Electric skillets are making a comeback from their heyday in the 60s. An article published in 1955 by Good Housekeeping said,
Today, the popularity of these skillets has picked up enough that manufacturers like Faberware are releasing vintage-style models.
Why Own an Electric Skillet?
When it comes to cooking for a crowd or within the confines of a limited space, or if you’re just looking to obtain the perfect pancakes, the right electric skillet can be a great addition to your kitchen.
For a short time, my mother cooked on an electric skillet until there was enough in the budget for a new gas stove. While everyone was happy to get a stove back into the mix, the versatility of the electric skillet allowed her to choose from any dish in her arsenal of delicious dishes; we’re talking enchiladas, lasagna, fried chicken, amazing pan sauces, and desserts. There’s also something amazing about sitting down at the dinner table and finishing off the first course while the main dish remains on the table piping hot (or still cooking in the case of fajita night).
Now that you’re convinced that an electric skillet deserves a spot in your kitchen, we’ll break down all the aspects of what makes a good skillet and provide the results as we put their cooking abilities to the test.
| PRODUCT | RATING | COST |
|---|---|---|
| 1. De’Longhi BG45 | ★★★★☆ | $$ |
| 2. Elite Platinum | ★★★★☆ | $$ |
| 3. Presto Foldaway Skillet | ★★★★☆ | $$ |
| 4. Zojirushi Gourmet | ★★★☆☆ | $$$$$ |
| 5. Copper Chef | ★★☆☆☆ | $$ |
| 6. Nesco | N/A | $ |
A COMPLETE BUYERS GUIDE
4 Makings of a Great Electric Skillet
1. Heat
A good electric skillet is one that heats evenly; or as we discovered, a good skillet is one that mostly heats evenly. Throughout our testing of the 6 skillets, even heat is a rare commodity.
The heat from an electric skillet comes from a coil under the pan’s surface.
The problem with the coil style heating is it makes it very difficult to radiate even heat. What you’ll notice is that the area near the thermostat will be hotter than the far side.
Unfortunately, most of the electric skillets are designed along the same lines. The Zojirushi and the Copper Chef we tested had a variation of this design style: the heating element was underneath a separate plate which heated up a removable pan, resulting in more of an even heat.
Just like an oven or an induction cooktop, the heating element turns off and on to maintain the set temperature (or at least that’s the idea). It’s preferable to have a thermostat with a light that switches on and off as the heat does.
On average, the skillets’ listed heat range is from 175°F to 475°F. Most all skillets run hotter than the max temperature indicated on the thermostat, but not lower than the minimum temperature.
Tip: if you’re looking to do any low-temperature cooking (such as poaching) you’ll need to be sure the thermostat goes low enough.
2. Size Matters
How many pancakes do you want to cook at once? Fries for four, or fries for one? The size of the cooking surface determines a lot about how you use the skillet. Unless you have a specific goal of compact cooking, you generally want the largest possible cooking surface.
Buyer Beware: One tricky problem, the manufacturers tend to exaggerate their size. Maybe it’s wishful thinking, maybe it’s just cold, but (for example) the De’Longhi is advertised at 16”×12”, measures 15⅛”×11½” at the top of the skillet, and measures 13¾”×9¾” of actual cooking surface – 70% of advertised.
3. Easy Cleanup & Storage
The saddest part of cooking is the cleanup, but a good nonstick coating can make it less painful. Be on the lookout for an integrated pour spout, especially if you want to fry in your skillet. Some of the skillets come apart for easier cleaning, which is a bonus, since they are often quite large.
The Presto 6857 Features Foldaway Handles for Compact StorageThe overall size can be a problem for storage too – units that break down to a smaller size gain plaudits here.
4. Ergonomics
Heat and size are important, but if the skillet is awkward to cook on, it won’t come out of the cupboard. Here are some factors to look at when shopping.
- Handles – Handles should be sturdy and easy to grip. The handles aren’t far away from the heating element, so they shouldn’t get too hot to handle in use.
- Thermostat – The thermostat should be easy to read, easy to set, and seat firmly in the socket. An indicator light should show you when the skillet is heating.
- Breakaway features – A breakaway connection can mean the difference between inconvenience and disaster if someone snags the cord.
- Length of cords – Are you limited to one spot on the counter, or can you take your choice without needing an extension cord? Safety tip: these units all draw 10-14 amps of power, so you need a beefy extension cord. Start with a 14-gauge cord up to 50 feet, 12-gauge to go to 100 feet.
- Aesthetics – Does this look like something you want in your kitchen? That judgement will have to be up to you.
Enough of this >> Jump me down to the results already
What You Should Know About Electric Skillets
How much should I spend on an electric skillet?
The top-selling electric skillets range from $25 to $110. We found that the sweet spot for an electric skillet is around $50.
Wait, so what makes an electric skillet different from an electric griddle?
Skillets and griddles are not exactly the same.
- Griddles have no sides, or very low, 1/2″ at most.
- Skillets are a traditional pan, with sides from 2.5″ to 4″, and also have a lid.
- Griddles are for pancakes, eggs, bacon and the like.
Skillets are for grilling sausages, or making spaghetti sauce, lasagna, desserts like cakes, etc.
What can I do with an electric skillet?
As we mentioned earlier, electric skillets are practical, so here’s a quick look at their most common uses.
Short on kitchen space: Small spaces like apartments, dorms, tiny houses, or RVs are a great place to have one of these on hand. If you’re limited on kitchen space, the additional cooking surface can let you prepare dinner. If nothing else, it allows for you to have two people doing the cooking without being crammed in the kitchen.
The Entertainer: Honestly, for me, this is the practical use. We like to have people over. When we’re hosting large get-togethers, it’s so nice to have one or two skillets on hand.
The party can move outside at any given moment, since it sucks to be stuck in the kitchen when you can be sitting on the patio. Being able to do the cooking outside at a moments notice is a big plus.
Sometimes we don’t even use it for the initial food prep. It’s just to help keep the stove/oven freed up for guests who bring food. This way instead of having all the food piled up in and on the stove, we can easily have everything spread out.
Even if you’re not the hosting type, Thanksgiving and Christmas are two events a year that will give you a good reason to break out the skillet.
Efficiency: So we live in Arizona. Yup. Hot. So when it comes to summertime I (and I think I can speak for the entire State) tend to cook less indoors. An electric skillet is simpler and more versatile than the grill, and can do some oven jobs too.
Making home away from home: I always associate “home sweet home” with the smells and flavors of a home-cooked meal. Being able to make up a dish in a motel room, at the office, or any location that doesn’t have a stove is a game changer.
What not to do…
One downside to electric skillets is they take a good amount of power, 1400 watts on average. Don’t try to run more than one per circuit unless you feel like yelling at the breaker box (or starting a fire). If you plan on laying out more than one, you’re gonna need to run some beefy extension cords to ensure you’re running them on separate circuits.
THE TEST KITCHEN: How We Gathered Information
The Lineup
We gathered six top selling skillets based on several factors:
- Top-selling on Amazon
- Highest star rating
- Featured winners on editorial reviews
- Featured winners on Test Kitchen reviews
The skillets in our roundup ranged from $25 to $100. Since we purchased these with our own money, we are not influenced by one brand over the other.
The Tests
1. Heat
Since most of the skillets we tested had a light on the thermostat to indicate when the heating element was on or off we used this feature to indicate when the skillet had reached the set temperature. So we set each of our skillets to 350°F and once we decided it had reached temperature we conducted our tests.
We looked for even heat by using an infrared thermometer to test how evenly the heat was distributed across the entire surface. We compared the measurements we took with the infrared thermometer to the thermostat setting to see how trustworthy the thermostat was.
Our testing showed that the thickness of the skillet defined its heating characteristics. The thicker skillets took longer to heat up, but were more even, and closer to the thermostat’s set temperature. Thinner skillets heated more quickly, but had more pronounced temperature variations in both location and time.
2. Ergonomics
Ergonomics were evaluated throughout each of our tests. As we pushed the limits of each skillet we discovered the practical elements of functionality that faired better or worse than their competition. Most of the time it came down to how the skillets felt when cooking, maneuvering, their sturdiness and ultimately where they nailed it or fell short in overall design.
3. Saute
The first cooking test was to sauté vegetables. We set each thermostat to 300 degrees and waited for the skillets to come up to temperature. We added a little butter and waited for it to melt. Once foaming subsided, we added sliced onions, sliced bell peppers, sliced button mushrooms, and a big pinch of salt. We tossed the vegetables as needed until they were softened and beginning to brown.
We evaluated the test based on the amount of time needed to sauté the vegetables and on the quality and evenness of the browning.
4. Fry
The second cooking test was to double-fry french fries. We peeled russet potatoes and cut them into roughly ¼” square fries. We rinsed off the surface starch, then soaked them in ice water for at least 30 minutes while preparing the skillets.
We filled each skillet to about 1½” with vegetable oil and heated them to 325 degrees. We dried each portion of fries on paper towels, then added them to the skillets. We let them fry, stirring occasionally, until the fries turned blonde in color. From there, we moved each portion to a covered bowl, and increased the temperature to 375 degrees. We added the fries back to their skillet, and fried until golden-brown, then removed the fries to a draining rack and salted them.
We evaluated the fry test on several factors. How long did it take the oil to reach each setting, how much did the temperature drop when the fries were added, and how quickly was it able to return to temperature? How long did it take to cook the fries in each phase? How good was the final product, specifically looking at taste, texture, and browning?
5. Sear
The third cooking test was to sear a steak. We cranked the skillets to max, then waited for them to reach temperature. Once there, we added a top sirloin steak seasoned with salt and pepper. We let it cook, moving as little as possible, until a good crust had formed on the bottom. We flipped it and reduced the heat to medium-low to finish the steaks as our testers desired.
We evaluated the sear test based first on the quality and evenness of browning. A secondary factor was the amount of time needed to reach maximum temperature, and the amount of time needed to get a quality sear.
Since different steaks were finished in different ways, we did not rigorously evaluate the medium-low cooking, but we did qualitatively note how well each steak finished.
6. Pancakes
After cleanup, day two of testing opened up with pancakes. We mixed up boxed pancake batter as directed, heated each skillet to medium, and made pancakes.
We evaluated the texture and browning of the pancakes. This was also the test where we made most of our observations about skillet size and ease of use.
7. Poached Fish
The fifth cooking test was tilapia poached in milk. We heated each skillet to 140 degrees, added a poaching liquid of milk, sliced onions, and seasonings, then a piece of tilapia. We left the skillets alone until the fish reached an internal temperature of 140 degrees.
We evaluated the ability of the skillets to maintain a low temperature. We paid close attention to the temperature swings of the thermostat’s cycle. We also considered the taste and texture of the fish, but temperature control was the primary focus.
8. Cleaning
The first cleanup test was conducted after letting the skillets sit out overnight after our sear test. This test primarily evaluated the nonstick cooking surface. Our top ranking skillets came clean using only hot water and a spray nozzle.
The second test was conducted after the poaching test. We examined how easy it was to clean the entire skillet, not just the cooking surface but the exterior, around the handles, thermostat area, and base.
Evaluation & Ranking
For each test, we rated each skillet on a 5-point scale, then combined the individual test ratings into an overall rating. We used these overall ratings, the prices, and our opinions based on two days of testing to produce a final ranking.
Best Electric Skillets for 2021 [Tested, Reviewed & Rated]
1. De’Longhi BG45 Electric Skillet
SPECS:
Size: Advertised at: 16”×13”
Wattage: 1500
Material: Die Cast Aluminum
Weight: 9.9lbs
TEST RAITINGS:
Heat -: ★★★★☆
Ergonomics -: ★★★★★
Sauté -: ★★★★★
Fry –: ★★★★☆
Sear –: ★★★☆☆
Pancakes –: ★★★★★
Poached Fish –: N/A
Cleaning –: ★★★★★
RECOMMENDED/WINNER
Why It Was Included in Our Roundup
De’Longhi is among the top searched-for by brand name on Google. It was also featured in the top 5 across several online editorial reviews.
Testing Review Results
Heat ★★★★☆
The De’Longhi heated up among the quickest in the group and performed consistently well. Like many of the skillets inn our roundup, it ran over the thermostat setting by about 50 degrees – about average for the group.
The thermostat ranges from 200°F to 400°F. The lowest setting is MINN (warm), then it goes up by 50 degree increments from 200°F to 400°F.
Temperature consistency is good, with a spread of 20-30 degrees from the center to the edges.
Ergonomics ★★★★★
Lots to like here. The De’Longhi has a solid sturdy design with ample cooking space. It’s nominally 16”×12”, but has 13¾”×9¾” of actual cooking surface.
The handles were the best in the bunch. They are comfortable and easy to grab, and never got hot, even set to maximum temperature. The cord is 36” long, which is not amazing, but will at least get you anywhere on the countertop.
Sauté ★★★★★
Like sauté co-champ Elite, the De’Longhi heated up fast to a good heat level. It held temperature well when the veggies were introduced, and gave them a nice level of browning in a reasonable amount of time.
Fry ★★★★☆
The De’Longhi got the oil up to temperature quickly, though not as fast as the Elite. Temperature drop was reasonable, but we would like to have seen a faster bounceback. The finished fries were very good – a little over-browned, but with a perfect interior.
On the fry test, we really admired the quality of the handles. Even full of hot oil, the handles were basically room temperature.
Sear ★★★☆
The De’Longhi’s steak sear was among the best in the group. It heated quickly, and stayed fiery while putting a nice sear on our sirloin.
While that was the focus of the test, we found a flaw when reducing the heat for the second side: the heat dropped too far when the thermostat temperature went down. This gave us a steak with a great sear, but an overcooked layer below the surface. So, if you purchase the De’Longhi and are looking for the perfect steak, we recommend kicking it up to max and leaving it there while cooking the steak about 3 minutes on each side.
Pancakes ★★★★★
Nothing to say here but yum. The De’Longhi turned out perfect pancakes, matching the Presto. This was another spot where we appreciated how easy the De’Longhi was to work with. The whole thing sits solidly on the table and it’s easy to work on the cooking surface.
Fish Poaching N/A
Here’s a thing the De’Longhi doesn’t do well, or at all. The thermostat goes down to 200 degrees, and while something is happening below that level, it’s not consistent or repeatable. If you’re looking for a skillet that will hold low temperatures, the De’Longhi is not for you, and we would recommend the Elite.
Cleaning ★★★★★
The De’Longhi cleaned up nice and easy with a rinse in hot water. The nonstick coating did its job well, and the handles and exterior cleaned up easily too. The skillet is advertised as dishwasher-safe, but examining that aspect is a long-term thing.
Overall ★★★★
The De’Longhi BG45 finished in the top tier in every one of our tests except for the fish poaching test, where it failed completely at holding a low temperature. Moreover, the design was the best in the group and was the only skillet we felt comfortable handling and maneuvering when it was running at its maximum temperature. If you need low-temperature ability, go with the Elite, but otherwise our WINNER, the De’Longhi, is RECOMMENDED as our Best Electric Skillet.
What We Liked
- Quality design
- Big cooking area
- Great sauté and sear
- Great handles
- Easy to clean
What We Didn’t Like
- Doesn’t work below 200 degrees
- Drops too much temperature when turned down
2. Elite Platinum EG-6203
SPECS:
Size: Advertised at: 16”×13”
Wattage: 1500
Material: Die Cast Aluminum
Weight: 9.9lbs
TEST RATINGS:
Heat -: ★★★★☆
Ergonomics -: ★★★★☆
Sauté -: ★★★★★
Fry –: ★★★★☆
Sear –: ★★★★☆
Pancakes –: ★★★☆☆
Poached Fish –: ★★★★☆
Cleaning –: ★★☆☆☆
RECOMMENDED
Why It Was Included in Our Roundup
Elite was ranked in the top three spots on Amazon by both user reviews and top sellers. That high ranking pushed it to be one of the top editorial reviewed products in the category.
Testing Review Results
Heat ★★★★☆
The Elite finished in our top tier and would have finished as #1 if not for the fact that it ran hot almost all the time.
The nominal range of the thermostat is 200°F to 400°F in 50°F increments. It heats up among the quickest of all the skillets. Unfortunately, when set to anything above 300°F, it starts to run over by 50 to 130 degrees. Running consistently hot isn’t too big a problem since you can plan for it. Another issue is that the thermostat side runs 10-25% hotter than the far side.
Ergonomics ★★★★☆
The Elite is a traditional rectangular electric skillet, nominally 13”×16”, that boasts a honeycomb pebbled surface. The actual cooking surface is a bit smaller, about 12”×15”, which is above average for this group.
The honeycomb surface proved to be both good and bad. It was nice when trying to flip and stir things like the veggies in the sauté test. The surface had a bit of tooth that helped get a spatula under the food. It seemed to be a bit of a drawback, though, when it came to searing and cleanup. It features a notched-out corner that the manufacturer says is a pour spout, but it’s a terrible spout for pouring; you’re better off using one of the other 3 corners.
The handles felt sturdy and comfortable to grip. Unfortunately, the handle on the thermostat side got noticeably hot when the skillet was running at high temperatures.
The cord is 27½” long, which is a bit short. The thermostat features a trigger release mechanism, which was not that useful. We didn’t have any trouble removing the thermostats from any of the other skillets.
Sauté ★★★★★
This is where the honeycomb surface – unique to the Elite – really shined.
The pebbled surface allowed us to easily stir and flip the veggies to get even browning. The high heat of the Elite also helped here – it was the fastest to heat up, and the fastest to brown the vegetables. The Elite was in the top tear of the sauté test.
Fry ★★★★☆
The Elite did a solid job in the fry test. Its high heat brought the oil up to temperature quickly, and, more importantly, bounced back quickly after adding the ice-cold potatoes. The Elite’s tendency to run caused us some trouble in the second fry. It ran too hot, so the fries browned too fast, and we had to pull them before they got the perfect texture on the exterior.
This was also where we discovered the “pour spout” did not work; luckily there were no casualties.
Sear ★★★★☆
One of the keys to a great sear is high heat over a short period of time. Too long, and you end up with overcooked steak, or worse, the heat is too low and you end up with an overcooked steak without a delicious crust. Since the Elite runs hot, it completed its sear fastest of all the skillets. However, the sear was only about 3rd best.
The honeycomb surface proved to be less than ideal for searing, since less of the steak was in direct contact with the skillet.
Pancakes ★★★☆☆
The heat strikes again! While pancakes finished quickly, they were overcooked – a bit leathery on the outside while the inside was underdone. Again, we expect this issue can be rectified by fidgeting with the thermostat to anticipate the overshoot.
Fish Poaching ★★★★☆
Surprise! The rocket-hot Elite was able to maintain a low enough heat to keep our fish on hold at 140 degrees for upwards of 20 minutes. The only reason we didn’t award the Elite a 5 on this test was because the first thermostat reading is 200, so we had to play around with the “warm” reading to get our liquid down to 140 degrees.
Cleaning ★★☆☆☆
Cleaning was a bit of a drag because of the honeycomb surface. Instead of coming clean with hot water, or hot water and a simple wipedown, it required the use of a scrubber and constant scrubs in circular motions to get it cleaned.
Overall ★★★★☆
Overall, the Elite is a very good skillet. It heats up fast and hot with low-temperature versatility too. The downside is that it runs too hot, and needs a careful eye and maybe a thermometer to get to the right temperature. The honeycomb surface texture is a mixed blessing: good for the sauté and pancakes, but not good for searing or cleaning. The Elite Platinum EG-6203 is RECOMMENDED, but keep an eye on that thermostat.
What We Liked
- Quality design
- Big cooking area
- Heats up fast
- Sautés well
- Dishwasher safe
What We Didn’t Like
- Runs excessively hot
- Tough to clean the honeycomb surface
- Takes longer to reach set temperature
3. Presto 06857 16” Electric Foldaway Skillet
TEST RAITINGS:
Heat -: ★★★☆☆
Ergonomics -: ★★★☆☆
Sauté -: ★★★☆☆
Fry –: ★★★★☆
Sear –: ★★★★☆
Pancakes –: ★★★★★
Poached Fish –: ★☆☆☆☆
Cleaning –: ★★★★★
RECOMMENDED
Why It Was Included in Our Roundup
The Presto electric skillet consistently scores high. It’s a tops seller, most featured and reviewed on Amazon, and the most searched on Google. Needless to say expectations are high.
We reviewed Model 6857, which features a foldaway base, while the 6852 model has a static stand.
Testing Review Results
Heat ★★★★☆
The Presto seemed to take a little longer than the Elite and De’Longhi to heat up, but once it gets going, it seems to run at about the same pace as those top ones. Like most of the skillets, it ran over the thermostat setting but in Presto’s case it was about 90 degrees, putting it right up there with the Elite as far as running hot.
Presto does recommend having some type of heat barrier underneath the base just to protect damaging your counter from excess heat. Temperature consistency isn’t the best with a spread of 40-60 degrees from the center to the edges.
Ergonomics ★★★☆☆
Overall, it’s a solid build. The cooking surface is as big as any in our lineup, and it’s easy to maneuver utensils around in it. It’s a small thing, but the pour spout was the best in the test.
The Presto’s signature feature is the removable base that folds up and nests into the skillet for easy storage. This is a very helpful feature for a crowded kitchen, but there are downsides too. The base is relatively insubstantial compared to the De’Longhi and the Elite, and the handles do not instill any confidence. They also disengage from the skillet by pressing the buttons on top, which is an easy mistake, especially with oven mitts.
The manufacturer warns not to move the skillet if it contains hot liquid, and we echo that warning.
Sauté – ★★★☆☆
The Presto was middle of the road as in our sauté test. It was the last to produce satisfactory vegetables (which is better than the Copper Chef, which never produced satisfactory vegetables). The veggies came out good, but we would have liked to see a little more browning on the peppers.
Fry ★★★★☆
The Presto did well on the fry test. It took a little while to get up to temperature, but it maintained temperature well when we added the fries and got back up to temperature better than expected. When we cranked it up to high for the second fry, it performed just as well, giving us a plate of well-browned fries.
Sear ★★★★☆
It feels monotonous to write, but the Presto did about the same on the sear as it did on the sauté and the fry – ultimately well, but a bit too slowly. The Presto’s ability to maintain temperature well led to a nice sear with a solid crust, but not quite as good as that produced by the Elite or the Zojirushi.
Pancakes ★★★☆☆
The Presto topped the pancake test alongside the De’Longhi. It produced a great pancake without any trouble. There’s plenty of room for a big batch, and it was easy to get the spatula around everywhere it needed to go.
Fish Poaching ★☆☆☆☆
Even though the Presto has a warm setting below its lowest thermostat setting of 200°, we just couldn’t find the sweet spot for a low poach. We were looking to hold a temperature of around 140°, but we couldn’t do better than 150° with swings over 175°. We got a reasonable piece of fish out of this model, but it misses the mark here.
Cleaning ★★★★★
Presto cleaned up easier than any in the group aside from the Copper Chef. We just needed some hot water from the spray nozzle, and everything slid right off. The detachable base makes cleaning even easier. The only downside is that the base has a lot of little grooves and crevices that do need work to clean.
Overall ★★★★☆
The Presto does well across the board except for its low-heat performance in the fish poaching test. it’s one downfall of not being able to hold a low temperature (below 160F). The Presto runs hot. As a consolation, Presto does provide a guide as for cook times and temperatures.
The fold-up base is its biggest differentiator among the top skillets in our tests, but it wasn’t enough to the positive. The small storage space requirement is great, but the effect on the handles pushes it down a little bit in our rankings. Those handles jiggle a little when fully locked in, but they also have a quick release latch that can easily be disengaged by accident – disaster.
Now, had we tested the Presto 6852 (same design but with static handles) it would have likely finished in our second place spot. Instead, we call it RECOMMENDED, but we prefer the De’Longhi and the Elite just a little bit. If you like what you’ve heard about the Presto 6857 and don’t need the collapsable base, the Presto 6852 might be for you, and be about $10 cheaper.
What We Liked
- Big cooking surface
- Retains heat well
- Easy storage
What We Didn’t Like
- Untrustworthy handles
- Slow to heat up
- Poor low-heat performance
4. Zojirushi EP-PBC10 Gourmet d’Expert Electric Skillet
SPECS:
Size: Advertised at 10-1/2″ in diameter. But actual cooking surface is a diameter of 9 1/2″ in diameter. The pot holds a gallon of water.
Wattage: 1300
Material: Ceramic pan with titanium nonstick coating
Weight: 9 lbs
TEST RAITINGS:
Heat -: ★★★★☆
Ergonomics -: ★★★☆☆
Sauté -: ★★★☆☆
Fry –: ★★★★☆
Sear –: ★★★★☆
Pancakes –: ★★☆☆☆
Poached Fish –: ★★★★★
Cleaning –: ★★☆☆☆
NOT RECOMMENDED
Why It Was Included in Our Roundup
The Zojirushi was a shoo-in for our roundup because we needed a popular “high-end” model. The Zojirushi was rated as a top pick by FineCooking.com, and came in as top pick at ConsumerSearch.com. It also has the third-highest Star Rating on Amazon behind the Presto and Elite.
Testing Review Results
Heat ★★★★☆
Zojirushi really shines when it comes to heat control. It was the most consistent in our test in maintaining temperature and the most even heat across the surface of the skillet. It also holds heat well over time, which helps its consistency: from being the most consistent in maintaining temperature, to produce an even temperature reading across the surface of the skillet. It also has the widest heat range from 175 °F (Keep Warm) to 430 °F and featured the most detailed thermostat of the bunch.
The downside is that the Zojirushi takes a long time to get to a particular temperature, and that it can’t get as hot as the other skillets in the panel. Both the ups and the downs come from the Zojirushi’s removable insert design. It’s got a heavy insert that holds the temperature very steady, whether you want that or not.
Ergonomics ★★★☆☆
The Zojirushi’s biggest downfall is its size. The cooking surface is small – there’s only enough room for one steak or one pancake. There is a larger model you can purchase, but it only adds another 1½” of diameter for another $50 on top of the already hefty price.
The handles were okay. They were offset enough from the skillet to stay fairly cool throughout the cooking process, but they were small and awkward.
Aesthetically, the Zojirushi has a nice modern appearance with a built-in thermostat that runs along the face of the base. One great feature that none of the other skillets in our lineup have is a magnetic breakaway power cord. This is the safest and easiest choice for tableside cooking.
The insert portion can also cook directly on the stovetop like a regular skillet.
Sauté – ★★★☆☆
The Zojirushi’s deep kettle-style design and its small cooking surface combined to keep too much moisture in our vegetables in the initial segment of the sauté. It took the Zojirushi twice as long to complete the sauté as our speedy skillets. In the end, though, the veggies came out fine and were comparable to those produced by the De’Longhi and Elite.
Fry ★★★★☆
The Zojrushi produced the best fries, but we had to work for it.
It was a constant battle of taking temperature readings of the oil and tinkering around with the theremistat. It showed big swings when we added the ice cold fries in and it didn’t bounce back the way we expected it to. We ultimately ended up putting the lid on to bring our oil back to temperature to prepare for our second fry. This time around the heat maintained much better when we added the fries in.
This is a testament to how the Zojuriushi performes when it comes to heat: once it reaches 325F+ the kettle itself holds the heat in pretty well due to its thickness and the insulation provided by the base.
Sear ★★★★☆
Zojuriushi finished in second to the Elite when rating the quality of the sear.
Additionally, it finished cooking the steak the quickest of all the skillets. This is another testament to how well the Zojuriushi retains heat.
Pancakes ★★★☆☆
Zojuriushi’s true colors really shined through here, solidifying its status as something entirely different than a traditional electric skillet.
For starters, the cooking surface only allowed for two pancakes, while the other skillets could comfortably hold four. When it came time to flip the pancakes we struggled to find space to get under the pancakes with the spatula.
There was noticeable residue left over on the cooking surface when we flipped the pancakes while the other skillets didn’t show any signs of residue.
The kicker, is the pancakes never really cooked. The bowining was minimal and it topped out at around golden, the inside left nothing to be desired.
Since the Zojuriushi runs at lower temperatures than the rest of the skillets (mostly due to the fact that it doesn’t run over by 50F+ like the rest of the skillets) it was technically cooking at about 50F – 75F cooler than the rest of the skillets we stacked it up against. So just for the sake of experimenting we ran another batch of pancakes; this time kicking the heat up to max (425F). This time around it produced a nice pancake that was among the best we produced on any of the skillets.
Fish Poaching ★☆☆☆☆
Our winner in the Fish Poaching test holding constant temperatures between 140F and 160F. The Zojuriushi is the only one in our group that we would trust to hold the meat for an extended duration of time without overcooking it.
Cleaning ★★★★★
When it came to cleanup we found we needed to scrub, while most of the other skillets came clean with just hot water from the spray nozzle. Additionally, the base is a complicated, non-dishwasher safe part of the Zojuriushi. If you need to clean the base, you’ll find that water easily gets inside the inners of the base and you need to wait for it to dry completely before storing it. This is the same story for the Copper Chef.
Overall ★★★★☆
It didn’t take long for us to realize that the Zojuriushi did not belong in our test. Simply calling your product a skillet by putting the word Skillet in the title doesn’t make it so. With that being said, Zojuriushi is not a bad product, just seems to be designed more to cooking and serving Asian cuisine more than it seems to be designed for making a traditional breakfast.
Many times, spending more money doesn’t equate better results; this is true when testing the performance of the Zojuriushi as an electric skillet. We are not able to justify the Zojuriushi at its high price-point.
What We Liked
- Low heat performance
- Maintained consistent heat levels
- Safe pull away magnetized cord
- Sleek modern style design
What We Didn’t Like
- Not a true electric skillet
- Price-point was far too high for an electric skillet while not performing like one
- Cooking space too small
- Cleanup is less than ideal between the skillet itself and the base
5. Copper Chef 12” Electric Skillet with Removable Base
SPECS:
Size: Advertised at 12″. But actual cooking surface is 10″ x 8″.
Wattage: 1200
Material: Ceramic
Weight: 3.5 lbs
TEST RAITINGS:
Heat -: ★★★☆☆
Ergonomics -: ★★☆☆☆
Sauté -: ★☆☆☆☆
Fry –: ★☆☆☆☆
Sear –: ★★★☆☆
Pancakes –: ★★☆☆☆
Poached Fish –: ★★★☆☆
Cleaning –: ★★★★☆
NOT RECOMMENDED
Why It Was Included in Our Roundup
While Copper Chef is not among the top recommended electric skillets by editorial reviews or Amazon, it is a popular choice for many due to the popularity of Copper Chef cookware and infomercials. Additionally, of all the Google searches related to the term “electric skillet”, Copper Chef is the most popular brand name.
Testing Review Results
Heat ★★★☆☆
The Copper Chef skillet has a nominal temperature range of 200 to 425 degrees in 50 degree increments.
Where most of the skillets have an integrated heating coil, the Copper Chef has a skillet part sit freely on top of a heating base. This has its ups and downs – on the plus side, the heat is very evenly distributed across the cooking surface. On the minus side, it took the longest to heat up of the tested skillets.
The Copper Chef skillet part is very thin, and does not retain heat well. The temperature dropped significantly when adding food to the skillet. It was noteworthy that the skillet put off an unpleasant plasticky smell when heated over 350 degrees.
Ergonomics ★★☆☆☆
The Copper Chef’s design is interesting, but ultimately flawed.
The unique plus it offers is that the skillet portion is completely detachable and usable on the stovetop or in the oven. This is definitely a good thing for additional utility (although that would be better if the skillet were of higher quality). Judged as an electric skillet, though, it’s a problem. There’s nothing holding the skillet to the base, so any bump starts it sliding off the base. There were some frightening moments in the fry test when we were worried the kitchen would turn into Stephen King’s Firestarter.
The handles on the skillet are very good – big loops that are easy to grab, even with oven mitts. Unfortunately, there are no handles at all on the base portion, so you’re not moving that until it’s all the way cooled. This puts a damper on the Copper Chef’s tableside utility.
The size is a bit small too. The nominal size is 12”×12” with an actual cooking area of 10″ x 8″. The cord is awkwardly short – about 2 feet long.
The insert portion can also cook directly on the stovetop like a regular skillet.
Sauté – ★☆☆☆☆
When it came to sautéing, the Copper Chef came up short. Its greatest strength, the much-touted extremely nonstick surface, proves to be its weakness. The vegetables slid around like a puck on an air hockey table, but there was basically no browning.
Fry ★☆☆☆☆
After 25 minutes, Copper Chef never heated the oil to our target temperature of 325 degrees, even after adding the lid and kicking up the thermostat to 350. When we added the fries for the first round of frying, the oil quickly dropped to 250F, after 5 minutes it only recovered 7 degrees.
Once we removed the fries, we turned the Copper Chef up to max heat (425 degrees) and put the lid on in the vain hope that it would be ready for the second phase of our fry. Our oil topped out around 316 degrees when we added the fries back in for the second go.
Ultimately, the poor temperature performance of the Chopper Chef left us with a plate of chewy, greasy fries.
Sear ★★★☆☆
The Copper Chef skillet performed reasonably well at the sear test. We heated it to maximum, and while it did take quite a while to get there, once heated it produced a good sear on the steak, although it took longer than other skillets.
The focus of this test was the sear, but it’s worth noting that when we turned the skillet down to finish the steak, the temperature dropped far more than we were expecting. Our testing overall shows that the Copper Chef works best at either the top or the bottom of its range, with the middle temperatures showing questionable results.
Pancakes ★★☆☆☆
The Copper Chef’s pancakes came out sad and doughy with minimal browning. Worse, there was only room in the skillet for two pancakes. The unanchored skillet was awkward
In light of what we found in the steak test, we gave it another go with the last of the batter at maximum temperature. This produced a good pancake, but reinforced the issue of poor mid-temperature performance.
Fish Poaching ★★★☆☆
The Copper Chef did its best work in the poaching test. Set to minimum, it maintained a reasonable temperature range of 120-160 degrees. The fish finished nicely, but the temperature swings would eventually overcook it if left alone.
Cleaning ★★★★☆
The Copper Chef advertises itself as easy to clean, and they nailed that part, at least on the skillet. The skillet portion cleans instantly with just a little running water. Unfortunately, the base is harder to clean. Anything that drips onto the base gets cooked on solidly and takes a lot of work to remove. The base is also tricky to dry.
One cleaning-related note: despite not using this skillet too much, we started seeing signs of wear on the bottom. It’s concerning that the nonstick coating might not last long enough.
Overall ★★☆☆☆
Overall, the main thing the Copper Chef skillet has going for it is its aggressively nonstick coating. Going against it is poor performance in several tests, especially ones that require mid-range heat control, and a relatively small size. The overall design of a skillet sitting freely on a base is interesting, but ultimately not a winning idea. In the balance, the Copper Chef 12” Electric Skillet is NOT RECOMMENDED.
What We Liked
- nonstick surface
- skillet can be used directly on the stove (like the Zojurushi).
What We Didn’t Like
- Skillet rests freely on the base
- Trouble maintaining consistent temperatures
- Takes longer to reach set temperature
- Not ideal for sautéing
- Nonstick attributes seems to be based on a thin temporary coating
6. Nesco ES-08 Electric Skillet
SPECS:
Size: Advertised at an 8″ skillet. While the cooking surface is about a complete 8″ it is only 1 1/2″ deep.
Wattage: 800
Material: Die Cast Aluminum
Weight: 3.5 lbs
TEST RAITINGS:
Heat -: N/A
Ergonomics -: N/A
Sauté -: N/A
Fry –: N/A
Sear –: N/A
Pancakes –: N/A
Poached Fish –: N/A
Cleaning –: N/A
Why It Was Included in Our Roundup
We pulled data from the three most-visited electric skillet reviews, and found that the Nesco was consistently popular, including a “Best Choice” ranking in an Amazon review.
Testing Review Results
This skillet never made it through our series of test as it failed right out of the box.
Our first signs of trouble came in the unboxing. The skillet had little shards of glass in it – not a great start, but we cleaned it out carefully for testing. The knob for the lid had to be screwed on, and it did not fit well.
During the first cooking test when we were trying to sauté vegetables, it randomly turned off twice. Our initial thought was that we blew a breaker, or that the cord came loose from the wall, but it turned out the connection from the thermostat probe to the skillet was bad. It would work if we held it together, but would cut out with even the smallest nudge.
In the end, we made the call to eliminate it from our test rather than run out to get a replacement. We decided that the unit was so small and thin, and that the performance so far was so lacking that we’d have a hard time justifying spending $25+ on this model. We do not recommend this skillet.
Heat – N/A
Ergonomics – N/A
Sauté – N/A
Fry – N/A
Sear – N/A
Pancakes – N/A
Poached Fish – N/A
Cleaning – N/A
What We Liked
- Surface cleanup was easy
- Compact storage
- Low wattage requirements
What We Didn’t Like
- Failed to work
- Could not sauté a single serving of vegetables without crowding the skillet
Test Kitchen Final Summery
First place: The De’Longhi BG45 offers the best balance of design and function, with only low-temperature performance as a complaint.
Second place: The Elite Platinum EG-6203 might have taken the top spot, but it falls just a little behind because it runs so overly hot.
Third place: The Presto 6857 does a lot of things well, and if you really need the fold-up design for storage it’s great. Unfortunately, the rickety base and handles pull its design down a notch.
All three of these skillets are great choices, and we think you’ll be happy with any of them. Which one you choose will come down to your exact needs, so we hope the detailed individual reviews can help you narrow down the right skillet for you.
Other affordable skillets for consideration
Here are some highly reviewed skillets that we did not have a chance to test, but are well liked by consumers.
Hamilton Beach 38528 Ceramic Skillet
Pros
- Fit variety of recipes in its 3” depth
- Enough of cooking area to serve large number of guests
- Durathon ceramic coating which is 4 times more durable than other non-stick cookware
Cons
- Temperature settings are not much accurate
- Makes loud humming noise on the controller
Oster CKSTSKFM05 16-Inch Electric Skillet
Pros
- Precise thermostat
Cons
- Poor nonstick surface, making cleaning less than ideal
Proctor Silex 38526 Electric Skillet
Proctor Silex 38526 Electric Skillet truly deserves to be the treasured kitchenware for you. Proctor Silex is known to exceed its customers’ expectations. You can easily style your kitchen and prepare your food very conveniently as it needs far less washing after cooking.
Pros
- Affordable for the size
Cons
- Build quality leaves much to be desired
