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Over the past few years, I’ve come to really appreciate heavy duty pans for camp cooking. And although I have a lot of thick cast iron in my kitchen, the pan that lives in my truck is carbon steel.
Specifically, I’ve been using a 12-inch Made In carbon steel pan for several years. It’s amazing. That iron carbon has easily cooked 100 meals in the desert. It’s tough as nails, heavy enough to hold heat evenly, but not so heavy that it’s an awkward ride between camping gear in the bed of a truck.
Carbon steel, it turns out, packs many of the advantages of cast steel at a slightly lighter weight. It needs to be seasoned well, and if you get it definitely burnt and very dirty, you can scrub it vigorously without causing damage.
It’s a really handy tool for camping cookware. Enter YETI.
YETI Carbon Steel Pan
YETI quietly introduced its new cookware this spring, and among the kit is now the 12-inch Carbon Steel Pan, which retails at REI for $180. YETI also makes a 10-inch version for $150.
This is notable because YETI has gradually expanded into cookware over the past few years, following its acquisition of the famous American metalware company Butter Pat.
But unlike its more expensive cast iron offerings, the new Carbon Steel Pan stays at a premium yet affordable price.
Although it costs $50 more than my beloved cast iron pan, the YETI 12-inch pan adds a helper handle to the front. It’s really nice to be able to hold the pan with two hands when tossing a pan full of pasta sauce around the camp.
Carbon Steel: Why It’s Great for Camping
At their core, carbon steel pans are great for camping (and home use, too), because they offer the incredible durability and flexibility of cast iron at a light weight.
Although not as flammable as cast-iron pans, carbon steel pans offer many of the same benefits. That is, they absorb the seasoning well and provide a nice non-stick surface once you break them in. And because they’re not nearly as soft as stainless steel or teflon-coated cookware, you can scrub the heck out of them without causing damage.
Mine sits in the bed of my truck, mounted next to the hitch of my trailer, inside the Deck drawer. It’s done tens of thousands of miles, bouncing off mountain roads and rock washes. And it’s no worse for wear.
If you’re looking for a camp pan, I can’t recommend carbon steel enough. The new YETI pan looks great, although I haven’t used it (yet). I personally like the Made In 12-inch carbon pan. And with value in mind, OXO also makes a carbon-steel pan that sells for $60 at REI. Carbon steel is hard to beat. Check out one of those options and you’re set for years to come.