What's the best cookware to own?

Cast iron is great stuff to have and will out-last a life time (I’m using my grandmother’s frying pan).

Ever heard of a Bimby?

It pretty much replaces every cookware you have.

Once upon a time, my guardian found a set of of cookware from this company at The Salvation Army, and boy, was it under-priced! I’d give my eyeteeth to have that set now.

Asian cookware is best cookware!

Lagostina and Kitchen Aid.

Cookware you use is better than cookware you don’t use.

Calphalon and Le Creuset make excellent but pricy cookware. IKEA makes surprisingly good cookware for reasonable prices.

Used professional equipment.

Nothing fancy, cookware are tools not decoration.

If it’s good enough for pros it’s good enough for you.

Buy it used (cheap) beat the heck out of it and throw it away, repeat

I cannot emphasize enough the importance of the pan having a thick heavy bottom.

@Noel_S_Leitmotiv I also like my women that way

Personally, I like Revereware, and I prefer the pots of the sort with the stainless steel on the bottom enclosing the aluminum disk that spreads the heat. However, I prefer the old metal lids that used to come on all the pots. The copper takes too much work to keep looking nice, and the glass lids don’t do well in my tiled kitchen. The handles do well in the stove as well as on it. It has a 25-year warranty.

My mother still has hers that dates back to her wedding in 1950, and mine are only about 25 years old or so.

I lurve my cast iron skillet. Lodge makes some really good stuff, and it is really cheap. I think my 12” skillet was around $20 at Evil Walmart.

Personally, I’m not a fan of iron cookware. It’s heavy, has lousy heat distribution, and sticks like crazy (unless it has built up a thick veneer of polymerized cooking grease).

We own a set of massive copper French pans with a nickel lining—every cook’s dream—and we never use those either. Too heavy, and the nickel lining also sticks like crazy. They just look pretty hanging up in the kitchen.

What I want for almost everything is very thick aluminum with a very good non-stick coating. Aluminum is almost as good as copper at spreading the heat around, but it’s much lighter to handle (and costs much less)

Stuffy cooks sneer at non-stick coatings, but I’ve worked in some of the best restaurants in the US and Europe, and that’s what they use for any searing, suateeing or browning. The problem is that the coatings tend to not hold up well over time.

I think then that the best compromise might be something like the new Calphalon non-stick line. They’re heavy aluminum with a high-performance non-stick coating. I’m sure the coating will wear out eventually, but they have a lifetime warranty, so they will replace pans with a worn coating. If I were buying new pans right now, that’s what I’d get. I’d just keep sending ‘em back when the coating gets shot and get ‘em replaced.

For wet cooking (sauces, soups, etc.), the coating does nothing for you; in fact, non-stick coatings in a saucepan are worse because they can’t handle the constant abrasion of whisking. The best choice for a saucepan is anodized aluminum, like the basic Calphalon line. The anodizing provides a hard layer that keeps the whisk from scraping aluminum up into your sauces.

ROFL @teh_kvlt_liberal

I have found kitchen aid (and some cuisine art) has really good cook cookware, that lasts a lifetime (literally my mom had the same equipment that her parents had)

when you are trying to find pots and pans, first take the cap off, and try to hold it. The heavier it is, the better it is. heavy ones hold the heat and distributes the heat the best. thats what ive found at least. Like for stews and stir fry, you want something that can get to a high temperature, and keep the heat. exactly what a heavy iron pot/wok does.

if you are trying to find electrical items (like a mixer) you want to check and compare that wattage to the kind of use its going to be put through. Like, i use my equipment A LOT, so I have high wattage equipment. and they last longer even if you have big loads.

for buying the cookware and want a good deal, there are of course those outlets, but I have found Macy’s has good companies that go on sale every two weeks. for example, i bought my cuisine art food processor for 80, instead of the usual 150. yea, so keep and eye out for them at macy’s each time you go shopping, or if you need them immediatly, macy’s is still the way to go.

good luck!

@cwilbur Ive found that ikea items break down easier though. after less than a year, they are pretty much useless.

@Harp: the one thing a cast-iron pan is indispensable for is cooking steak.

I have the stainless steel Emerilware made by All-Clad. It cooks fanatastically, but there is one problem. We’ve had it since about May, and the small stock pot is recently discovered to be leaking at the handle. They will replace it if they fell it’s not our fault it’s leaking. So, we have to send it to them, and it’s going to cost us to ship it. Im not excited about this.

All-Clad is generally top notch stuff from what I’ve heard, and Calphalon is, too. I would just stay away from non-stick surfaces because that will not last you a lifetime, and you’ll have wasted your money.

All-Clad has a great reputation. I have read some not so great things about Emeril’s. Even tho it’s the same company my hunch is that some quality compromises were made in order for it to be offered at a high price and still give Emeril his cut.

Personally, I would not buy ANY chef’s line as you are paying a premium for that persons name. I’d just find out which company manufactures it and buy that company’s regular line.

All Clad, Callhalon, and Le Creuset have been the gold standard for a long time with good reason. Most chefs suggest buying pots individually to suit your needs because no set can provide all of what you need.

For example, you need a sauté pan with non stick coating for eggs and such. But if you want to develop the fond and flavor you need stainless or other metal. Also if making caramel, it would be impossible in a Calphalon pot due to the dark surface. But for making cream sauces, you would want the non stick of Calphalon. Those are just a few examples I can think of offhand.

Copper and caste-iron.

If you value your health or the health of those you cook for: do not use aluminium to cook or anything with a “non-stick” coating.

My Mom had some cook wear that lasted her entire married life, and would have mine as well, but the problem was in the cleaning up and care of the darn stuff, plus it was very heavy.

I changed to the inexpensive, easy to clean, non-stick aluminum and simply replace the pieces every couple of years or so. I’m much happier with it.

Be sure to purchase the non toxic non-stick type, and discard it when it shows signs of peeling. If you store it properly, it will last longer.

I hate non-stick coatings – they tend to peel and deposit little flecks of something in the food. Of course, I like cookware that lasts for years.

In addition, if you have pet birds the non-stick coatings can off-gas something that is deadly to them, so it is not the best choice for a bird-lover.

I do like cast iron and have had no problem with food sticking in that it is so easy to bake on a new coating of vegetable oil whenever food starts sticking again. It has the added benefit of adding a touch of iron into the food, a plus for those of us with anemic teenagers in the house.

Aluminum pots tend to leave nasty gray smudges on my white enamel sink, so I prefer stainless steel.

@btko

The statements you make regarding both aluminum in general and non stick coatings are clearly out of date.

Old fashioned UNCOATED aluminum is bad because any acidic ingredients such as tomatoes will cause it to leech out into your food.

The old fashioned first generation non stick coatings did slough off fairly easily and definitely should not be overheated due to toxic fumes.

However Calphalon has hard anodized products which makes them impervious to leeching. There is nothing to slough off since it bonded by an electro chemical process.

I can’t post links from the iPhone but the wise geek.com website describes the entire process much better than I.

Just put the term hard anodized into Google and go to that website.

This ain’t your Grandma’s aluminum or non stick. It’s a new age.

@Buttonstc Thanks, now I won’t have to point that out.

Cheap, replaceable women with a thick heavy bottom women Lurve @teh_kvlt_liberal

I looooove my AllClad pots and pans. They cook so evenly and fast.

Cast iron is great, especially if you have a tendency toward iron deficiency. I still use my Great grandmother’s 4” cast iron skillet, so you know if you take care of it, it lasts.

If you want your cookware to last longer, get some wooden utensils to use with them. Your cookware will not scratch if you use quality wooden utensils.