None reported

What it is

No coating reported means the maker states there's no coating on the surface that touches your food, so you're cooking on bare steel, glass or iron. It's the maker's word, and we haven't run a lab test to confirm it.

Why it matters in your kitchen

With no coating, there's nothing to wear off, flake or replace, and nothing on the surface to baby with soft tools or low heat.

The catch is release. Bare stainless needs a hot pan and a film of fat, and eggs stick until you learn the heat.

Stainless also carries its own oxide film, about 1 to 5 nanometers thick, that forms by itself and repairs itself. Nobody applies it, so we don't count it as a coating.

Good at

• Nothing to wear out. There's no coating to wear through or replace.
• High heat and metal tools. No coating means no coating to protect. The bare stainless pans we sell go in the oven to 550°F, per Cristel.
• Acidic food. Tomato and wine have no seasoning or coating to strip.
• The dishwasher, when the maker allows it. Cristel says its stainless pans can go in.

Watch for

• Food sticks at first. Preheat, check with a few drops of water, turn the heat down and add fat. Our sticking guide covers it.
• It's a statement, not a test. We record what the maker says. A lab report would move a product up to "Lab tested" on its profile.
• "Uncoated" leaves a lot out. It doesn't tell you the steel grade, the handle, the rivets or the oven limit. Check the rest of the profile.
• Seasoning is a coating. Pre-seasoned cast iron and carbon steel don't get this label. They get "seasoning."

Who it suits

Good for you if you'd rather learn the heat once than replace a coated pan every few years. Skip it if slick, low-fat eggs matter more than anything.

In short. "No coating reported" means the maker says your food cooks on bare material, with nothing to wear off, and we haven't lab tested that statement.

Our guide to uncoated stainless steel cookware covers what the word leaves out, and how to cook on stainless without sticking covers the learning curve. To check a pan you own, try our cookware material lookup.

Where it is used

• Bare stainless steel cookware, including every Cristel pan we sell
• Glass lids and servers
• Other bare metal and glass food surfaces

How to care for it

• Follow the care for the material underneath: see that material's page.