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I have an open coil electric stove and I want to get a roasting pan that is safe to use on it. Namely, I want to be able to sear meats before putting them in the oven, and I want to be able to make gravies directly on the roasting pan. I know that electric coils can get very hot, so I'm worried about melting/burning/damaging the pan.

Does anybody have specific (and affordable) recommendations for such a roasting pan? What are features/properties that I look for in shopping for this roasting pan?

EDIT: I don't have anything specific application in mind right now, but here are two examples of things I would like to be able to do:

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    You might find this Serious Eats article interesting.
    – Catija
    Jul 14, 2017 at 22:18
  • @Catija Thanks! This article was what I was l looking for. Perhaps you can expand your comment into an answer? I would gladly accept it unless someone has a better answer. The only thing it's missing is a note regarding electric stoves.
    – nukeguy
    Jul 15, 2017 at 2:36

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Electric coil is safe on just about every cooking pot/pan you can buy. It's just another heat source.

If a pan has a special requirement, it will say so on the packaging before you buy it.

Regarding a pan to sear meats, you can do no better than a good cast iron pan.

Cast iron will retain it's heat even when you drop a slab of cold meat into it. This makes for better, more even searing. To make things even better, you can then take the entire cast iron pan and stick it right into the oven! No other pan needed.

Personally, I cook steaks in a cast iron pan like so:

1) Take steaks out of fridge and set somewhere to slightly warm up while you prepare everything.

2) Put cast iron pan in the oven and turn it on to 500 degrees F. This will heat up the pan while your oven pre-heats.

3) On a plate, add a small amount of oil (canola or vegtable, not olive oil - you're going to be using very high heat, so you want a high smoke point). In a dish, add Kosher Salt, and pepper and mix around.

4) Put steak on oil plate and turn over a few time to get a light coating. Sprinkle salt/pepper mix to your liking (I personally go overboard on this).

5) Take the pan out of the oven and put it on your stove. Turn on your largest stove burner and set it as high as it will go. Put your pan on this burner to continue heating up.

6) After it's very hot (test by dripping a very small amount of water, it should sizzle and evaporate almost instantly, your coils should be red in color), drop the steak right into the dry, hot pan and don't touch.

7) Let the steak sear on that side for 30 seconds. Flip it once and let is sear on the other side for 30 seconds.

8) Put the entire thing into your oven. Wait for 2 minutes, take it out, flip the steak and put it back in the oven for 2 more minutes.

9) Take the steak out and put it onto a plate with a smaller plate or bowl turned upside down. This makes a slope for any liquids to slide down, away from the tasty seared "crust" you've developed. Cover loosely with foil. Let rest 10 minutes before cutting (very important to keep the juices from spilling out).

10) Enjoy your medium-rare steak!

You can adjust the timings a bit depending if you have a particularly thick cut of steak, or prefer a different doneness.

Be very careful with the cast iron pan, as it will retain it's heat for a long time! Also make sure you use proper care for it, since taking care of your cast iron is a bit different from a normal pan. If you take good care of it, it should last you a lifetime without issues. Some people even hand down their cast iron to their children! Here's some good information: http://www.epicurious.com/expert-advice/how-to-wash-season-and-maintain-cast-iron-cookware-article

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  • Searing steaks on cast-iron is great -- I've done it quite a few times! The problem, however, is that my cast iron pan isn't very large. It's good for a single steak, but if I'm cooking a large amount of meat, it wouldn't work. (And, even if I could find a cast iron pan the size of a typical roasting pan, it would be extremely heavy!) My parents have never let me try using their roasting pans on the stove for fear that it would damage/warp the pan or leave an unpleasant burn mark from the high direct heat. But, from your post, you're suggesting that this is pretty much never a concern?
    – nukeguy
    Jul 14, 2017 at 21:16
  • If the metal is really thin, it might be an issue (or uneven heating if it's larger than a single burner). This isn't a pan issue per-say, it's a metal issue. Heat will discolor the metal after a while... this is true of most pans however. A roasting pan is intended to go into the oven at moderate temperatures for a longer period of time. They do make larger cast iron pans (greater than 12 inches in diameter), or get 2 if you have a lot of meat to cook. I usually fit 2 NY Strips in at a time and get good results.
    – SnakeDoc
    Jul 14, 2017 at 21:18
  • From my previous Google searching, websites like this one -- cooksinfo.com/roasting-pans -- caution against using roasting pans with less-sturdy bottoms and non-stick coating on a stove top. This seems to imply that there are significant number of roasting pans out there which I should avoid putting on the stovetop. Cast iron is great, but I really would like a single-piece oven-safe and electric-stove-safe item that is large enough to hold a lot of meat and not as heavy as cast iron (which, as far as I can tell, is pretty much a roasting pan).
    – nukeguy
    Jul 14, 2017 at 21:24
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    You won't get a good sear with a light-weight pan. It doesn't retain heat enough to sear when you put the meat in. Also, what you need to look for is "stove safe", not "electric stove safe". The electric coils don't matter here. If you had an induction stove, that would be a different story.
    – SnakeDoc
    Jul 14, 2017 at 21:27
  • Looking at your link, the extra large roasting pans are ~14 to 19 inches. You can get a cast iron that large.webstaurantstore.com/… or something like a cast iron griddle: shop.lodgemfg.com/griddles-and-grill-pans/…
    – SnakeDoc
    Jul 14, 2017 at 21:28

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