De Buyer 5130.28: 28 cm iron skillet with stainless handle

The De Buyer 5130.28 is a 28 cm iron skillet (carbon steel, the listing calls it "Hierro Carbonne") with a stainless steel handle. The listing describes it as a professional range, 2.5 to 3 mm thick, with a "lyonnaise" cut and a sloping wall with no sharp angles. It weighs 2 kg according to the technical table, is oven safe and suits smooth induction hobs, and is hand wash only. Country of origin: France. It is made by De Buyer, a maker from the Vosges that claims around 200 years of history in the listing itself.

This is not cast iron like the other pans in the catalogue but sheet iron: thinner, lighter and quicker to heat and to cool. That suits what calls for strong heat and a fast response: searing, browning and sauteing. In a kamado it goes on the grate, cooking direct with the vents open, for things like saffron milk caps on the plancha with garlic and parsley or a well-flattened chicken tabaka. For slow, steady cooking, cast iron holds heat better; here speed is the point.

Fit is the part to check. The 28 cm diameter fits any Large or Classic grate (about 46 cm) and leaves room on an XL or a Big Joe (about 61 cm). But the listing does not publish the overall length or the handle length, and, as a general reference (not a figure from this listing), the handle on a pan this size often runs past 20 cm. As an estimate, on a Large the whole thing touches or passes the ring and may stop the lid closing: measure with the handle before ordering. On a MiniMax or a Joe Jr, around 33 cm, the body nearly fills the grate and it is not its home; the same page also offers 20, 24 and 32 cm diameters.

The catches visible in the listing. First, the handle is stainless steel and inside the chamber it gets as hot as the rest: gloves every time. Second, the listing publishes no maximum temperature, so we give no figure. Third, there is a contradiction: the table says "special feature: non-stick", while the bullet points say "no non-stick coatings", which is what you would expect of an uncoated iron pan. Read it as bare iron that you season with oil and that builds its own patina with use, not a factory non-stick pan. Fourth, iron rusts if left damp, and the Amazon review summary includes rust complaints, even from units that arrived already rusty.

To keep it going: no dishwasher, hand wash only with little or no soap, dry straight away over the heat and add a thin film of vegetable oil. The listing does not reproduce the initial seasoning (one review says the instructions come on the packaging), so the usual iron routine (oil and heat until it darkens) is general advice, not a manufacturer instruction. With 4.3 out of 5 across 669 Amazon reviews it has reasonable backing, with 73% five-star and 10% one-star ratings. We have not had it in hand: this is a reading of the listing plus technical judgement.

Verdict in one sentence: a light 28 cm sheet iron skillet from a historic maker, very good for searing on the grate of a Large or bigger kamado, if you accept seasoning and looking after it.