Any pan of any material is fine for frying eggs!
You can basically do everything in a sauter pan that you can do in a frying pan BUT not the other way around. If you do sear meat in a sauter pan, you don't get quite the same amount of steam evaporation as you get in a frying pan for obvious reasons, but the searing end result is close to identical anyway.
Sauté pans have curved edges, that help flip the food up - or jump fry. Fry pans are the same as sauce pans, they have walls at 90 degrees and maximize the flat surface of the pan, giving you a large flat surface area for the same diameter pan as a sauté.
Break the egg into the skillet, and cover the pan with a lid. Cook for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes, covered, or until all but a thin rim of egg white around each yolk is opaque. Finish cooking the egg off the heat: Remove the pan from the heat, keep covered, and let sit for about 30 seconds to finish cooking.
Frying. It likely isn't very surprising to find frying on a list of the unhealthiest ways to cook eggs. After all, frying by definition involves cooking something at a high heat in some kind of fat -- usually oil or butter.
Butter certainly works for fried eggs, but oil is the fat of choice for cooks who want a runny yolk with a satisfying crispy white. Extra-virgin olive oil is most popular, and yields a satisfyingly crunchy bottom that will soak up luscious flavor.
We have found that a small saucepan is better for making scrambled eggs than a skillet. The shape of the saucepan traps the heat differently and is able to cook our eggs from the side and slightly from the top as well as from the main heat source on the bottom, providing a better-cooked fluffier scramble.
Non-Stick Sauté Pans are another useful option, as they prevent food or sauce from sticking to the pan, making them ideal for eggs and omelettes. However, one of the disadvantages of this sauté pan is that they tend to have a short lifespan.
Saute pans are a sort of hybrid between a saucepan and a frying pan. An extremely versatile addition to a kitchen, it can be used for a huge variety of dishes and you will likely use it a lot more than you think.
Sauté pans are typically deeper and have straight sides, while frying pans are shallower and have sloped sides.
If you wanted to fry an egg or sear a delicate fish, you'd use a nonstick pan. If you want to saute vegetables or whip up a quick stir-fry, you'd use stainless. Why? Because nonstick pans are all about preventing any sort of stick at all.
Pan-Fry. By definition, frying is cooking by immersion in hot fat (as with fried chicken or french fries), whereas sautéing is cooking via the direct heat of the pan, in just a small amount of fat or oil—or a mix of both. (Pro tip: A combination of butter and oil is magic when sautéing vegetables.)
Our experts in the Good Housekeeping Test Kitchen tend to use nonstick pans for their egg recipes. Eggs are notoriously sticky, which can make it difficult to flip or clean from stainless steel or cast iron. To finesse cooking eggs in stainless steel you will likely need to use a generous amount of oil or butter.
If you add a tablespoon of olive oil or avocado oil to the pan, you may also be adding some extra health benefits to your eggs. Both of these oils are considered “healthy fats” which may reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. Olive oil is also considered an antioxidant that may help fight inflammation.
Put 1 tbsp sunflower or vegetable oil in a frying pan and heat over a medium-high heat until hot. Add the bacon and cook for 2-4 mins on each side, depending on how crispy you like it.
Let the eggs cook until white is set and the corners begin to curl ever so slightly, about 3 – 4 minutes depending on your heat source. No need to fuss with them either, they'll turn out better if they're left alone. For sunny side up eggs, simply slide the eggs onto a plate and season again if desired.
Excessive cooking at high heats can deplete eggs of their antioxidants. Antioxidants are healthy nutrients that protect your body from those harmful free radicals. One study found that boiling, frying, or microwaving can reduce the antioxidant content in eggs.
Unlike their sunny-side up brethren, an over-easy egg is flipped mid-cook so both sides get some heat. It is pulled from the pan while the yolk is still runny, before it hits medium or hard consistency, but the whites stay in tact.
In the end, whether you prefer fried or scrambled eggs comes down to personal taste and how you like to cook. Both types of eggs offer similar nutrition, but the way you prepare them can change their texture and flavor. Fried eggs can be simple or fancy, depending on what you add to them.