10" OXO Good Grips Pro Nonstick Frying Pan / Skillet Expired

Good price, but this month Costco has the 10" and 12" set on sale for $30 in store.

I've got a large collection of cast iron pots, pans, etc. Good quality. However, one has to change their cooking culture to adapt to their usage, unless they're already setup for that style.

Maybe if I lived on a farm or deep in the country, I'd get more use out of them. Cast iron presents challenges for a modern urban life.

The seasoning, occasional reseasoning. ongoing oil re-seasoning after water washing, black and brown previous baked on parts dislodging into lighter foods (omelets), etc. etc. etc. Yes, cast iron presents some advantages (durability, quick searing, etc.), there's the weight, adapted washing, reseasoning, dangers (falling on glasstop, foot), smoking from build-up, etc. My entire lightly used cast iron collection will likely get donated to Goodwill, or left at the street unfortunately.

Regarding this OXO non-stick, OXO makes excellent designs but they contract out all the manufacturing. For non-sticks, for me, I'll purchase future non-stick pans from the non-stick manufacturers that are in direct control of their promoted non-stick process. Anyone else (OXO, Ikea, etc.) are less durable.

I own two of these.

PROS
- excellent design (handle, shape, etc.)
- can use on induction cooktops

NEGS
- very poor non-stick durability
- can't use with anything but perhaps a soft silicone spatula
- using a light nylon pad to gently clean caused many scratches
- scratches won't happen right away, so purhaps it's a built-in durability expiration

My second one that I purchased, I only wash in the sink with my bare hand (or latex glove). Nothing else. No tools (except a very soft silicone spatula) are ever used with it. I'm afraid to still use my first purchase as a result of all the little scratches. Looks like skate marks on an ice rink, but they don't go down as far as the bare metal. It's completely unknown to me how these scratches occured. It never went in the dishwasher and I never used hard nylon tools with it. Perhaps it came from a light nylon wash pad that's supposed to be for non-sticks.

OXO does great designs but their non-stick company is not good for long-term durability. Maybe mine was just a bad production run. Scratches started appearing after 1-2 months of usage, cooking generally soft foods (not steaks or anything like that).

Every non-stick pan promotes "durable non-stick". There's a reason they all have so many ongoing purchases from people replacing their non-sticks. It's now a joke to me to read "durable non-stick". It's not in any of their best interests to actually give a long-term durable non-stick.