Help me choose new pots and pans

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: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.

You know you could just get a field cast iron pan, the are already smooth.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: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.

You know you could just get a field cast iron pan, the are already smooth.

The Field cast iron pans cost 10X as much as a Lodge. No thank you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: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.

They look great - which ones do you recommend? There are 5-6 different kinds.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: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.

Agree with this pp. I cook a lot, and did a lot of research into my cookware. I get buy with one lodge pan, a LeCreuset dutch oven, my All Clad skillets (12 and 8 in), AC 8 qt soup pot, and smaller sauce pan (1.5 qts?) I actually use the smaller pot and pan a lot. I remember wondering whether those sizes would make sense but they come in so handy for a fried egg, reheating a small portion of soup, oatmeal, making sauces, etc.

I actually use my AC skillets for eggs instead of my Lodge. But the Lodge is a good workhorse for steaks, pork chops, and camping!

[Anonymous]

Hi, nice topic!

[Anonymous]

I cooking pretty often and so I choose the best equipment for my class. So I needed a new omelet pan, with the help of this online blog, which I came across recently due to this rating, I found a great post for choosing high-quality Pans for Omelettes at a low price.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have all non-stick today, and many of them have scratches which I don't like b/c of the chemicals potentially getting into our food. I know stainless steel is better but I think I still need some non-stick pans but want to move to stainless pots.

Can you recommend your non-stick pans and stainless steel pots?

thanks!

I have two Zwilling Henckels Madura nonstick pans and am very happy with them. I also have stainless and cast iron depending on what I am cooking.

The Madura ones can go in the dishwasher - I always handwash them but my husband will always "forget," so I didn't want them ruined if he decided to use them. I didn't want to pay a lot of $ - they were like $40-$50. I researched for quite a while and one thing that kept coming up is that you can't expect nonstick to last forever - plan to replace around the two year mark.

https://www.zwilling.com/us/zwilling-madura-plus-10-inch-nonstick-fry-pan-66299-266/66299-266-0.html?cgid=cookware_skillets-fry-pans#start=1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: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.

They look great - which ones do you recommend? There are 5-6 different kinds.

Anyone using Vollrath pans? Which one do you recommend?

[Anonymous]

Does anyone have Hexclad? You can get it at Costco. Worth the $$? It’s a splurge for 3 frying plans.

[Anonymous]

Another Allclad stainless fan. You really don’t need a big set. There’s a website where you can buy scratch and dent pieces quite affordably. I bought a 2qt there and it only had a tiny scratch.

[Anonymous]

Another All Clad devotee. I have bought a couple pieces one off since but when I first made the switch I bought a full set from Macy's. They frequently have huge sales. I got a 7 piece set for like $250 that got me basically everything I needed. Keep and eye on them and you can likely get a steal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: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.

I bought a cuisinart set after ditching the non stick. I am very happy with it. I have also been using inexpensive non sticks and replacing with any sign of wear. I need a new one now and am trying to decide if I should just use the cast iron every time, It is no heavy and has marred my cooktop.

[Anonymous]

I have a lodge Dutch oven and all clad 10 inch skillet, 3 qt, and 1.5 qt sauce pans. I cook almost every night and really don’t feel like I need anything else. (Also have a nonstick for eggs but you have that already.)

[Anonymous]

I was looking at Caraway.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Does anyone have Hexclad? You can get it at Costco. Worth the $$? It’s a splurge for 3 frying plans.

Hexclad is not nontoxic.