M’Steel

M’Steel is uncoated carbon steel, the material French professional kitchens have used for frying and searing for two centuries. It arrives raw. You season it — heat with a thin film of oil until the surface turns dark and hard — and from then on it releases food as well as any non-stick surface, and repairs itself every time you cook.

It is induction compatible, oven safe, and takes heat far beyond anything a coated pan can survive. It is also the cheapest thing Mauviel makes: a frying pan from R1,200, a blinis pan at R840.

Two rules. Never put it in the dishwasher. Dry it on the hob rather than in the rack. That is the whole maintenance regime.