Are Cucumbers Really The Hack To Making Any Pan Nonstick? TikTok Seems To Think So

There's a lot of cooking hacks on TikTok, but every now and then one really "sticks" out (get it?). This easy cucumber trick promises to help you transform any pan into a non-stick surface by simply slicing a cucumber in half and rubbing the cut side over a hot pan. There's no butter, no oil, or no cooking spray involved, it's just cucumber juice acting as the barrier between the heat and your food, which kind of sounds too good to be true. And yet, videos of fried eggs off pans are convincing enough to try it.

The logic behind this trick is that the cucumber's water can coat the surface just enough to create a slick layer, and for fried eggs especially, the idea sounds promising. In fact, it might be one of the only tips you need for a perfect fried egg if you're short on butter or just want to keep your breakfast light. That said, there's an elephant in the room: you should be using non-stick pans for fried eggs. A cucumber isn't going to perform miracles on a cheap scratched pan, but if you've got decent cookware and a spare cucumber lying in the fridge, it feels worth testing even just for the novelty factor alone.

After giving it a go, I can see how this hack actually works. Vegetables that cook quickly, such as zucchini and mushrooms, take well to it, and they sear without any greasiness, which makes it especially appealing if you're looking for other ways to sauté vegetables without heavy oils. However, longer-cooking foods like potatoes will still need a little fat (preferably oil) in the mix to make sure they caramelize properly and crisp up.

Eggs and more tender greens work because they don't need to achieve deep browning to taste good, whereas trying to get a golden crust on a slab of tofu with nothing but cucumber juice is a recipe for disappointment. Trust me, I learned that the hard way — the tofu just sort of sat and steamed instead of crisping. So with that in mind, this hack is better viewed as a situational trick, helpful when you're out of oil, are avoiding oil, or just want a lighter meal. It's also quite handy in that regard for anyone with dietary restrictions. Low-fat cooking can feel like a compromise, but rubbing a cucumber on the pan is such a low-effort move that it doesn't feel like deprivation.