Home cooking often means knowing when to splurge and when to save – refusing to compromise on the finest meat and fish, perhaps, or tracking down an artisan bottle of olive oil. We know, ultimately, that ingredients can make or break a dish. But while most of us feel the same about kitchen staples like pots and pans, the importance of choosing the right cookware for different methods is an area to which we probably give less thought. But the material, size and shape of a pan affects how it cooks food; the quick, motion-heavy nature of stir-frying, for example, needs a different vehicle than the low and slow nature of braising. The right choice lessens the risk of under or over-cooking, makes sure heat gets to the right places and creates the right texture.

That we might agree on, but the conversation around material tends to be more divisive among cooks, who might staunchly defend stainless steel, cast iron, carbon steel, non-stick or copper, depending on their preference. In reality, they all have strengths, something premium cookware brand HexClad was keen to acknowledge when it was founded in 2016. Its patented hybrid cookware brings together the performance of stainless steel, the durability of cast iron and the convenience of non-stick through its signature pan surface, which is made up of hexagonal, laser-edged steel peaks with non-stick valleys in between, a formula that has earned it praise from the likes of Gordon Ramsay. Below, we’ve focused on five cooking methods to explain why your choice of pan matters.

An essential part of cooking, searing is all about browning food. It’s usually the first part of cooking (apart from in the case of reverse searing), and getting it right the first time is crucial (having to redo it or sear for longer than you’d planned risks overcooking). When we sear food, we expose it to a high heat, usually for a relatively short period of time and sometimes with butter or oil, creating a deep brown crust. We might most commonly associate it with steak, but it applies to so much more – we can speedily sear tuna, mackerel or scallops, for example, beef or lamb before braising or leeks until they are caramelised. The goal is to kick off the Maillard reaction – the chemical reaction between amino acids and reducing sugars – to brown food’s surface, building deep flavour. A good searing pan needs to distribute heat evenly, be large and flat enough to maximise the food’s contact with its surface and have shallow sides (taller sides can create more steam) – HexClad’s Hybrid Pan is a great fit; its stainless steel ridges and even heating will give the perfect sear.

If you’ve browned a large joint or chunks of meat, chances are you might be following that up with a slow simmer in liquid – this is braising, a gentle way of releasing aromatic flavours from food, either in the oven or on the hob. Although it works particularly well with cuts of meat that benefit from a longer cook – like short ribs or beef shin, for example – braising adds beautiful flavour to seafood, poultry and vegetables (though you’ll need to adjust your braising time to avoid overcooking – have a browse through our braising recipe collection for inspiration). Ultimately, braising not only transforms the main ingredient, but also the liquid it’s being cooked in into something delicious. When it comes to choosing the right pan (we’re impressed by HexClad’s Hybrid Deep Saute Pan), high sides and a lid are essential for liquid-heavy braises, thicker bottoms guarantee good heat regulation (they usually absorb and distribute heat more evenly, avoiding spots of heat) and handles make moving it from hob to oven much easier. 

Stir-frying is all about cooking hot and fast in oil, with almost constant stirring and tossing of ingredients. The technique, which originated in China, works well with tender, thinner pieces of meat, seafood and vegetables (which can be blanched before stir-frying if they’re likely to take a little longer to cook), though most ingredients can be given the stir-fry treatment. Our collection of recipes includes everything from Ken Hom’s stir-fried cucumbers to Shu Han Lee’s spicy stir-fried minced pork – have a look through for some fresh ideas. Stir-frying is traditionally done in woks (like HexClad’s Hybrid Wok), which are distinctively concave, with tall, sloped sides. That shape typically means it is hotter in the centre, cooling the higher you go up the sides, which allows for more control over how different ingredients cook, and also makes tossing ingredients much easier. Woks generally tend to be thinner and more responsive to temperature changes, which is useful for a style of cookery so defined by speed.

Roasting relies on dry heat to cook food evenly from all sides, usually in an oven, resulting in caramelisation and the Maillard reaction. Sunday roasts and joints of meat might initially spring to mind (for good reason), but anything can be roasted – you can see our guides here for roasting everything from rhubarb and asparagus to whole hake, for example. A good roasting pan will be sturdy, with good heat distribution, and have a rack to keep the bottom of the roast elevated above the juices – this keeps the skin crispy, but also means air can circulate fully and food can roast evenly. Flameproof options, like HexClad’s Hybrid Roasting Pan, mean you can use the pan on the hob to turn juices into a sauce, while handles make for easier manoeuvering. 

In its simplest form, griddling is cooking food over a solid surface, with or without fat. That might be on a self-contained electric griddle or a griddle pan, which is used on the hob. Most griddle pans will look similar to frying pans, but with shallower – or no – sides and thick ridges on the surface, which create distinctive, charred griddle lines and add a smokiness. Some griddle pans, however, are completely flat, which ensures full contact between the ingredient and the pan surface, cooking it evenly and building a fantastic colour. You might use a griddle pan – like HexClad’s Hybrid Griddle Plan – to cook pancakes, bacon, fish (like William Drabble’s griddled south coast sea bass), burgers or even fruit such as persimmon.

The right cookware can transform a dish – and unlike ingredients, which we use within a matter of days, quality pots and pans are an investment that will elevate your cooking for years to come.