Technology

ICON® production starts with high purity, 2.5mm thick steel. For best all around perfomance, this thickness is the ideal balance between weight, thermal durability and even heat distribution. The steel used to make ICON® contains about 98% iron, so ICON® pans are perfect for all induction cooktops as well as all other heat sources.

After forming steel blanks into the proper shape the pan’s surface is machined to remove all impurities and to provide a larger surface area to eventually adhere to the vegetable oil seasoning. They are then subjected to a patented metallurgical process called feretic nitro-carburization. The process takes several hours and occurs in a  1,000°F gaseous atmosphere. Feretic nitro-carburization difuses nitrogen and carbon atoms between the iron atoms creating an all new surface compound consisting of iron, oxygen, carbon and nitrogen. The newly created surface is about 9 times harder than steel and has millions of micro-cavities. It won’t rust or react with the acids in food.

ICON® handles are made of cast stainless steel. Cast stainless is a very poor conductor so the handle will stay cool during most any stove top application. And the handles are held on to the pan by special alloy stainless rivets that get harder and tighter with each heat cycle.

The final step is to pre-season the pan with vegetable oil. A thin coat of canola oil is baked into the pan’s surface as the first step towards building a durable non-stick, easy to clean interior. Before its first use, we recommend washing the pan in hot soapy water then follow the directions to finish seasoning your pan.

'Wow! The surface is pretty amazing. The biggest turnoff to non-stick cookware is the risk of getting treatment chemicals into the food which could be toxic. Obviously that is not the case here. Bravo! I love the weight and feel of the handle. I also love the fact that you can throw it in the oven and it's induction ready.'

-Jeff Bricker

Chef Culinary Instructor, Ivy Tech, Indianapolis

'I like the weight and smoothness of the pan. It survives high heat very well and the handle stays cool on medium heat. I highly recommend the cookware for all dry heat methods of cooking. Excels at searing and browning meats, frying eggs, sautéing vegetables.'

-Mark Schneider

Texas Chefs Association President

Chair Culinary Arts Department, Texas State Technical College, Waco, TX

'The pan performs really well. Great heat distribution and really durable. I use it mostly for searing steaks, scallops and firm fleshed fish.'

-Joe Rosetti

Corporate Head Chef, Harry Caray's Restaurant Group, Chicago

'We put the ICON® pan through 3 weeks of restaurant service, from soup to nuts. ICON® still looks great, has seasoned up and is now my favorite pan to use. We cooked fish, beef, French toast, crab cakes - anything that we normally would serve. It became part of our rotation. We seared as well as placed it in a 500 degree oven. I love the pan and would like more of them!'

-Patrick Cassata

Corporate Executive Chef, Standard Market Grill, Chicago

'ICON® is heavy duty and really nonstick when properly seasoned. It will take a beating. I browned potatoes, seared fish and seared octopus. It's a super heavy pan.'

-David Wang

Executive Chef, Oak + Char, Chicago

'We've been cooking Asian stir fry, tortillas, eggs, bacon, risotto, polenta and everything else and so far the pan is really good. It's a bit heavy, but it cleans up really well.'

-Robert Sturm

Corporate Chef, Rose & Shore, Vernon, CA

'I did some seafood, salmon, scallops and garlic prawns. Got beautiful color. Seared a couple NY steaks and made a pan sauce. We made some vegetables and even some scrambled eggs. This pan is solid and performs really well.'

-Jon Palsson

Executive Chef, Sheraton, San Diego