Best Saute Pans

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A saute pan is sold in quarts rather than inches for a reason: the straight vertical walls mean volume, not diameter, describes what it can do. That wall shape is the entire point, because it holds liquid for braising and reducing without slopping over a flared edge the way a fry pan does. Capacity clusters at 3 quarts and at 5 to 5.5 quarts, and the jump between them is larger than it sounds. Three quarts handles a vegetable side or a sauce for two; 5.5 quarts takes a full braise, a pound of pasta finished in its sauce, or chicken pieces in a single uncrowded layer. Weight scales with capacity, and a loaded 5.5 quart pan is heavy enough that a helper handle opposite the main one stops being a luxury and becomes the difference between pouring and spilling. Construction splits into two honest choices. Tri-ply clad stainless sandwiches an aluminium core between steel layers, browns properly, tolerates any oven temperature and survives metal tools, but wants preheating and fat. Hard anodised aluminium with a nonstick surface releases eggs and fish reliably and wipes clean, at the cost of a finite coating life and a lower temperature ceiling. Either way the lid must seal, and glass lets you watch a reduction without lifting it. Induction cooktops need a magnetic base.