Help me choose new pots and pans
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Anonymous
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To the person who recommended Vollrath. They are great - I have their cookie sheets - the BEST!
I have had a set of Calphalon for over 20 years. It is not the non-stick. I am not looking to replace it anytime soon. |
Anonymous
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Go to a local store, Macys.. Williams Sonoma.. Bed Bath.. feel the pots. Each has different feeling. Some are heavy some are light.
Look at the handles, some are uncomfortable and others are comfy. Look at the lids. Some are glass, others metal. Some have hole in them others don't. My personal preference: Thick bottom for great heat transfer, no hot spots and sturdy sitting on the stove. Handles that are long and not too heavy but also not tin and shallow as they transfer heat fast and make your hand burn. I like glass leads exclusively. I like to see where my thing is at as it is cooking. It helps to reduce heat and see how the dish replies. I love to have a little hole in the lead to let some steam out so I can leave the whole lid close completely if I like knowing it will not overboil. I don't like pots with lids designed so that you can not flip and set to rest on the top of the handle with edge put under the lip of the pot, kind of like an open cattle with flip lid situation. You must be able to do this and not every design supports this. I would NEVER touch a non stick pans with a ten yard pole. There are great, wonderful stainless pans that you just have to season with the salt as needed even if at one point or another it would stick from making something acidic, you just reseason .. happens maybe once every two years? Otherwise they can go to the dishwasher just like everything else. I would look into chef's sets. There are tons out there. Rachel R... Emeril.. Wolfgang Puck, Jacq Pepin. If you can afford them, I would go with one. Chefs know what they are doing and what the pot needs to be great, they also have to be careful what they put their name on. Avoid the lowest end sets that are for amateur cooks. Go with higher end. If you want to go overboard go with Jack Pepin's copper on the outside stainless still inside set but this is brutal to keep clean  . It makes you look like a pro chef
if you want to make that impression though. Instant impact. I also find Williams Sonoma sets in most cases very well design for the purpose. Other option is Home Goods, the dumpster of the fancy world. They tend to have unbelievable sets for fraction of the retail. You need to know really well what you are looking for and go from there. I personally do not care about sets. I want specific pots for specific things and I feel free to buy whatever I want whenever I feel from whatever brand. It makes life much easier. Sets are very .. cookie cutter. Most of them fit your very basic standard needs so yes, you can get and expand. But more often then not a family has specific needs and the set is not best fit. I for one use a lot of small tinny pots loving to have few so I can always have one in the works, one in the cabinet and one in the dishwasher.. or more if needed. Ltos of milage, lots of use with kids when you make small amounts of stuff as needed and easy to clean and small job for dishwasher, does not take up too much space. I LOVE two handle pans without long handle as they are just wonderful for stews and bake ins. They come with lid and almost NEVE in a set. If I were you, I would ask the parents for a gift car for your pots and go and get them myself giving them credit for buying them for me. The would be always looked a "the pot that I got from parents" pots .
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Anonymous
| Check your local TJMaxx regularly - I bought several AllClad pans there as well as an amazing pot from Alessi. All at a significant discount. |
Anonymous
+1. I love my All Clad, but I have a Cuisinart pan, as well. I honestly couldn't tell the difference, if not for the label. I've had them all for almost 15 years, and they all look great. |
Anonymous
| Ikea 365 for pots. Cast iron pans. |
Anonymous
| My sister works in the food industry and she recommended these: https://greatjonesgoods.com/products/the-dutchess. They are also really pretty. |
Anonymous
| I was able to return my non stick calphalons back to calphalon and they replaced them with stainless. They were all peeling and scratched and I am freaked about PFOAs. Submitted a claim on calphalon a website, returned the old ones to them and received a new set. |
Anonymous
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Demeyer stainless, le creuset, and scan pan non stick ( scan pan makes the William Sonoma professional nonstick)
https://www.zwilling.com/us/demeyere/ |
Anonymous
Did you have to have receipt and did you have to pay to ship them back? |
Anonymous
Do you have them? Would love feedback! |
Anonymous
You're naive if you think this. Endorsements are about $$$. |
Anonymous
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So I was hemming and hawing about pot/pan, ect and I opted not to get a pre packed set from a box store...
I purchased the browne halco thermalloy non stick pans, and the thermalloy pots.. Price wasn't outlandish, and nice heavy duty, https://www.katom.com/cat/fry-pans.html?handle_material=Metal&brand=Browne been very happy going on two years holding up very well. I got the brushed stainless finish on the outside such that I can really scrub on it to get any food stains off. They aren't hanging up on display, but are used almost daily. the best thing is purcahsing as a single unit, I'm was able to pick and choose my sizes, lids, and actually get what I wanted and not what a big box store thought I could own.. |
Anonymous
| Also very Pleased with my cuisinart stainless we have had for over 15 years. Any inexpensive "green" nonstick pan is fine, non stick does not have the lifespan of stainless, and can be a good choice for things like frying an egg or bacon. We put money into the stainless and supplement with inexpensive nonstick and replace as necessary. |
Anonymous
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I'm an avid home cook and I'd recommend you start with
1) Seasoned cast iron--a 10" and 8" Lodge 2) Staub enameled Dutch oven--7 qt. I prefer Staub over LeCreuset. Use this for stews, stocks, soups, boiling long pastas, etc. 3) 12" All Clad skillet 4) 3 qt All Clad sauce pan (saucier) There will be a lot of sales in the next few weeks. There is NO NEED to purchase a non-stick frying pan. It's important to learn how to season cast iron and to not be afraid to use oil (I use almost exclusively olive oil, extra virgin or butter--sometimes avocado oil). It's a short learning curve that most people don't bother to make, but IMHO it's worth it not to be using pots and pans that have unknown chemical substances. There are so many videos on youtube about how to care for cast iron, there's no reason why you can't learn. Over the years, you will find that the cast iron smooths down to a very slick surface. I make scrambled eggs in my 8" Lodge all the time. |
Anonymous
| Le Crueset nonstick. It’s anodized metal, not coated with chemicals. |