It all started with a confident text I sent to the group chat: ‘I’ll host this week!’ 

I loved the idea of gathering my loved ones around my dining table in the brand-new apartment I just moved into, and felt ready for the responsibility of feeding my friends. But then…reality set in. 

Suddenly, I was responsible for an entire dinner. That meant multiple dishes, lots of people, and plenty of opportunity to mess up the food. 

GreenPan’s cookware rises to the challenge

As I’m still learning my way around my new kitchen, I wanted an all-rounder cookware set that wouldn’t feel overwhelming, yet was still overflowing with the top-quality performance and design. Naturally, I turned to kitchenware experts GreenPan. Their modern, thoughtfully designed, PFAS-free nonstick cookware would help me thrive on my journey towards hosting with the most.  

I went all in on simplicity: the GreenPan Valencia Pro 3-Piece Frypan Set. Three pans. That’s it. As America's Test Kitchen winner in the best ceramic nonstick category, I was confident these pans were the perfect choice for me. 

The three-pan plan for my dinner party

The Valencia Pro ceramic nonstick three-piece frypan set includes 8”, 9.5”, and 11” frypans that can cook pretty much any dish you can think of between them. 

I decided on a simplified yet classic menu to make in my brand-new Greenpan frypans. With just a tiny bit of planning (I felt so proud of myself for getting my menu all sorted in advance), three pans was all I needed to make delicious magic happen. 

I seared some chicken breasts in the largest pan, adding garlic and herbs to keep things flavorful, then added a splash of chicken broth to keep them juicy as they finished cooking in the oven (no pan swapping needed!). 

Meanwhile, I got to sauteing spinach in the medium-sized frypan. I’d pre-prepared some slivered almonds which I tossed in once the spinach was almost tender, and added a few squeezes of fresh lemon.

The smallest pan was perfect for making a garlic butter sauce for the potatoes I put into the oven to bake alongside the chicken. I melted butter and added some crushed garlic and green herbs to get toasty and golden, before drizzling the sauce over the fluffy baked potatoes to serve. It all looked and smelled amazing. 

Nothing stuck or scorched. The Valencia Pro pans made cooking feel so easy. I felt on top of the world! 

Why Valencia Pro cookware is your dream kitchen companion

These pans are the cookware equivalent of your most reliable friends, who show up early to help you set the table and stay late to clean up and take out the trash after dinner. 

They’re part of GreenPan’s Valencia Pro collection, which means they’re built with hard-anodized aluminum bodies that are almost ridiculously durable. They have a special base that’s designed to keep them flat and heating evenly on any type of stovetop, from gas to electric to induction. That means your veggies aren’t charring on one side and raw on the other. 

And because I try to live a healthy lifestyle, the fact that GreenPan’s nonstick ceramic coating is PFAS-free is a major plus (in fact, it’s the main reason I chose this cookware set). The pans are free from forever chemicals that linger forever in your body and the environment forever, potentially causing health issues and nasty side effects. 

The nonstick ceramic coating, called Thermolon, gives you a naturally glossy, slick surface that makes flipping, tossing, and plating feel way more professional than it looks. Oh, and they’re oven-safe up to 600°F and metal utensil-safe, in case you’re like me and sometimes accidentally stir things with a metal spoon and then panic you've scratched your cookware.

My family loved my cooking

Dinner came together so effortlessly it felt like a small miracle. The chicken was golden and tender, the spinach were fresh and flavorful with lemon and crunchy almonds, and the garlic butter baked potatoes? They were borderline addictive. One of my friends even asked for the recipe!

My friends and family were impressed and downright disbelieving when I told them I’d cooked the whole meal using only three pans. My mom loved them so much I’m planning on surprising her with own GreenPan cookware set as a gift for her next birthday.

After dinner, each pan was wiped clean faster than my guests could even offer to help. Valencia Pro is dishwasher safe, but they’re so quick to clean it’s barely worth it. 

Hosting, sorted

Before I put my faith in GreenPan’s Valencia Pro, I thought that you needed a bunch of fancy kitchen stuff to make a meal for your loved ones. Now, I know that all you need is three really good frypans that actually do what they promise. The Valencia Pro trio let me host a full dinner party, stress-free, with minimal cleanup and maximum bragging rights.

So if you’ve been putting off hosting because you think you need more gear, trust me, you don’t. You just need Valencia Pro (and maybe a second helping of those potatoes).