Roasting Pans

Roasting pans are an Australian cooking essential whether it is being used for roasting vegetables, meat, poultry or seafood, a quality roasting pan will ensure even cooking results and should last you many years. 

Choosing the right Roasting Pan

When selecting which roasting pan is right for your kitchen, the following characteristics are important being:

• Size: ensure that you have a size that is suitable for everyday use with enough serves for everyone in your household. What's also important to consider with sizing is that your oven is wide enough for it to fit. Make sure to double-check the dimensions when choosing a roasting pan to ensure it is the right size for your oven. If you are considering cooking larger meats like whole lamb legs or full-sized potatoes, you may wish to consider also ensuring that you purchase a roasting pan that has deep sides to allow you to cover the pan with aluminium foil to retain moisture when cooking as well as prevent splattering of fats and oils when roasting in the oven or browning on the stovetop. 
   
• Material: Stainless steel roasting pans offer the convenience of being able to cook on higher temperatures and durability. They do however require more oil to be used when roasting otherwise ingredients will stick to the pan. non-stick roasting pans provide the added convenience of releasing food easily. For the best non-stick roasting pans, we recommend brands like Scanpan or Swiss Diamond. A quality non-stick roasting pan is also great for cooking dishes like lasagnas, pasta bakes or even slab cakes.
  
  Lastly, enamelled cast iron roasting pans from brands like Le Creuset provide a natural non-stick as well as optimal heat conductivity and retention. This ensures even cooking results from the centre to the edges. A cast-iron Le Creuset roasting pan is great for oven to table serving and will retain heat to keep the food hot.
  
  
• Stovetop compatibility: Something to consider, especially for those who sear their meats and poultry on the stove prior to roasting is ensuring that it is suitable for your stovetop. Check to see what hobs are compatible with your choice of roasting pan especially if you have an induction stove.

Stainless Steel Roasting Pans

Stainless steel has long been a popular choice of cookware material due to its ability to conduct heat efficiently, will not warp under high heat or rust even when in contact with acidic foods and other reactive ingredients. A stainless steel roasting pan is great to cook with for even heating to ensure your roasted meats or vegetables are cooked evenly and will allow for great caramelisation of meat juices and gravies. While these are a bit more difficult to clean especially evaporated sauces, they are incredibly durable and can be used with metal utensils like carving forks or when cleaning with steel wool or hard cleaning brushes.

non-stick Roasting Pans

A non-stick roasting pan could be considered the best roasting pan option for daily use as the non-stick coatings make cleaning cooked foods and evaporated sauces or gravy easier to clean with minimal effort. For those wanting similar cooking performance of a stainless steel roasting pan but with non-stick coatings, the best non-stick roasting pans available in Australia tend to be Scanpan roasting pans from the Techniq or Classic cookware ranges. These non-stick roasting pans are made in Denmark and feature Scanpan's patented Stratanium non-stick coatings that are incredibly durable and PFOA free and made using recycled aluminium for their cores to conduct and disperse heat evenly without compromising on quality. 

Another non-stick roasting pan worth considering is a Swiss Diamond Roasting Pan as their non-stick coatings are encrusted with diamond crystals that provide excellent heat conductivity for fantastic baking and roasting results while also strengthening the pan's non-stick coating to be more abrasion-resistant.

Cast Iron Roasting Pans

Another customer favourite are cast iron roasting pans as they are able to conduct heat efficiently even on low or medium heat settings and keep foods warm for long after cooking due to cast iron's incredible heat retention properties. A great option for consideration made from enamelled cast iron would be a Le Creuset Roasting Pan. These cast iron roasting pans are made in France and are available in a range of bright attractive colours with triple vitreous enamel coatings that are easy to clean and are induction stovetop compatible. Provided you use silicone or nylon cooking utensils when cooking, these cast iron roasting pans are sure to last you many years to come.

Enamel Roasting Pans

Enamel roasting pans are an option for those who may find the Scanpan non-stick roasting pans or cast iron roasting pans to be too heavy. These are incredibly lightweight, conduct heat efficiently and are a very affordable option for those who may not have the budget to consider the more premium roasting pans above. 

Roasting Pan Brands we Love and Trust

From cast iron roasting pans to mirror-polished roasting pans with racks, find an extensive range of high-quality roasting pans from brands we trust like;

• Staub
• Chasseur
• Essteele
• Anolon 
• Swiss Diamond
• Falcon Enamelware
• Bakemaster
• Le Creuset
• Scanpan

Additional cookware and kitchen tools to consider when purchasing a roasting pan

• Roasting Racks
• Carving Knives
• Carving Forks
• Roasting Twine
• Serving Platters
• Stockpots
• Dutch oven
• Tongs
• Pressure Cookers 
• Basting brush

FAQs

What is the difference between a roasting pan and a baking dish?

Roasting pans are generally bigger in size—even a small roasting pan can accommodate one large enough roast to feed a party of four. Baking dishes are typically smaller as casseroles and baked pastas are much smaller than a full-size turkey or lamb roast. Roasting pans are also usually include a roasting rack while baking dishes do not. However, some baking dishes do come with a lid.

Should I buy a non-stick roasting pan or cast iron roasting pan?

Both types of roasting pan should be able to yield fantastic cooking results. A non-stick roasting pan will offer greater convenience, particularly when it comes to cleaning as the evaporated gravy or cooking juices can be more difficult to remove on a cast iron roasting pan. A non-stick pan is also considerably lighter due to it being made usually with anodised aluminium and stainless steel bases to conduct heat evenly, whereas cast iron is a much more dense and heavy material.

If you wish to purchase a cookware piece that when used correctly will last a lifetime, we recommend cast iron as it is longer lasting than non-stick and also has the bonus of incredible heat retention to keep roasted food warmer for longer which is great when serving at the table.