To me, someone who celebrates a bit more of the spectrum than most: Metal hot. Make food hot.
Non-stick means easier cleanup, but my wife seems to think cast-iron is necessary for certain things (searing a prime rib roast, for example.).
After I figure those out, then I gotta figure out gas vs. electric vs. induction vs infrared…
It’s a tool. Like a hammer.
Hammer hit nail, nail go in. But if you look for hammers you’ll quickly find that there’s a dozen or so different hammers available, all of which make nail go in.
Different hammers are for different types of hitting things.
Different cooking pans are for different types of cooking. All of them make food go hot.
Stainless steel make food go hot and also make pan sauce and clean real easy. But food sometimes stick. This is considered a feature, not a flaw.
Non stick make food go hot but food no stick. Doesn’t last very long but it’s very easy to clean. If you really love eggs they’re a necessity.
Cast iron make food go hot and stay hot longer. But they don’t heat very evenly and they’re hard to clean, this is also considered a feature by… Certain people…
For some reason there’s a community of gooners for cast iron. I cook a lot and have long since abandoned 99% of my cast iron cookware. The only things that survived was a burger press and a Dutch oven that has a ceramic glaze on it so it’s easy to keep clean. I find that for just make food go hot, cast iron is not as good at it as stainless steel is. But if I’m making a stew, or bread, or frying something, a really big cast iron vessel really is the best thing. It stays at a temperature longer than anything else does, and that matters in specific applications.
I really loved your answer since it puts into words a lot of similar thoughts I’ve had on cookware since I see too much cast iron love IMO. It’s got its uses, but not like it does everything.
Also, to add to people’s toolbelt: Carbon steel make food go hot fast and acts like cast iron (with how seasoning works and the surface interacts with food which also means it’s harder to clean) but much lighter so you can more easily use techniques that move the pan or wok without tiring out your arms and wrist. Great for frying.