My Honest Review of Those Caraway Pans You’ve Seen on Instagram

I will bet that you’ve seen Caraway cookware all over your Instagram and TikTok pages — either in ads or even your friends’ posts. I know the brand has taken over my social media feeds in recent years with pots and pans in gorgeous colors and clean silhouettes. The cookware is just so pretty!

Of course, you can’t (and shouldn’t!) buy everything you see online, so we had to test the brand for ourselves. Spoiler alert: I’ve been using Caraway’s signature pans for more than four years, and they’re still just as nonstick as they were on day one.

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Caraway made a splash in fall 2019 with cookware in fun colors and with clean lines — and as well as for its tagline: “Non-Toxic Cookware Made Modern.” It claimed to offer a better kind of cookware both for home cooks and the environment because it used ceramic enamel rather than Teflon or another harmful “forever chemical” to achieve a nonstick surface. 

Caraway has since expanded its cookware collection to include stainless steel and enameled cast iron, and has also developed bakeware, accessories, and even mini versions of its best-selling cookware — all of which The Kitchn editors have tested and reviewed.

Caraway cookware is made with nonstick ceramic, stainless steel, and enameled cast iron. All of its cookware is made without harmful “forever chemicals,” namely Teflon (also known as polytetrafluoroethylene, or PTFE), perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) 

There’s a lot to like about Caraway cookware, and I go into that in detail below. But for the TL;DR, my favorite features are:

• Made without harmful “forever chemicals”
• Ceramic nonstick interior is seriously nonstick and so easy to clean
• Cookware can be bought individually, or in thoughtfully curated sets
• Great range of classic and fun colors

Caraway isn’t the only ceramic-coated cookware on the market — far from it. But it’s definitely one of the more popular brands I’ve seen recently. I tested the best-selling Cookware Set to try out multiple pieces of cookware that would best represent the brand, and here’s what I thought.

I’ve never loved the idea of buying cookware sets because there are usually too many pieces I never use, but Caraway’s was well-curated and I found myself using each item regularly. With Caraway’s Cookware Set, you’ll get the following:

• 10.5-inch frying pan
• 4.5-quart sauté pan
• 3-quart saucepan
• 6.5-quart Dutch oven
• 3 low-profile lids

This set includes a few useful accessories, too, including a canvas lid holder with rivets so you can hang it on the back of a cabinet door or wall, and a magnetic rack so you can neatly store the pans on their sides in a drawer or on your kitchen counter.

The set comes in a bunch of fun colors (Cream, Navy, Gray, Sage, Perracotta, Marigold, Iconics Black, and Iconics White). That said, you can’t go wrong with Perracotta, the brand’s signature pink-forward terracotta color.

The set arrived in a slim cardboard box, and each piece was nestled into slots within the cardboard, so there was no need for a bunch of Styrofoam or plastic to keep them from banging around. It was nice to be able to just recycle one box and not cringe at wasteful packaging.

The first thing I cooked was a fried egg in the smaller sauté pan (which is quite generously sized). I was immediately impressed by the super-slippery nonstick ceramic surface. I then spent the next few weeks cooking omelets, scrambled eggs, more fried eggs, and even dosas. I used very little oil each time, and everything just slipped right out with no sticking.

I turned to the larger pan for sautéing all sorts of veggies for dinner — mushrooms, asparagus, green beans, and more. The veggies got great color and nothing stuck, and I came to love that the pan is deep enough to hold a ton of ingredients. This larger pan is also a dream for tofu.

I’ve cooked small batches of rice in the saucepan with no sticking, and I’ve also used the Dutch oven to make a really thick bean soup. Even when I forgot to stir the dense soup, the beans never stuck to the bottom. And because the pans are so nonstick, cleanup has been ridiculously easy.

The pans are made of aluminum with stainless steel bottoms and handles, so they have really even heat distribution. I didn’t experience any hot spots, and the foods cooked evenly. The light gray (and subtly sparkly) interior makes it easy to see how things are progressing during cooking.

The one caveat (and this is true for all nonstick pans): I get a deeper color when searing meats and veggies in a cast iron, carbon steel, or traditional stainless steel skillet. The nonstick ceramic coating doesn’t encourage a dark crust and as a result, you get very little fond. For dishes where I really want those browned bits sticking to the pan so I can deglaze and get a rich sauce, I’ll use my other pans. But for everything else? Caraway.

These pans have been a joy to cook with these last few years — they’re lightweight; responsive to temperature changes; truly nonstick; compatible with induction, gas, and electric cooktops; oven-safe to 550 degrees; and they heat evenly. And of course, they look great, too.

I haven’t noticed any big issues with durability. The ceramic nonstick coating is still going strong, though I’m careful not to go above medium heat, I avoid metal utensils, and I always wash pieces by hand. These are all things I do with all my nonstick cookware.

If I had to find a flaw, I’ve noticed some dark discoloration on the outside of the larger skillet at the bottom, but you have to really look for it to see anything. Who’s looking at the bottom of the pan anyway?

All in all, I’m beyond pleased with my Caraway set and will keep reaching for these pieces for years to come.

Caraway doesn’t have a traditional brick-and-mortar store, so you’d have to shop online at its website. You can also buy certain items, including the nonstick cookware set that I tested, at stores like West Elm, Target, Crate & Barrel, and even Amazon. We’ve got a full list of places to shop here, so it’s worth checking all your options to see if there’s a deal or sale.

Currently, Caraway is running a Black Friday sale where everything is up to 20% off. There’s free shipping on orders more than $90, and orders over $975 will also score a free gift with purchase.

If it’s not obvious by now, I’m a big fan of Caraway’s cookware. Multiple editors at The Kitchn love the brand as well, and collectively, we’ve tested almost everything from Caraway. Below, a quick look at other products we’ve reviewed. For more, we’ve got a full list of editor-favorites here to inspire your next shopping spree.

• The Minis Duo is a great three-piece set that comes with the same slick coating and fun colors.
• The roasting pan (part of the Squareware collection) is perfect for the holidays, especially Thanksgiving.
• For home cooks who prefer cooking with stainless steel, contributor Meleyna Nomura tested the collection and loved the size and versatility.
• Food Editor Patty Catalano tested Caraway’s entire bakeware collection, and was impressed with the quality and the nonstick properties. Plus, like me, she also loved having a colorful set of essentials to complement her kitchen.
• Caraway’s versatile cutting boards come with an ingenious storage caddy to keep them up and out of the way.
• To round out the rest of the kitchen, tea drinkers would love the Whistling Tea Kettle, which works quickly and quietly.

Buy: Caraway 12-Piece Cookware Set, $355.50 (normally $545)

Have you tried Caraway? Do you have nonstick cookware you love?