Why stainless steel pans don’t belong in the dishwasher
It’s stainless! It’s steel! It should be able to withstand anything! And while it is more durable overall than cast iron, carbon steel, or nonstick, the best stainless steel cookware is actually more complicated than it looks.
For starters, stainless steel is an alloy containing varying percentages of iron, chromium, and carbon, and not all stainless steel is created equal. The dishwasher can cause dulling and discoloration, but those are cosmetic problems that won’t affect the pan’s performance.
The bigger issue is that steel isn’t a great heat conductor. The only reason high-end stainless steel heats so beautifully is that it has a core of other metals that conduct heat far more evenly and efficiently. For example, BA’s favorite stainless steel frying pan, the All-Clad D3, has an aluminum core, but copper and graphite are other common materials.
You can think of the stainless steel on your pots and pans like a shiny, non-reactive veneer. When the heat-conductive core is sandwiched between layers of that veneer and left exposed along the rim, as it is on pans from many top brands, including the D3, harsh dishwasher detergents will degrade it over time. The erosion is slow, and it may not affect your cooking for years or even decades. But as the core wears away, the exposed sharp edges of the steel layers can become a hazard.
Why Misen’s sauciers are the exception
Misen’s stainless-steel cookware has one small feature that makes a big difference in the dishwasher. The heat-conductive aluminum core is fully enclosed in a thick layer of stainless steel, so there’s no risk of minerals and detergents degrading the core. The stainless steel is also durable enough to withstand the dishwasher daily, and that’s not just a marketing claim—though it is the very first bullet point on the product page.
