Sauté Pan, Jumbo Cooker or Wok? The Best Non Stick Deep Pan

A shallow skillet is fine for eggs. The moment a dish involves liquid, volume or stirring, you want walls. In a restaurant kitchen the deep pans come out for Mexican rice, which is toasted in oil and then simmered covered in tomato broth; for picadillo and chile colorado; for a big batch of fajita peppers and onions that would spill out of a 10-inch pan; and for frying chilaquiles chips before the salsa goes in. At home, a deep nonstick pan with a lid covers the same jobs and much of what a Dutch oven does, with easier cleanup.

Deep nonstick pans go by several names: sauté pan, deep frying pan, chef’s pan, jumbo cooker, and the wok, which is deep in a different way. What matters is the capacity in quarts, the shape of the walls, the lid and what each maker says about heat, oven use and induction. This guide sorts the deep nonstick pans worth buying, with each maker’s figures and the limits you should know.

Julia’s earns a commission on purchases made through links on this page, at no cost to you. Recommendations are based on what a restaurant kitchen looks for in a deep pan, the makers’ own specifications and published equipment reviews, which we name.

Quick verdict: which deep nonstick pan to buy

For shallower skillets, start with our guide to the best nonstick pans; for standard frying pans sold with covers, see the best nonstick pan with lid.

Five deep nonstick pans side by side

Our five standout picks, one for each kind of cook, with the capacity, coating and oven limits each maker states. All nine pans are reviewed in full below.

Product images from Amazon. Specifications are from each maker’s Amazon listing or website; where a figure comes from a retailer, or listings disagree, we say so.

Sauté pan, jumbo cooker or wok: what “deep” means

A sauté pan has straight, upright sides and a wide flat base, so it holds more liquid for its diameter and keeps a braise or a pot of rice from slopping over. A deep frying pan or chef’s pan has taller walls than a skillet but keeps some slope, which makes stirring and sliding food out easier. A jumbo cooker is a large sauté pan, usually 5 to 6 quarts, with a second loop handle so you can lift it full. A wok is deep in the middle and wide at the top, made for tossing; a flat-bottomed nonstick wok works on a home stove, but its cooking surface at the base is smaller.

Capacity is the number to compare, and makers state it in quarts. As a rough kitchen guide, 4 to 4.5 quarts handles rice or a braise for four; 5 to 6 quarts suits a family batch of picadillo, a double batch of Mexican rice or a pan of chicken thighs in salsa. Bigger also means heavier when full, which is why a helper handle matters on the largest pans.

On coatings: traditional nonstick is PTFE. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration says these coatings are bonded to the cookware at very high temperatures and that studies show negligible amounts of PFAS in the coating can migrate to food. PFOA, once used in making PTFE, was the target of EPA’s stewardship program, and EPA reports that all participating companies met its goals. Ceramic coatings are made without PTFE, and makers such as GreenPan and Cuisinart describe theirs as PFAS-free. Beyond those statements, the makers’ heat limits and care rules are what keep any deep pan working.

Our picks for the best non stick deep pan

These nine cover ceramic and PTFE coatings, sauté pans from 4.5 to 6 quarts, a deep frying pan, a budget induction pan and a wok. For each we give the capacity, the lid and oven limits and the stovetops as the maker states them, and one honest reason to pass.

How to choose a deep nonstick pan

A restaurant kitchen picks deep pans by what goes into them and how full they get. These are the factors that matter.

1. Capacity in quarts

Buy by quarts, not inches. A 12-inch pan can hold anywhere from a few quarts to 5 or more depending on the walls. For rice or a braise for four, 4 to 4.5 quarts; for a family or leftovers, 5 to 6. If a listing gives no capacity, as with the Anolon deep frying pan, you are guessing.

2. Shape: straight or sloped walls

Straight-sided sauté pans and jumbo cookers hold liquid and keep it from splashing; they are best for rice, beans and braises like charro beans. Sloped deep frying pans and woks are easier to toss and stir in and better for vegetables and stir-fries.

3. Handles and weight when full

A deep pan full of rice and broth is heavy. On 5- and 6-quart pans, a helper handle opposite the long one makes lifting and pouring safer. The Cuisinart, Farberware and SENSARTE pans have one.

4. Lid and oven limits

Deep pans often go from stove to oven. Check the pan’s limit and the lid’s: GreenPan rates its Valencia Pro lid to 425°F, while Circulon rates the A1 lid to 350°F and says A1 pans should not go under the broiler. Circulon notes that vented glass lids are typically limited to 350°F.

5. Coating and heat

PTFE and ceramic both need moderate heat. Circulon advises low to medium heat for everyday cooking with its PTFE pans; GreenPan says its ceramic pans sear even on low to medium heat and to avoid spray oils. Deep-frying in a nonstick pan is listed by T-Fal and SENSARTE, but heat the oil gradually and never leave it unattended.

6. Your stove

For induction, the GreenPan, Circulon and SENSARTE pans say they work. The T-Fal and the Anolon deep frying pan say they do not, and several others do not state it; assume a pan without an induction statement will not work.

How we chose these nine deep pans

We started from the dishes a kitchen makes in a deep pan: rice, beans, braises, fajita vegetables and chilaquiles, plus stir-fries in a wok. We searched Amazon in the United States for deep nonstick sauté pans, deep frying pans, jumbo cookers and woks from identifiable makers that state their capacity, oven limits and stovetops, and checked that each was in stock when we wrote. We left out sets and listings whose sizes contradicted their own model numbers.

Specifications come from each maker’s Amazon listing or website, and where a figure comes from a retailer or listings disagree, we say so. For performance we relied on America’s Test Kitchen’s ceramic nonstick skillet review, which covers the Valencia Pro line in frying-pan form. For coatings we used the FDA’s page on PFAS in food contact uses, EPA’s account of the PFOA Stewardship Program, and the makers’ own guidance: GreenPan’s care page, Circulon’s support answers and oven-safety article, Anolon’s product page and T-Fal’s coating explainer. We have not cooked with these pans for this guide.

Deep nonstick pan questions, answered

What is the best deep frying pan non stick for most kitchens?

For most kitchens, the GreenPan Valencia Pro 4.5-quart sauté pan: it shares its coating with America’s Test Kitchen’s top ceramic skillet, works on induction and has a lid rated to 425°F. If you cook for more people, the Cuisinart 5.5-quart or the Farberware 6-quart hold more.

What is the difference between a deep frying pan and a sauté pan?

A sauté pan has straight sides and holds more liquid for its width; a deep frying pan keeps sloped sides, which make flipping and sliding food out easier. Both are deeper than a standard skillet.

What size deep nonstick frying pan do I need?

About 4 to 4.5 quarts for two to four people and 5 to 6 quarts for a family or leftovers. Compare capacity in quarts, not diameter, since wall height changes the volume.

Can I deep-fry in a deep nonstick pan?

Some makers list it: T-Fal and SENSARTE name deep-frying among their pans’ uses. Keep the oil well below the rim, heat it gradually, and never leave it unattended. For regular deep-frying, a heavy pot or a dedicated fryer is the safer tool.

Is a nonstick wok a good deep pan?

For stir-fries and steaming, yes. For rice, beans and braises, a straight-sided sauté pan is better, because a wok’s flat cooking area is small and its sloped sides hold less liquid for their width.

Our final pick for a deep nonstick pan

Buy the GreenPan Valencia Pro 4.5-quart sauté pan if you want one deep pan that works on any stove and finishes in the oven with the lid on. Choose the Cuisinart 5.5-quart for family batches, the Circulon A1 for PTFE on induction, the Farberware 6-quart for the most room, and the T-Fal Specialty to keep costs down.

For shallower pans, see the best nonstick pans and the best nonstick pan with lid; for several pans at once, the best nonstick pan set. And if you would rather someone else made the rice and beans, see the menu or call to order.