian at best. What do vegetarians use for omelette in a steel pan?

zhabsksbs 7y ago
I use butter in my steel pans and it’s possible not to get the eggs to stick. If I’m feeling lazy, I’ll add sunflower oil to the butter to raise the smoke point
- stouset 7y ago
  This doesn’t raise the smoke point. The solids in the butter will still burn at the same temperature regardless of what it’s mixed with.
  - dragonwriter 7y ago
    > The solids in the butter will still burn at the same temperature regardless of what it’s mixed with. The higher the fat to solid ratio, the less of the solids will be exposed to air (down to potentially none at all), and so long as they aren't exposed to the air they won't burn irrespective of the temperature (eventually, you’ll reach the smoke point of the data, and as well as burning themselves, they'll also stop protecting the solids.) Coating other things to allow them to be heated while preventing surface reactions that would otherwise occur when they are heated is one of the main uses of fat in cooking.
    - stouset 7y ago
      Butter is already about 1%–2% percent milk solids and 80%–82% fat. Adding extra fat to this equation is not going to have much of an additional protective effect.
- steve_adams_86 7y ago
  The other comment is true, but also worth considering is that sunflower oil has a lower smoke point than the fats in butter (230°C vs 250°C) so you'd actually be lowering the smoke point by adding it.
  - RussianCow 7y ago
    This is only relevant if you're using clarified butter though.
    - deleted 7y ago
      [deleted]
bluthru 7y ago
You can season stainless steel pans to a degree by bringing oil up to its smoke point. YouTube has some tutorials.
- dev_dull 7y ago
  Have you had good success? To me it’s still a grab bag with this method. So much so that I still keep a non-coated anodized aluminum nonstick pan around just for eggs. Everything else into the stainless or enameled cast iron.
  - Can_K 7y ago
    I recently switched fully to a non coated iron pan and can't be happier. The trick for the right oil-coating is to apply oil with low smoking point and then to remove it almost completely with a cloth. When the pan looks dry again, briefly put it on the stove over high heat and after 3 minutes it is perfectly burnt in. Let it cool and repeat 3-5 times. Pan will end up fully black. I had a previous attempt where I used too much oil (then the coating ends up sticky and it smokes during the heating) the pan must really be dry again. There will still be enough oil in the surface. Used flaxseed oil.
- Double_a_92 7y ago
  I tried it according to many of the video tutorials and it doesn't really work. It just smelled up my kitchen with oil smoke, and made my pan look amber-ish but not non-stick. Also whatever coating that created, it gets ruined by cooking. Just use some oil and high heat before putting things in. And use a Teflon pan for more delicate things that don't need to be seared.
  - bluthru 7y ago
    The coating needs to be very thin. I think of it more as filling in little scratches and then polymerizing to create a smoother surface. I still use oil/fat when it's time to cook.
JshWright 7y ago
Obviously the right answer here is to replace both with cast iron.
- adrr 7y ago
  Cast irons aren't really convenient for everyday use, i can stick my non-stick in the dishwasher. My cast irons i have to water wash it, dry it, then re-coat with oil, then stick it back on the stove to get it polymerize otherwise the oil will go rancid after a while. Who wants to do that everyday for breakfast?
  - askvictor 7y ago
    Once a cast iron pan is properly seasoned 'broken in' (this can take some weeks/months of usage) it shouldn't need to be re-seasoned after every use. My years-old skillet gets a scrub with hot water after a normal use; if I've cooked something smelly (e.g. fish) I might use some detergent (and even then it usually doesn't need re-seasoning as long as I haven't soaked it). Only if I've cooked something acidic (tomato sauce) do I need to re-season after cleaning. I don't fry every day for breakfast, but if I did, cleaning my skillet would take about the same time as it would to stack it into the dishwasher.
    - dragonwriter 7y ago
      > Once a cast iron pan is properly seasoned 'broken in' (this can take some weeks/months of usage) Only if you don't season it properly initially.
      - askvictor 7y ago
        Despite seasoning it properly the first time, I've definitely found it takes on a different quality (more resilient surface) over a longer period of time.
  - ethbro 7y ago
    You shouldn't have to do that often. Certainly not every time. If you're polymerizing it, using a vegetable oil, and wiping it down before storage (so no pooled oil/fat), you shouldn't have to reseason... well, really unless you need to scour the pan. More frequent, med-high (e.g. standard breakfast) use also helps. Think "everyday use" over "everyday clean"
nanomonkey 7y ago
Vegetarians use butter, but if you're smart you use a well seasoned high carbon steel pan, or cast iron. The best seasoning for a pan is done with flaxseed oil, as far as I understand, as it has a low smoke point so the oil will polymerize and turn into a glassy surface.
- pacaro 7y ago
  The theory is that flaxseed oil (also known as linseed oil) is a polymerizing oil, which is supposed to help with the quality of the surface. Other polymerizing oils (eg Tung oil) aren't food safe. I notice from the table that unrefined canola has a similar smoke point to unrefined flaxseed oil, so that would make an interesting comparison
  - seandougall 7y ago
    Flax seed oil polymerizes to a very slick surface, but it’s relatively brittle, and there are reports of it flaking off of cast iron. Really the best thing you can do is get a hundred year old skillet, because they literally don’t make ‘em Like they used to.
    - pacaro 7y ago
      I keep my eyes open for old pans, but I was busy filling my kitchen with smoke with my modern cheap lodge pan while I wrote the previous comment and it works very well for me.
    - paggle 7y ago
      How could the quality be lower? Isn’t it just a cast piece of iron?
      - ComputerGuru 7y ago
        The pores are so much smaller and the skillets weigh noticeably less. I’m not surprised you can’t season a modern cast iron skillet, the surface is so horribly rough nothing can bridge it. I fought for years with seasoning skillets and did the flaxseed and the anodizing baths and everything between then gave up and bought a Griswold dating to just before the turn of the century - never had to do a thing after cleaning and oiling it the first time, it’s probably been five years or more.
hnick 7y ago
Just for reference vegetarians are generally "allowed" to eat butter, it's vegans who disavow all animal products. As neither I personally only ever make eggs with bacon, and bacon goes first and renders down providing plenty of oil :)
- deleted 7y ago
  [deleted]
gdubs 7y ago
Do you add the butter right away, or do you wait until the pan is hot? I tend to get the best results if I let the pan heat up and then add butter. That said, I use “earth balance”, which is really oil and not butter. I cook eggs almost exclusively on my stainless steel pan.
- frankqux 7y ago
  I know how it sounds coming from a stranger on the internet but you're doing yourself a disservice using seed/vegetable oils instead of butter. Here[1]'s a visual and accompanying article that explains it in more detail. And here[2]'s a 5 minute video that does it in less. [1] https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Repeatedly-heated-cooking-oil-emits-PAHs-and-subsequent-causes-of-cancer_fig2_319921858 https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Repeatedly-heated-cookin... [2] https://youtu.be/8aXTuBYb5-c https://youtu.be/8aXTuBYb5-c
  - pfedak 7y ago
    The article you link about repeatedly heated oils, specifically reusing oil when deep frying. That doesn't seem relevant to the use described above.
    - frankqux 7y ago
      Whoops. I tried to google something (besides a video) to sum up fats discussed in a book[1] and came to that. Didn't notice it was referring specifically to RCO. The points from the video[2] (and book) still stand though. [1] https://www.amazon.com/dp/1451624425 https://www.amazon.com/dp/1451624425 [2] https://youtu.be/8aXTuBYb5-c https://youtu.be/8aXTuBYb5-c
peterwwillis 7y ago
The eggs are sticking because the pan isn't hot enough before adding the ingredients. You want at least 320F to reach the leidenfrost effect, then add any fat you want, then the eggs (or try with a super hot pan and no fat). You could also use different omelette methods, like the french omelette, which is basically microscopically scrambled eggs that are stuck together at the end. Most Americans go for the diner omlette, which I find requires a certain "thickness" to manage the flipping with all the extra ingredients. You can also do more crepe-style omelettes a la Julia Child, but I find these to be the most problematic. Also, I recommend switching from teflon to anodized aluminum. Besides the fact that the former is toxic, the latter is more durable, can be oven safe up to 325F, and I think it heats up quicker and is slightly more non-stick.
- ComputerGuru 7y ago
  Just never put the anodized aluminum in the dishwasher. We were told that about Teflon because it slowly erodes the nonstick coating but it’s a different reason altogether for the anodized aluminum. They’re great at resisting acidic exposure, unlike seasoned cast iron, but they’ll turn horribly textured all over the exterior and permanently discolored if you stick them in the dishwasher just once as they can’t handle the extremely alkali dishwasher soap, especially at high temperatures.
- jakobegger 7y ago
  Teflon/PTFE is not toxic. It's even used for surgical implants. It can emit toxic fumes if you heat it to very high temperatures, but at room temperature and during normal cooking use it is definitely not toxic.
  - peterwwillis 7y ago
    Thanks for the correction! It looks like PFOA, an additive in pans pre-2015, is considered toxic (though apparently "negligible" according to FDA) and is no longer used since 2015.
jnwatson 7y ago
I use avocado oil for my omelettes, and everything else for that matter.
wolco 7y ago
Coconut oil
davidgould 7y ago
It’s perfectly possible to fry eggs in a stainless steel pan with butter, but it requires a bit of technique. Preheat the pan over high heat (assuming a home style gas range) for a least a minute, it should be almost hot enough to brown the butter. Then add a tablespoon (or more) of butter and swirl it around to coat the pan. Gently add the eggs (one is easier than two) and let them sit for 20 seconds. The idea is that with enough hot enough butter the egg protein on the bottom will set before it touches the metal, ie a very shallow deep fry. Done right the egg will be free to slide around the pan. The next thing to practice is flipping the egg without utensils. Maneuver the egg to the rear of the pan and tug the handle sharply forwards. Practice and confidence help, but the failures are still tasty so long as they land somewhere you don’t mind eating off of. I suspect most people don’t get the pan hot enough which will let the egg stick. Sometimes you get a fragile egg that breaks up and sticks anyway. Omelettes work the same way except the eggs are mixed up first. The basics of really hot pan and plenty of butter and the flipping technique all apply.
shaklee3 7y ago
You have two options: get a carbon steel pan, which will give you close to the nonstick ability of Teflon once properly seasoned, and they're typically a better pan than stainless (closer to cast iron). Another trick for fried eggs is to not flip them, but put a lid on the pan while cooking. The bottom fries properly, while the yolk cooks from the trapped steam.
dkarl 7y ago
The pilot episode of The French Chef, Julia Child's show, in 1962 was making an omelette with butter in a steel pan. But why not use non-stick? After that original 1962 show, she uses a nonstick pan in all the other videos I've seen. I think we have a tendency to assume the hard way produces the best results, but in this case I don't think there's any reason to think so. Julia Child 1962, steel (PBS paywall): https://www.pbs.org/video/the-french-omlette-llslnf/ https://www.pbs.org/video/the-french-omlette-llslnf/ Julia Child 1980, nonstick (she specifically says you should use a nonstick pan): https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/13-1980-julia-child-cooks-omelet-46889625 https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/13-1980-julia-child-cooks-o... Jacques Pepin, nonstick (says nonstick is "ideal") : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X1XoCQm5JSQz https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X1XoCQm5JSQz
- ip26 7y ago
  Avoidance of non-stick is usually more about the health concerns of Teflon. Yes, we think it's safe as long as you never overheat it and never scratch it and never let it get to old and always ventilate your kitchen and... Far simpler to just avoid it, and it turns out few things really require non-stick anyway. (eggs are one)
  - KozmoNau7 7y ago
    Eggs don't require a nonstick pan. They require a well-seasoned pan and proper heat control over both pan and fat. A nonstick pan is a shortcut, which can become a crutch that lets you get away with very sloppy technique. And they wear out quickly, losing their nonstick properties.
    - dkarl 7y ago
      This is just inventing difficulties. You need better technique splitting wood with a shovel than an axe, better technique writing web services in C than in Go, better technique storing your data in files instead of Postgres. Good nonstick pans last for years of daily use, unless you're in a restaurant kitchen making a hundred omelettes per day. And even restaurants use nonstick pans for some things, though they use them as little as possible because for efficiency they prefer equipment that can take a lot of abuse. A home cook making a couple of meals per day and not abusing their equipment should never have to buy a second nonstick pan. (Hence the never-ending attempts to persuade you that there's something superior to upgrade to. You're lost to them as a consumer if you realize that what you have will adequately express your cooking skills for the rest of your life.) Everything useful becomes a crutch, and except as fodder for micro-mastery, there's no reason to do something the hard way for the same results.

zhabsksbs 7y ago

I use butter in my steel pans and it’s possible not to get the eggs to stick. If I’m feeling lazy, I’ll add sunflower oil to the butter to raise the smoke point

stouset 7y ago
This doesn’t raise the smoke point. The solids in the butter will still burn at the same temperature regardless of what it’s mixed with.
- dragonwriter 7y ago
  > The solids in the butter will still burn at the same temperature regardless of what it’s mixed with. The higher the fat to solid ratio, the less of the solids will be exposed to air (down to potentially none at all), and so long as they aren't exposed to the air they won't burn irrespective of the temperature (eventually, you’ll reach the smoke point of the data, and as well as burning themselves, they'll also stop protecting the solids.) Coating other things to allow them to be heated while preventing surface reactions that would otherwise occur when they are heated is one of the main uses of fat in cooking.
  - stouset 7y ago
    Butter is already about 1%–2% percent milk solids and 80%–82% fat. Adding extra fat to this equation is not going to have much of an additional protective effect.
steve_adams_86 7y ago
The other comment is true, but also worth considering is that sunflower oil has a lower smoke point than the fats in butter (230°C vs 250°C) so you'd actually be lowering the smoke point by adding it.
- RussianCow 7y ago
  This is only relevant if you're using clarified butter though.
  - deleted 7y ago
    [deleted]

bluthru 7y ago

You can season stainless steel pans to a degree by bringing oil up to its smoke point. YouTube has some tutorials.

dev_dull 7y ago
Have you had good success? To me it’s still a grab bag with this method. So much so that I still keep a non-coated anodized aluminum nonstick pan around just for eggs. Everything else into the stainless or enameled cast iron.
- Can_K 7y ago
  I recently switched fully to a non coated iron pan and can't be happier. The trick for the right oil-coating is to apply oil with low smoking point and then to remove it almost completely with a cloth. When the pan looks dry again, briefly put it on the stove over high heat and after 3 minutes it is perfectly burnt in. Let it cool and repeat 3-5 times. Pan will end up fully black. I had a previous attempt where I used too much oil (then the coating ends up sticky and it smokes during the heating) the pan must really be dry again. There will still be enough oil in the surface. Used flaxseed oil.
Double_a_92 7y ago
I tried it according to many of the video tutorials and it doesn't really work. It just smelled up my kitchen with oil smoke, and made my pan look amber-ish but not non-stick. Also whatever coating that created, it gets ruined by cooking. Just use some oil and high heat before putting things in. And use a Teflon pan for more delicate things that don't need to be seared.
- bluthru 7y ago
  The coating needs to be very thin. I think of it more as filling in little scratches and then polymerizing to create a smoother surface. I still use oil/fat when it's time to cook.

JshWright 7y ago

Obviously the right answer here is to replace both with cast iron.

adrr 7y ago
Cast irons aren't really convenient for everyday use, i can stick my non-stick in the dishwasher. My cast irons i have to water wash it, dry it, then re-coat with oil, then stick it back on the stove to get it polymerize otherwise the oil will go rancid after a while. Who wants to do that everyday for breakfast?
- askvictor 7y ago
  Once a cast iron pan is properly seasoned 'broken in' (this can take some weeks/months of usage) it shouldn't need to be re-seasoned after every use. My years-old skillet gets a scrub with hot water after a normal use; if I've cooked something smelly (e.g. fish) I might use some detergent (and even then it usually doesn't need re-seasoning as long as I haven't soaked it). Only if I've cooked something acidic (tomato sauce) do I need to re-season after cleaning. I don't fry every day for breakfast, but if I did, cleaning my skillet would take about the same time as it would to stack it into the dishwasher.
  - dragonwriter 7y ago
    > Once a cast iron pan is properly seasoned 'broken in' (this can take some weeks/months of usage) Only if you don't season it properly initially.
    - askvictor 7y ago
      Despite seasoning it properly the first time, I've definitely found it takes on a different quality (more resilient surface) over a longer period of time.
- ethbro 7y ago
  You shouldn't have to do that often. Certainly not every time. If you're polymerizing it, using a vegetable oil, and wiping it down before storage (so no pooled oil/fat), you shouldn't have to reseason... well, really unless you need to scour the pan. More frequent, med-high (e.g. standard breakfast) use also helps. Think "everyday use" over "everyday clean"

nanomonkey 7y ago

Vegetarians use butter, but if you're smart you use a well seasoned high carbon steel pan, or cast iron. The best seasoning for a pan is done with flaxseed oil, as far as I understand, as it has a low smoke point so the oil will polymerize and turn into a glassy surface.

pacaro 7y ago
The theory is that flaxseed oil (also known as linseed oil) is a polymerizing oil, which is supposed to help with the quality of the surface. Other polymerizing oils (eg Tung oil) aren't food safe. I notice from the table that unrefined canola has a similar smoke point to unrefined flaxseed oil, so that would make an interesting comparison
- seandougall 7y ago
  Flax seed oil polymerizes to a very slick surface, but it’s relatively brittle, and there are reports of it flaking off of cast iron. Really the best thing you can do is get a hundred year old skillet, because they literally don’t make ‘em Like they used to.
  - pacaro 7y ago
    I keep my eyes open for old pans, but I was busy filling my kitchen with smoke with my modern cheap lodge pan while I wrote the previous comment and it works very well for me.
  - paggle 7y ago
    How could the quality be lower? Isn’t it just a cast piece of iron?
    - ComputerGuru 7y ago
      The pores are so much smaller and the skillets weigh noticeably less. I’m not surprised you can’t season a modern cast iron skillet, the surface is so horribly rough nothing can bridge it. I fought for years with seasoning skillets and did the flaxseed and the anodizing baths and everything between then gave up and bought a Griswold dating to just before the turn of the century - never had to do a thing after cleaning and oiling it the first time, it’s probably been five years or more.

hnick 7y ago

Just for reference vegetarians are generally "allowed" to eat butter, it's vegans who disavow all animal products. As neither I personally only ever make eggs with bacon, and bacon goes first and renders down providing plenty of oil :)

deleted 7y ago
[deleted]

gdubs 7y ago

Do you add the butter right away, or do you wait until the pan is hot? I tend to get the best results if I let the pan heat up and then add butter. That said, I use “earth balance”, which is really oil and not butter. I cook eggs almost exclusively on my stainless steel pan.

frankqux 7y ago
I know how it sounds coming from a stranger on the internet but you're doing yourself a disservice using seed/vegetable oils instead of butter. Here[1]'s a visual and accompanying article that explains it in more detail. And here[2]'s a 5 minute video that does it in less. [1] https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Repeatedly-heated-cooking-oil-emits-PAHs-and-subsequent-causes-of-cancer_fig2_319921858 https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Repeatedly-heated-cookin... [2] https://youtu.be/8aXTuBYb5-c https://youtu.be/8aXTuBYb5-c
- pfedak 7y ago
  The article you link about repeatedly heated oils, specifically reusing oil when deep frying. That doesn't seem relevant to the use described above.
  - frankqux 7y ago
    Whoops. I tried to google something (besides a video) to sum up fats discussed in a book[1] and came to that. Didn't notice it was referring specifically to RCO. The points from the video[2] (and book) still stand though. [1] https://www.amazon.com/dp/1451624425 https://www.amazon.com/dp/1451624425 [2] https://youtu.be/8aXTuBYb5-c https://youtu.be/8aXTuBYb5-c

peterwwillis 7y ago

The eggs are sticking because the pan isn't hot enough before adding the ingredients. You want at least 320F to reach the leidenfrost effect, then add any fat you want, then the eggs (or try with a super hot pan and no fat). You could also use different omelette methods, like the french omelette, which is basically microscopically scrambled eggs that are stuck together at the end. Most Americans go for the diner omlette, which I find requires a certain "thickness" to manage the flipping with all the extra ingredients. You can also do more crepe-style omelettes a la Julia Child, but I find these to be the most problematic. Also, I recommend switching from teflon to anodized aluminum. Besides the fact that the former is toxic, the latter is more durable, can be oven safe up to 325F, and I think it heats up quicker and is slightly more non-stick.

ComputerGuru 7y ago
Just never put the anodized aluminum in the dishwasher. We were told that about Teflon because it slowly erodes the nonstick coating but it’s a different reason altogether for the anodized aluminum. They’re great at resisting acidic exposure, unlike seasoned cast iron, but they’ll turn horribly textured all over the exterior and permanently discolored if you stick them in the dishwasher just once as they can’t handle the extremely alkali dishwasher soap, especially at high temperatures.
jakobegger 7y ago
Teflon/PTFE is not toxic. It's even used for surgical implants. It can emit toxic fumes if you heat it to very high temperatures, but at room temperature and during normal cooking use it is definitely not toxic.
- peterwwillis 7y ago
  Thanks for the correction! It looks like PFOA, an additive in pans pre-2015, is considered toxic (though apparently "negligible" according to FDA) and is no longer used since 2015.

jnwatson 7y ago

I use avocado oil for my omelettes, and everything else for that matter.

wolco 7y ago

Coconut oil

davidgould 7y ago

It’s perfectly possible to fry eggs in a stainless steel pan with butter, but it requires a bit of technique. Preheat the pan over high heat (assuming a home style gas range) for a least a minute, it should be almost hot enough to brown the butter. Then add a tablespoon (or more) of butter and swirl it around to coat the pan. Gently add the eggs (one is easier than two) and let them sit for 20 seconds. The idea is that with enough hot enough butter the egg protein on the bottom will set before it touches the metal, ie a very shallow deep fry. Done right the egg will be free to slide around the pan. The next thing to practice is flipping the egg without utensils. Maneuver the egg to the rear of the pan and tug the handle sharply forwards. Practice and confidence help, but the failures are still tasty so long as they land somewhere you don’t mind eating off of. I suspect most people don’t get the pan hot enough which will let the egg stick. Sometimes you get a fragile egg that breaks up and sticks anyway. Omelettes work the same way except the eggs are mixed up first. The basics of really hot pan and plenty of butter and the flipping technique all apply.

shaklee3 7y ago

You have two options: get a carbon steel pan, which will give you close to the nonstick ability of Teflon once properly seasoned, and they're typically a better pan than stainless (closer to cast iron). Another trick for fried eggs is to not flip them, but put a lid on the pan while cooking. The bottom fries properly, while the yolk cooks from the trapped steam.

dkarl 7y ago

The pilot episode of The French Chef, Julia Child's show, in 1962 was making an omelette with butter in a steel pan. But why not use non-stick? After that original 1962 show, she uses a nonstick pan in all the other videos I've seen. I think we have a tendency to assume the hard way produces the best results, but in this case I don't think there's any reason to think so. Julia Child 1962, steel (PBS paywall): https://www.pbs.org/video/the-french-omlette-llslnf/ https://www.pbs.org/video/the-french-omlette-llslnf/ Julia Child 1980, nonstick (she specifically says you should use a nonstick pan): https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/13-1980-julia-child-cooks-omelet-46889625 https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/13-1980-julia-child-cooks-o... Jacques Pepin, nonstick (says nonstick is "ideal") : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X1XoCQm5JSQz https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X1XoCQm5JSQz

ip26 7y ago
Avoidance of non-stick is usually more about the health concerns of Teflon. Yes, we think it's safe as long as you never overheat it and never scratch it and never let it get to old and always ventilate your kitchen and... Far simpler to just avoid it, and it turns out few things really require non-stick anyway. (eggs are one)
- KozmoNau7 7y ago
  Eggs don't require a nonstick pan. They require a well-seasoned pan and proper heat control over both pan and fat. A nonstick pan is a shortcut, which can become a crutch that lets you get away with very sloppy technique. And they wear out quickly, losing their nonstick properties.
  - dkarl 7y ago
    This is just inventing difficulties. You need better technique splitting wood with a shovel than an axe, better technique writing web services in C than in Go, better technique storing your data in files instead of Postgres. Good nonstick pans last for years of daily use, unless you're in a restaurant kitchen making a hundred omelettes per day. And even restaurants use nonstick pans for some things, though they use them as little as possible because for efficiency they prefer equipment that can take a lot of abuse. A home cook making a couple of meals per day and not abusing their equipment should never have to buy a second nonstick pan. (Hence the never-ending attempts to persuade you that there's something superior to upgrade to. You're lost to them as a consumer if you realize that what you have will adequately express your cooking skills for the rest of your life.) Everything useful becomes a crutch, and except as fodder for micro-mastery, there's no reason to do something the hard way for the same results.