Of all the cookware, bakeware and kitchen gadgets I own, nothing is more useful to me than a sturdy half sheet pan. A good one will evenly bake every type of cookie or cake conceivable, roast chicken and vegetables to perfection, play catchall to pie drippings and substitute nicely for a pizza stone. Not surprisingly, I use them several times a week and own a lot of them. After a recent purge of the blackened and bent batch in the back of my supply closet, I set out to research and replace a few.
After weeks of baking, roasting and cleanup (described in further detail below), my top choice was the Nordic Ware Naturals, that has the best mix of versatility and affordability. I find uncoated, untextured aluminum to be the most useful type of sheet pan. Nonstick pans can be more restrictive, often requiring you to avoid the use of cooking sprays, metal utensils and broilers. That is off-putting to a baker like me who relies on cooking spray for sheet cakes and frequently uses metal spatulas and knives. And in the off chance that I broil, I need to know I have something available. So if given a choice, I will always choose uncoated aluminum.
With that said, I understand the desire for nonstick for ease of use, and highly recommend Made In’s sheet pan. It performed incredibly well in the oven and sink, and made me forget my uncoated preference when I used it. Overall, there are plenty of great options for both uncoated and nonstick sheet pans to choose from depending on your cooking style and preference, with one notable exception.
- Best Overall Sheet Pan: Nordic Ware Naturals Baker’s Half Sheet
- Best Budget-Friendly Sheet Pan: Winco ALXP-1318
- Best Nonstick Sheet Pan: Made In Non Stick Sheet Pan
- Best Sheet Pan For Everyday Use: Great Jones Holy Sheet
Best Overall Sheet Pan
A Versatile, Reliable And Affordable Option
- Care: Hand wash recommended
- Materials Used: Uncoated, natural aluminum
- Forbes Rating: 5/5 stars
Nordic Ware has been around since 1946 and clearly knows their sheet pans. They do not warp or rust, and they heat evenly throughout, resulting in consistent end results for every task. The light, shiny surface makes sure that delicate recipes don’t overcook but can still brown and crisp edges during high heat when required. Chocolate chip cookies bake to absolute perfection, evenly light brown on the bottom while still retaining the chew. All the roasting tests resulted in the right balance of tenderness and char.
Full disclosure, aluminum can be prone to discoloration with acidic foods and will eventually dull after heavy use. The surface can also scratch with metal utensils. But rest assured, neither of these affect the safety or functionality like they would on a nonstick pan. With that said, I have yet to injure the Nordic Ware surface. It cleans well without a nonstick coating and shows no visible wear even after I left a batch of acidic tomatoes sitting out for a while to cool.
Given its superior performance and versatility, what ultimately shot this pan to the top was the price. It’s shockingly affordable for something so high quality, and it’s worth every penny to buy a two-pack.
Best Budget-Friendly Sheet Pan
Sheet Pans Worth Buying In Bulk
- Care: Hand wash recommended
- Materials Used: Uncoated aluminum
- Forbes Rating: 4.5/5 stars
Perhaps not a recognizable brand name, Winco can most often be found in restaurant supply stores and professional settings. They are not fancy, but they work really well. I have a total of eight on full rotation in my kitchen, and they’re proof that uncoated aluminum will still function well after they are dull and scratched. I have thrown them in the dishwasher without care and viciously scrubbed burnt bits off with stainless steel pads. I have sliced through cakes and flatbreads with a sharp knife directly on the pans. They are now completely discolored and unworthy of showing to dinner guests, but they still function wonderfully.
They have never warped, they bake and roast evenly, and they stack together neatly to store. They require some elbow grease to clean, hence why I resort to the dishwasher. But I bumped them up a half point because I can verify just how reliable they are in the oven. If you bake or cook a lot, these are worth buying in bulk.
Best Nonstick Sheet Pan
The New Winner On The Block
- Care: Hand wash only
- Materials Used: PTFE nonstick coating
- Forbes Rating: 5/5 stars
Though I’ve explained my fondness for uncoated pans, this rockstar made me question my personal preference. Launched recently, Made In’s new release is essentially their already impressive uncoated sheet pan with a PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene) nonstick coating. That means all the benefits of perfectly cooked food, plus an easier clean up. I barely needed a sponge to get most of the baked-on bits off from each test, including blackened tomato pulp and chicken skin.
It is significantly lighter in weight compared to the other nonstick options but again quite sturdy, so I wouldn’t think twice about piling on the produce if I wanted to batch cook. Almost all nonstick brands will advise using non-metal utensils, so I consciously used my silicone spatula and tongs. I normally find them bulky and inaccurate, but not with this pan! The coating made it a cinch to glide underneath hot cookies and maintain their shape, and there was absolutely no resistance when I needed to flip veggies.
Ultimately, Made In’s nonstick pan was so good, it made me change my stance on sheet pans. Though I will always reach for my uncoated pans for specific baked goods, a nonstick sheet as good as this one can tackle everything else and make life easier. I’m glad I now have both in my kitchen collection.
Best Sheet Pan For Everyday Use
A Solid Option With The Fastest Cook Time And Easiest Clean Up
- Care: Dishwasher safe but hand wash recommended
- Materials Used: Ceramic nonstick coating
- Forbes Rating: 4.5/5 stars
Quite possibly the best named option, Holy Sheet came highly recommended by several food writers and pastry chefs like Erin Jeanne McDowell. Available in stunning jewel tones (cutely named Broccoli and Blueberry), they are very Instagram-friendly and oven-to-table worthy, so bonus points for that.
Because the pans are coated and dark, they cook slightly faster than the other brands. That is a great thing for efficiency and getting dinner on the table. It’s not so great if you already have a perfectly timed recipe like a delicate sponge cake. I admit, I almost burnt the garlic during my tomato roasting test. But if you know this fact in advance, it’s easy to recalibrate your timing, and you’ll thank yourself for those extra few minutes back in your day.
Where this pan really shines (pun intended) is the cleanup. The nonstick surface washes off so easily, it looks like the action shot in a dish soap commercial. The crusty chicken bits just slid right off. I was never tempted to throw it in the dishwasher, because it required no elbow grease to clean in any test. If you’re all about speed and ease, Holy Sheet is right for you.
More Sheet Pans Worth Considering
Another Uncoated Option Worth The Price
- Care: Hand wash recommended
- Materials Used: Uncoated aluminum
- Forbes Rating: 4.5/5 stars
Made In’s uncoated sheet pan performed as spectacularly as Nordic Ware’s. With a similarly shiny surface, the pan’s test results were comparable in every way. The pan is lightweight but quite durable, showing no signs of warping in high heat roasting tests. That’s not too shocking once you learn it was developed with chef Matt Horn of Horn Barbeque and needed to withstand the rigors of a professional kitchen.
Honestly, the only reason it was edged out slightly by Nordic Ware was because it’s over twice the price. That’s not to say it’s expensive of course, and I do think it is worth the price to invest in a high-quality sheet pan.
An Option That Lets You Channel Your Inner Martha Stewart
- Care: Dishwasher safe but hand wash recommended
- Materials Used: Ceramic reinforced nonstick coating
- Forbes Rating: 4/5 stars
I swooned over Williams Sonoma’s Goldtouch bakeware long before social media could show off its beauty. Something about its heft and sheen oozed quality, and my assumption proved correct. The sheet pan performed well both in the oven and in the sink on all tasks, keeping its shimmer after each use. It also matched the Made In in terms of cook time and accuracy.
It is significantly heavier than Made In’s, so it may require two hands to remove if fully loaded. That’s not the end of the world, but it does create logistical issues if you’re rotating two trays, for instance. It also needs a little more care being handled, as I nicked a bit of the gold off the edge when I put it on my cooling rack. So if you’re a bit clumsy, you might want to stay away. But if you’re more of a precise Martha Stewart type, Goldtouch is ready to show up and show off.
A Textured Option For Better Cooking
- Care: Hand wash only
- Materials Used: Ceramic reinforced nonstick coating
- Forbes Rating: 3.5/5 stars
Some people swear by texture on a sheet pan, which essentially increases the airflow between the food and the pan to promote even cooking. While I can certainly say the OXO did evenly cook throughout each test, I can’t say for sure it was because of the texture. The instructions included also warn to monitor cooking time because the coating heats the pan and food quickly. So similarly as with Great Jones’, if you know in advance of this efficiency, the less likely you are to overcook.
I personally find textured bottoms more limiting than they are useful, though I do know a few bakers who use them to purposely pattern their cookies. But if you believe in texture and want a similar efficiency to that of Great Jones with a cheaper price tag, OXO is a great alternative.
The Sheet Pan That Didn’t Stack Up
An Option That Easily Warps
- Care: Handwash recommended
- Materials Used: Non-stick coating
- Forbes Rating: 2.5/5 stars
I had high hopes for this brand, but it warped within the first 15 minutes of the roasted chicken test at 400 degrees. Though it did settle a bit once cooled, it never regained the full flat bottom again, so I removed it from contention. It washed easily and maintained its sheen, but unfortunately I couldn’t get over the warping.
Sheet Pan Review Methodology
I find rimmed 13-by-18-inch half sheet pans to be the most versatile of the baking sheet options. They are the most consistent size for standard recipes, fit in most home ovens and can tackle a majority of everyday kitchen tasks. Therefore, I eliminated rimless and perforated cookie sheets as well as jelly roll pans and other sizes from the search. Based on consumer and expert reviews as well as my extensive experience with a variety of brands, I narrowed my testing subjects but kept a variety of price ranges and features.
To test for consistency and even baking, I first made a basic chocolate chip cookie recipe. Each sheet was tested with dough from the same batch that was distributed with a small cookie scoop to maintain size and then baked on the same oven rack at the same temperature for eight minutes. I also baked turkey meatballs in the same fashion for 15 minutes. To test high-heat performance (all pans claimed to be safe up to 450 degrees), I roasted bone-in chicken breasts with a medley of carrots and broccoli, and separately roasted tomatoes with garlic and shallots. In between each use, I hand washed each to assess how easy it was to clean and maintain. Though I most often use parchment paper for baking and aluminum foil for cooking to line the pans, I cooked everything directly on the pans for all tests.
My judging criteria included:
- Performance: How well did the sheet pan perform in a variety of tasks?
- Ease of use: How easy was it to handle and clean the sheet pan?
- Special features: How do a variety of constructions and finishes affect the overall outcome?
- Value: Given all the above criteria, is this sheet pan worth the money?
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The Best Sheet Pans For Every Type Of Cook, According To Rigorous Testing - Forbes
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