15 Unique Ways to Use a Saucepan

A saucepan is an important piece of cookware in both home and restaurant kitchens.

Although the name suggests that it’s meant for making sauces, a saucepan can do much more.

So, what is it used for?

Uses of A Saucepan

A saucepan has a unique shape and design.

It consists of a deep pot and a long handle that makes it perfect for cooking liquids.

You can heat or boil small quantities of liquids and make sauces, soups, and stews in a saucepan. It can also be used for boiling vegetables, grains, and lentils on the stovetop. Oven-safe saucepans can even be used for braising.

Let’s look at these and more uses of the saucepan in closer detail.

15 Ways to Use a Saucepan

Saucepans come in different shapes and sizes. They can also be made of different types of materials.

Depending on the dimensions and the material used for construction, you can use this kitchen vessel in different ways.

Here are 15 ways to put your saucepan to good use.

1. Make Sauces

From the very name, you can make out that saucepans are good for making sauces.

You can use them to make all types of sauces, including those for pasta, pizzas, and even sweet sauces for desserts.

Since saucepans are deep, you can conveniently stir different ingredients together to create a homogenous sauce.

The high walls will hold the liquid in place. Meanwhile, the flat base allows even heating of the contents.

A thick base can help distribute heat, but sauces can still scorch. Use the recipe’s heat setting and stir as needed.

The multi-ply metal construction also ensures that the heat is evenly distributed and the ingredients mix thoroughly.

2. Make Soups

A deep saucepan can hold a small batch of soup on the stovetop. It does not replace an electric slow cooker’s heating controls.

You can sauté vegetables in oil or butter and add the aromatics before pouring the liquid in.

Since the entire process can be completed with a single utensil, cleaning up becomes a lot easier.

Some saucepans also come with lids, making it a lot easier to cover the contents and let them simmer until done.

You can also use the same utensil to reheat the leftover soup.

In either case, the shape and handle of the saucepan also make it very easy to transfer soup into serving bowls.

3. Cook Pasta and Grains

When cooking grains or pasta for a small group, it’s better to use a saucepan than a stock pot.

Choose a pan that holds the food and required water without crowding. A smaller pan does not guarantee faster cooking.

You can use it for cooking rice, couscous, semolina, and pulses.

The high walls of the saucepan will hold enough liquid for the grains and pasta to cook.

The pan is also wide enough, making it easy to stir the contents.

An added benefit is that the handle makes it a lot easier to drain the remaining water from the grains into the sink.

Some stainless-steel saucepans even come with a straining lid that acts as a built-in colander to remove excess liquid.

A thick base may help distribute heat. Follow the food’s cooking instructions rather than assuming the pan will shorten the cooking time.

4. Thicken Gravies

You can use your saucepan to thicken gravies or sauces and reduce them to the desired consistency.

By heating the gravy in a saucepan without a lid, the excess liquid will evaporate and leave you with a thicker gravy.

Simmer at the recipe’s heat setting and stir as needed; a thick base does not make the pan safe to leave unattended.

You can also add a thickening agent like a flour slurry to the gravy or liquid to give it more texture and make it less runny.

5. Deep Fry Ingredients

Use a saucepan for deep-frying only if its maker permits it and it is stable and suitable for the recipe. A temperature-controlled deep fryer is a safer option than an open pan of oil.

Never fill a pan more than one-third full of oil; leave room for the food and bubbling. Dry food before lowering it carefully into hot oil, and monitor the recipe’s oil temperature with a suitable thermometer.

Stay with the pan. If oil starts smoking, turn off the heat and let it cool. A thick base does not prevent overheating or a grease fire.

6. Make Boiled or Mashed Potatoes

Saucepans can hold enough water to boil potatoes for mashing or other uses.

Fill the saucepan with enough water to cover the potatoes and leave them to cook covered.

Once the potatoes are done, you can drain the water and use the same pan to mash the potatoes.

The deep base makes it easy to beat up the potatoes and whisk them with milk, cream, and aromatics, as the recipe suggests.

You can also exercise better control over the mashing process by holding the handle in one hand and using your other hand to mash the ingredients.

7. Make Vegetable or Meat Stock

Whether it’s to make soup or whip up pasta or a stew, it’s always helpful to have some stock at hand.

You can conveniently make homemade vegetables, meat stock, or broth in a saucepan.

Simply add the ingredients and herbs, if any, to the saucepan, top it with enough liquid, and leave it on the stove to simmer to make fresh, homemade stock for all your needs.

Leave enough headspace and monitor the simmer, adjusting the heat to prevent boil-overs.

8. Make Tea, Coffee, and Other Beverages

A saucepan is the perfect kitchen utensil to boil milk or water and prepare tea, coffee, and other beverages.

Depending on the size of the saucepan, it will be able to hold enough liquid for several servings at once.

You can stir the ingredients on the stovetop gently and transfer them while they are still piping hot into serving mugs or cups.

9. Make Preserves

A saucepan makes it easy to stir different ingredients like fruit, sugar, and liquid together when making jams and preserves.

Leave enough headspace to stir safely. If the jam or preserve is intended for shelf storage, follow a tested canning recipe and its processing method; cooking it in a saucepan alone does not make it shelf-stable.

10. Process Pickles in a Boiling-Water Canner

A water bath is a food-preservation process, not simply a way to seal a lid. A sealed jar alone does not establish that its contents are safe for room-temperature storage.

Use a tested USDA or National Center for Home Food Preservation recipe for the exact pickle, jar size and altitude. Keep its food, vinegar and water proportions unchanged; safe acidity is essential.

A pot used as a boiling-water canner needs a lid, a rack to keep jars off the base, and enough depth for water above the jar tops. NCHFP specifies at least one inch, or two inches for processing longer than 30 minutes, with space to maintain the boil.

Follow the full recipe and canner procedure, including processing time, cooling and seal checks. If a saucepan cannot accommodate the rack, jars and required water depth safely, use suitable canning equipment. Keep refrigerator-pickle recipes refrigerated; they are not interchangeable with recipes for shelf-stable canning.

11. Braise in The Oven

Saucepans made of oven-safe materials can be used for baking and braising.

This makes it easy to directly transfer a dish from the stovetop to an oven for finishing.

Use a lid approved for the oven temperature. Check the pan, lid and handle limits before moving the cookware into the oven.

The food will slowly stew in the closed container and be infused with flavors. It will also become moist and tender.

However, when using a saucepan for braising in the oven, ensure that the handle is also made of oven-safe material to prevent it from melting or getting damaged.

12. Blanch Vegetables

Blanching is a method of cooking where you boil vegetables in water for a few minutes, followed by quickly plunging them into cold water to stop the cooking process.

It helps to retain the nutritional benefits and keep the color of the vegetables intact.

Blanching is essential for vegetables that are to be frozen.

Now, you can use a saucepan to cook the vegetables or to hold the cold water for plunging them in.

13. Make Custard and Other Desserts

You can use a saucepan to whisk ingredients like milk, egg, and sugar to prepare the homemade custard.

This vessel allows for easy whisking and keeps the heat under control while cooking.

You can also use saucepans to make desserts and dessert sauces with chocolate and other ingredients.

It’s suitable for simmering white chocolate, hot cocoa, and other desserts and beverages.

14. Make Breakfast

You can prepare breakfast dishes like oatmeal in a saucepan.

Add oats with milk or water into the saucepan with flavoring agents like sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon.

Allow it to simmer gently till the oats are cooked.

You can also make porridge with other grains like buckwheat or quinoa in a saucepan.

15. Use as A Double Boiler

A double-boiler or a Bain Marie is essential for preparing delicate sauces and desserts like melting chocolate or Hollandaise sauce where precise heat control is required.

However, a double boiler is an expensive piece of equipment that has few other uses in the kitchen.

For a makeshift double boiler, use a heatproof bowl or upper pan that its maker approves for this purpose and that sits securely over the saucepan.

The saucepan should fit inside the rim of the lower vessel, and the base should not touch the liquid in the lower pan.

Keep the upper vessel above the water, leave a path for steam to escape, and use heat protection when lifting it. Monitor the water level so the lower pan cannot boil dry.

You can use this arrangement to conveniently melt chocolate and whisk eggs for delicate cheese sauces that will curdle if overheated even slightly.

Sources: NCHFP boiling-water canner instructions, pickling safety guidance and London Fire Brigade’s frying advice.

For an example of a recipe-led double-boiler setup, see King Arthur Baking’s chocolate guide.