As a kid, one of my jobs was crawling under the stairs to dig out the roasting pan for its annual duty: roasting a giant bird at Thanksgiving. The rest of the year, it collected dust.
The roasting pan was huge, but every holiday, my mom and grandma selected a turkey to fill it. They then spent several days regretting its weight as they cleared fridge space for thawing, manhandled the bird during prep, and wedged it into the oven. Even when the gathering of family stretched the table to its full extent and had us kids eating in a separate room, a mountain of sliced meat and an impressive carcass remained.
To break that cycle, I recommend buying a roasting pan that fits the size of bird you’ll enjoy cooking. You’ll likely find the roaster more manageable in every sense, from where you store it to how you clean it. You’ll want to use it more often too. The deep sides and heavy-duty material of a good roasting pan cook succulent pheasant, fork-tender acorn squash, sweet and creamy new potatoes, or bubbly, cheesy lasagna.
We sent top-rated roasting pans to the Allrecipes Allstars—our trusted team of expert home cooks—to test in their own kitchens ahead of the holidays. Read on for our picks of the best roasting pans that you’ll want to keep in easy reach for everything from one-dish meals to that annual Thanksgiving turkey.
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Why It’s Great: Holds enough turkey to feed up to 10 people; handles let you remove a loaded rack; easy to clean
Grain of Salt: Wide handles might make it hard to shift in a small oven
This shiny 16-inch-long pan should be large enough to slowly roast several pounds of root vegetables or a 16-pound turkey. The U-shape rack keeps meat off the pan’s base, letting fat and juice drip from the cooking bird. Remove the rack, and the tall sides should stop a large cheese-topped casserole from oozing over the rim.
The all-stainless pan withstands heat up to 500°F. The handles get just as hot as the body, so be sure to don oven mitts before you pull this pan from the oven. Those handles flare out enough that the pan needs nearly 21 inches of oven room, something to keep in mind if you have a small oven or are sharing space in a large one.
The rack also has handles, making it easy to lift a turkey or roast from the pan and leave the drippings behind. While the meat rests, you can set the pan right on the stovetop to turn those drippings into gravy or au jus. The stainless interior and rack are easy to clean afterward, either in the dishwasher or by hand.
Allstar Nosheen Babar loved the design of this pan. “The pan has a curved rack that is the ideal size and shape to hold the turkey,” she says. “The pan is deep enough to keep all the drippings, and the rack design makes basting easy.” According to Nosheen, it was easy to clean during tests and came out of the dishwasher with zero water spots. It also accumulated plenty of drippings after four hours of cooking in the oven. While she would have preferred a flat rack to maximize the space inside the pan, she overall recommends it for home cooks who cook frequently and want a medium-priced, durable pan.
The Details: 16 x 12 x 4.9 inches; 8.1 pounds; stainless steel; dishwasher safe
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Why It’s Great: Food releases easily from the nonstick surface; rack rests stably on the pan rim; large capacity
Grain of Salt: Nonstick finish only oven safe to 450°F; best suited for shorter cooking times
Large, heavy-duty pans can be expensive, which makes this substantial roaster a budget-friendly option. Circulon says a 24-pound holiday turkey and vegetables fit within its 17-inch length, supported within a full-sized, U-shaped rack. Silicone-coated hooks extend from the chrome-plated stainless steel frame and over the pan’s top rim, keeping the rack from shifting or scratching the nonstick coating.
Big stainless steel handles that poke upward from the pan’s short sides minimize the oven footprint but could be awkward to grab if a large bird entirely fills the interior. The rack also has handles along the long sides, so there’s never confusion about which you’re grabbing. Together, the pan and rack weigh just over 3 pounds, enough for sturdiness without significantly increasing the fully loaded weight.
The nonstick surface limits the pan’s top temperature to 450°F but makes cleaning easy. Despite being dishwasher safe, Circulon recommends hand washing the pan and rack to extend their usable life.
In tests, Nosheen appreciated the nonstick coating on this pan, which made cleaning up any stuck-on, burnt drippings easier. However, the rack was a bit more difficult to wash by hand. The removable rack’s shape and distance from the base also made the drippings evaporate quickly on longer cooks, so Nosheen recommends using this budget-conscious pan for smaller birds and meals with shorter cooking times. Since topping with tinfoil and basting is more difficult due to the raised handles and height of the pan, she also recommends adding some broth to the base to keep the meat moist and retain some liquid for gravy.
The Details: 17 x 13 x 3.9 inches; 3.2 pounds; steel, wire, nonstick coating; hand wash recommended
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Why It’s Great: Holds heat and looks good on the table; handles temperatures to 500°F; safe for stovetops
Grain of Salt: Heavy even with no rack or lid
Le Creuset’s roasting pan has the stylish sleekness and durability that make its other enameled cast-iron cookware so popular. The roasting pan comes in an array of colors to match your other Le Creuset pieces or to stand out on the table.
At 15 inches long, this pan should hold a 12-pound turkey with room to spare. The coated cast iron makes it not only oven and broiler safe to 500°F but also safe to use on any cooktop. If you want to brown and then roast stuffed pork tenderloin, simply set this pan across two burners or on a gas stove’s oval burner, sear the meat over medium heat, and then slide the pan into the oven. It should fit neatly; the handles don’t stick out as far as similar pans, and they’re incredibly sturdy because they’re fully cast and enameled into the pan body.
Despite its high price tag, this roaster comes with neither a rack nor a lid, making it less versatile than some competitors. It’s also quite heavy, adding nearly 9 pounds to the weight of whatever you put inside it.
Allstar Amanda Scarlati liked the sturdiness and shape of this roasting pan, noting that she wasn’t worried about anything spilling out of the sides thanks to the depth. “The pan is super solid and a great heavy-duty pan,” she says. “It is a little bit heavier, but I kind of like that, especially when you are cooking a larger item in there. With the handles, it’s still easy to hold and get in and out of the oven.” The sturdy material is built to last and ensured that everything cooked evenly during tests. Amanda recommends this pan for roasting a whole chicken, chicken pieces, a whole ham or a roast, or a smaller turkey. Because of the enameled coating, even stuck-on bits of food came off easily during cleanup.
The Details: 15 x 10.25 x 3 inches (16 inches long with handles); 8.8 pounds; enameled cast iron; hand wash recommended
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Why It’s Great: Durable construction yet lightweight; perfectly sized for a toaster oven; easy-to-wash nonstick surface
Grain of Salt: Rack sits high and isn’t reversible
If you’re not considering roasting a whole Thanksgiving turkey or enough vegetables to feed a crowd, this little pan comes in handy. It’s lightweight, easy to store, and nonstick for effortless cleanup. The included rack fills the pan raised on four feet so that hot air circulates between the flat rack and the pan bottom.
Remove the rack, and 1.8-inch-high sidewalls let you nestle a cut of meat and vegetables for two inside. The pan fits neatly inside a toaster oven yet can be used in a conventional one, too. The nonstick coating is only heat safe to 450°F. Most toaster ovens have bake settings that top out there anyway, so just avoid turning on the broiler by mistake.
Chicago Metallic creates pans for commercial use, and even its home-sized line consists of heavy-duty carbon steel for consistent heat conduction. This petite pan and rack are dishwasher safe and small enough to fit in comfortably, but the company recommends handwashing to extend their life.
After testing it in her kitchen with sausage balls, biscuits, and leftover pizza, Allstar Rosanne Robinson had only good things to say about this small roasting pan. “Every kitchen needs a little pan like this,” she says. “So many uses, and it doesn’t take up a lot of space!” It fit perfectly in her air fryer toaster oven combo, and she loved how easy it was to clean because of the nonstick coating.
The Details: 10.3 x 7 x 1.8 inches; 1.36 pounds; carbon steel, nonstick coating; hand wash recommended
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Why It’s Great: Self-basting lid; nonstick but safe to 932°F; available in a full range of sizes
Grain of Salt: No rack
The included lid is just one reason Granite Ware’s roasting pans stand out from the competition. The 13-inch-long roaster has a 7-pound capacity with the lid and a larger one without, so it works well for medium-sized cuts of meat and a juicy roasted chicken or two. The lid’s dimpled underside collects condensation that then drops back onto the meat, doing the basting for you. Without the lid, the pan’s dark interior reflects oven heat and creates a crispy brown skin.
If you need a different size, Granite Ware makes a whole range of covered roasters, from 12 to 21 inches long. Unfortunately, it doesn’t sell anything with a rack.
All of the company’s roasters are constructed from its signature dark, white-speckled enamelware, created by fusing porcelain to a steel core at extremely high temperatures. The material resists heat up to 932°F and can even be used on a grill. Not only is the surface naturally nonstick, but the finish can stand up to metal utensils.
Allstar Rosanne was a big fan of this pan’s oval shape, which she found much more accommodating than a round pan or one with squared sides. When testing with a mix of roast beef, potatoes, and carrots, the self-basting feature kept everything moist. “While this pan doesn’t have a removable rack, it doesn’t really need one,” she says. “The dots on the underside of the lid help baste whatever you are roasting.”
The Details: 13 x 8.1 x 5.3 inches; 1.1 pounds; metal-coated porcelain (enamelware); dishwasher safe
Our Takeaway
For a roasting pan that will do it all, from weeknight meals to a holiday feast, we recommend the Cuisinart Chef’s Classic Stainless 16-Inch Roasting Pan with Rack. For a larger roaster-and-rack setup at a reasonable price, consider the Circulon Nonstick Roasting Pan.
How to Pick the Right Roasting Pan
Size
Roasting pans usually vary in length from 10 to 21 inches, with a rectangular or oblong shape. The size you should buy depends on how you plan to use it. A 16-inch-long pan generally accommodates a whole turkey that weighs up to 16 pounds. It also has the width and depth to hold plenty of other meats, root vegetables, and one-pan meals.
It’s tempting to go big with a roasting pan, and you should plan for a little extra space around all sides of a turkey or roast so that it cooks evenly. But giant roasters can present storage headaches. Keep in mind oven size too. Many roasting pans have fixed handles that extend outward, making them a few inches longer than their interior capacity. A roaster that won’t fit in your oven is practically useless.
Material
Fill a well-built roasting pan with several pounds of meat, and you’ll immediately recognize its value. Sturdy material like stainless or carbon steel, cast iron, or enamelware supports all of that weight without the risk of bowing, like a flimsy disposable foil pan, or of rolling off, as might happen with another roasting pan substitute.
Each type of material has its pros and cons, such as the extra weight of cast iron and the lower heat tolerance of nonstick coating. Heavy-duty material often offers more consistent cooking and improved longevity, but only to the point where you can still comfortably lift a piping-hot roasting pan filled to capacity from the oven.
Design
Roasting pans typically have high sides, creating space to set a metal or makeshift rack inside and still keep all of the meat, juices, and other contents well contained. Large, sturdy handles are another key design feature. You’ll need them to pull a heavy pan bubbling with juices from a hot oven.
Many roasters come with a rack that lets air circulate beneath what you’re cooking and promotes even roasting. U- and V-shaped racks elevate a roast or turkey and keep it from shifting around; some even have enough space to tuck aromatics and vegetables beneath them. A flat rack can be less stable for a single large cut of meat but more versatile for cooking multiple small game birds, an array of vegetables, or a one-pan meal.
Care
Many manufacturers list their roasting pans as dishwasher safe but then recommend hand washing with a non-abrasive cleaner to keep them in tip-top shape. Larger pans and racks can be awkward to arrange in a dishwasher, which is another good reason to wash them by hand.
Some hot pans can be immediately filled with water and gentle dish soap and left to soak, but certain materials should be cooled to room temperature first, so check the manufacturer’s guidelines. To avoid scratching a metal or coated surface, use a soft cloth to remove any food that still clings to the insides, paying extra attention to corners and handle rivets. Be sure to clean the outside, as well, wiping away any spills and drips. Among other tricks to help clean a stubborn roasting pan, we suggest using nonabrasive soap to loosen starchy residue or burned food and warm vinegar to remove calcium stains.
About Our Tests
Allstars Nosheen Babar, Amanda Scarlati, and Rosanne Robinson used each of the roasting pans on this list to test design, cooking performance, heat distribution, and ease of cleaning. They paid special attention when inserting and removing the pan from the oven, noted the level of ingredient browning, and reported whether any stubborn baked-on bits or food got caught in the pan’s corners. Each pan was rated on the following attributes:
- Design: Is the size of the roasting pan large enough for various cooking needs? Is the pan deep enough to hold cooking juices? Is it easy to store while not in use? Does the material feel durable and long-lasting?
- Performance: Does the pan have a removable rack to elevate food off the bottom? Does the rack allow for air circulation and even browning? Does the food fit comfortably inside the pan and/or on top of the rack? Did any parts of the food burn or stick to the pan? Were there enough drippings left in the pan after roasting to create a sauce or gravy?
- Cleaning: Is the pan easy to clean? Is it dishwasher safe? Was stuck-on food easy to scrub off?
Common Questions
Should roasting pans have deep or shallow sides?
Roasting pans have deeper sides than many other baking dishes—with about three inches ideal for most sizes. With shallow sides, hot drippings have a greater chance of jumping out of the pan and smoking when you open the oven door, as well as slopping over when you carry the pan from oven to counter. On the flip side, overly tall sides will cause the pan’s contents to steam rather than roast.
You might get away with a shallower pan if it doesn’t have a rack or if the rack nestles close to the bottom. A deeper pan may be preferable if the rack is raised a couple of inches off of the bottom surface.
Does a roasting pan need a rack?
A roasting pan rack can be handy, but it’s not a necessity—and some chefs even choose to leave it out. A rack’s primary purpose is to keep whatever you’re roasting elevated above the juices that accumulate during cooking. The goal is to avoid sogginess and overcooking and encourage all-around crispening. This separation also makes it easier to collect the drippings and juices to create a gravy or other sauce.
Without a rack, you can braise meat and vegetables for hearty, cozy meals. You also ensure that extended roasting time doesn’t evaporate natural juices until they burn to the bottom of the pan. Rack-free solutions include resting the meat on a layer of potatoes, onions, carrots, and celery, which impart flavor even as they provide support.
What’s the difference between a baking pan and a roasting pan?
Baking pans come in all shapes and sizes, whereas roasting pans tend to be rectangular or oblong with relatively high sidewalls. In addition, roasting pans often have a larger interior capacity for their comparative footprint, and many come with a rack meant to improve airflow and heat circulation.
For roasting a small batch of vegetables, a standard 9 x 13 baking dish might be sufficient. But if those layers get too deep, a roasting pan gives you more room to toss the vegetables with oil and herbs and let them crisp rather than steam. Likewise, a rimmed baking sheet may be sufficient for a one-pan meal for two. But if the sheet pan looks crowded, a roasting pan may have enough space to cook a golden, crispy meal.
Why Take Our Word for It?
Julie Laing has been a writer and editor for 25-plus years, focusing on original recipes, kitchen tools, and the stories around them. She is the author of “The Complete Guide to Pickling,” the Flathead Beacon food columnist, and a reviewer and recipe developer for numerous other publications. Despite her childhood recollections, she sees a roasting pan as the ideal vessel for slow-roasting colorful homegrown potatoes and carrots, cooking down juicy late-season tomatoes for pasta sauce, and creating a bain marie for crème brûlée and cheesecake.
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