Why this $15 Sheet Pan is our Favorite | Gear Heads

Byamazingfoodstv


A baking sheet is essential for baking but also for roasted veggies, proteins, and more. We found the best models in every size.

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The Best Baking Sheets of 2024:
The Best Nonstick Rimmed Baking Sheets:

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ABOUT US: The mission of America’s Test Kitchen (ATK) is to empower and inspire confidence, community, and creativity in the kitchen. Founded in 1992, the company is the leading multimedia cooking resource serving millions of fans with TV shows (America’s Test Kitchen, Cook’s Country, and America’s Test Kitchen: The Next Generation), magazines (Cook’s Illustrated and Cook’s Country), cookbooks, a podcast (Proof), FAST channels, short-form video series, and the ATK All-Access subscription for digital content. Based in a state-of-the-art 15,000-square-foot test kitchen in Boston’s Seaport District, ATK has earned the trust of home cooks and culinary experts alike thanks to its one-of-a-kind processes and best-in-class techniques. Fifty full-time (admittedly very meticulous) test cooks, editors, and product testers spend their days tweaking every variable to find the very best recipes, equipment, ingredients, and techniques. Learn more at

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0:00 – Intro
0:23 – Why We Love Sheet Pans
1:07 – Testing Aluminum Sheet Pans
3:14 – Our Winning Aluminum Sheet Pan
3:40 – How We Test Sheet Pans
4:03 – Aluminum vs. Stainless Steel vs. Non-stick Sheet Pans
4:45 – Aluminum Safety Concerns
5:41 – Testing Stainless Steel Sheet Pans
6:35 – How to Mitigate Aluminum Leaching
7:09 – Testing Non-Stick Sheet Pans
7:51 – Our Sheet Pan Recommendations

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35 Comments

  2. I would like to see some discussion of insulated sheet pans. They are a great way to get beautiful results when baking cookies, as the bottoms don't get too dark and dry. I have had absolutely rave reviews on cookies since I first used these.

  3. No thanks. I ended my relationship with aluminum cookware long ago and haven't looked back. I think got rid of any kind of non-stick or other chemical coating cookware.

    Just doesn't seem worth it to me. Yeah, you'll save some money, but seeing as how I bought my stainless steel sheet pans over 20 years ago, I think the difference in the initial investment is pretty irrelevant.

    And non-stick? Forget about it I probably would have replaced to them five times by now over the years and every time I use them I'd be exposing myself and my family to and unnecessary and uncertain health risk.

    I've never understood the people who are like well we're not absolutely sure it's hurting us so the jury is still out. If the jury is still out, then I want it out of my kitchen thanks very much 😅

  5. As long as the fact that aluminum is considered a heavy metal and is Neurotoxic which settles in the brain and never leaves without a serious detox does not bother you than use the aluminum. Alzheimer’s, and Dementia numbers are higher every year!
    Non stick are damaging to your health too!

  6. What about "seasoning" aluminum pans like you would an aluminum or carbon steal fry pan? It creates a non-stick surface, and creates a barrier from the aluminum from the food. I have done this with a couple 1/8 pans that are daily use reheating things like BBQ entrees and like acidic foods. It was something I learned long ago working in a restaurant and have always done it.

  13. Pffft. Go to your local restaurant supply store and get some cheapo Chinese made quarter or half sheet pans that will take a beating and last for years in a home kitchen because they're meant to be used in commercial kitchens. Get the tough stuff the pros use, they will even withstand beating a rolling rack out of frustration because some idiot F&B didn't let us know about the additional 20 people added to the banquet we're plating up in 10 minutes. Speaking from experience of course.

  16. Your analogy of dark pans to dark clothing is flawed. Dark clothing absorbs visible light, which is then converted to heat. Inside an oven there is very little visible light, it is mostly infrared, and much of the heat transfer is from convection. It is not the case that all dark things absorb infrared heat more than things that appear lighter in color. If you want to claim that pans with dark oil based seasoning absorb more heat, please do the actual experiment.

  18. i'm surprised that the non-stick baking sheets are considered dishwasher safe! i've always heard that when it comes to pans you only want to hand-wash non-stick and that stainless steel holds up the best (while still not being ideal for the longevity of the pan) and i believed it because the dishwasher is a very violent environment; i assumed that the hot jets of water that are capable of blasting away almost any kind of gunk from dishes would certainly damage the coating considering how little it sticks to the actual pan in addition to the food.

    i would love to see products like this tested in the dishwasher by ATK! my apartment sadly does not have a dishwasher (handwashing for me as a single person with two plates total to my name isn't that big of a deal but i just think dishwashers are really cool), but when i do have a dishwasher at my disposal i would love to know more about what happens to products of varying materials and construction in there!

  19. I have basic rolled edge aluminum 1/2, 1/3 and 1/4 sheet pans from my local restaurant supply store. Fantastic performers and for 8 or 9 bucks, if one ever "wears out" I just go and buy some more.

    Honestly, every time I splurge and buy a "prestige brand" cookware item, I've always been disappointed and go right back to my commercial stuff from the restaurant store. It might not be as flashy as Allclad or whatever, but I have never once had someone tell me "Dinner was really good, but you ruined it with that pedestrian pot you cooked it in."

  26. I'm not sure why SS pans shouldn't go in the dishwasher? My favorite cookie sheet, which I inherited from my mom, is stainless, has been through the dishwasher many, many times over the last 50 years, and, other than a few scratches from using metal spatulas with abandon, still looks virtually new. Also, SS sheet pans aren't that expensive if you aren't paying for a fancy brand name. You can get them for less than $20. The cheap ones are probably not as nice, but are the expensive ones really 5+ times better?

  35. I bought a couple of the heavy duty Vollrath commercial aluminum 1/2 pans 20 years ago and have used and occasionally abused them over those years and they are still flat and work great. I've always washed them in a dishwasher and had absolutely no issues with that either.

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