Need to buy a cookware set for the new apt.

[Gman]

We've got a Cuisinart MultiClad Pro Stainless Steel Cookware Set. It is great- if you don't go with copper, you want a set that is stainless but has aluminum that is on the bottom and goes up the sides for even heating.

Many people say that Cuisinart Multiclad Pro is as good or better than All Clad. It also pours much better FWIW. We bought this exact set last year for $300+. MSRP is ~$600 and it is on sale right now for ridiculously cheap $209.

I'm starting to think I'm best off with a decent 10-13 inch skillet, and a couple sauce pans. How many sauce pans and what size do you think is needed? I'm thinking 2qt,4qt, and 8qt.

[crackboy]

so this may sound weird but one of my favorite saute pans is one we picked up at ikea when we first moved out to Pittsburgh. none of our stuff had arrived so we bought a pan and a pot. its a heavy ass non-stick skillet. heavy like cst iron and has the impregnated non-stick ( i think) really cheap for the quality and its oven safe i think

[Kevo]

I'm starting to think I'm best off with a decent 10-13 inch skillet, and a couple sauce pans. How many sauce pans and what size do you think is needed? I'm thinking 2qt,4qt, and 8qt.

Minimum of 2 sauce pans in pretty standard. Many people will cook pasta in a large sauce pan and sauce in the small. Lots of applications like that. I'd recommend getting one 1.5 or 2 quart and one 3 or 4 quarts.

A saute pan is really useful. We use it all the time.

10 or 13 inch skillet is a good call. Our 8 inch doesn't get used that often.

We actually use our stock pot much more often than I thought we would. It has come in handy for large meals like chili, red beans and rice, etc.

Trying to pick and chose items can get more costly than buying a set though. If you want something really good, get what I originally linked to here.

If you want something almost as good (aluminum only in base) and even less expensive, get this.

I really can't believe how inexpensive these sets are right now. Definitely a steal.

A lot of people shy away from stainless in favor of Teflon, but once you learn to cook on good stainless you'll never go back. You'll get even cooking and heating and much, much better flavor with a good stainless set. Heat up the pan and then add oil, not the other way around. We've never had a problem with food sticking or getting burned on. Use bar keepers friend to polish the inside- never use steel wool on the inside to avoid scratching.

[Cruiser]

Calphalon tri-ply copper FTW. Looks great, cooks exceptionally well. If you can afford it then get it and don't look back.

Regardless, buy something with 3 layers and not the stuff with the covered copper disk welded to the bottom only.

[XXX-er]

Did the research but didnt figure i needed the All Clad so ordered Zwilling which compares somewhat favorably in performance but price wise 399 for the 10 piece set as compared to 1000$ for all clad

it arrived today and i had nice steak to be cooked,

my 1st impression on is that the SS does a superiour steak, a more even outer crust, a more even doneness compared to cast iron

thats just on my very 1st go and I am not really a great cook

[oftpiste]

Fuck those brands. And buying a 'set'. They always come with at least two things you'll never use.

Go to the nearest restaurant supply store. Preferably a place with a Chinese name serving Chinese resto owners. It'll be cheaper there. Buy the highest end nonstick in the sizes you want for skillets ($75 for a big one, $50 for a smaller one). Buy at least one carbon steel sauté pan $35-$65) and season it. Buy some non nonstick aluminum skillets too.

Get the aluminum saucepans($25 - $40) there, one large, one small, with lids.

Get a good dutch oven ($100+). Bigger is better.

Find a good high-sided cast iron skillet at a thrift store ($20).

You'll get pans that will last forever, cheaper than a set, and you'll use all the pieces.

[XXX-er]

Actualy i thot about that so a opposed to buying 24 pieces i dont need the 10piece set i got didnt really have anything i didn't want

there is no restaurant supply store anywhere closer than a 13hr drive, there is probably a restaurant supply in seattle but then i would have been living in seattle

I've lost count of the non-stick pans I have destroyed "just cooking along" so the very last fucking thing i wanted was a non-stick frypan and purposely bought SS

you somehow missed the part of my post where i said IME the Zwilling SS fry pan seems to cook a steak > my cast-iron on the 1st go

[The Tortoise]

In Canada, if you're not buying from Canadian Tire on sale (70%), you're doing it wrong.

[oftpiste]

Amazon has all that aluminum restaurant grade stuff if you don't have a supply store nearby. The heavy duty resto nonstick lasts a good while if you manage to use only plastic or wood implements and let it cool before you wash it, but it does die after a while.

I've had the best luck in them lasting by buying the most expensive ones at the resto supply. Nonstick has its place in the universe, but is certainly not for everything. The uncoated aluminum pans are lifetime pans too. No need to pay for stainless IMO.

The carbon pans, which can be had pretty cheap, are my current faves and get pretty nonstick if you handle them right.

Actualy i thot about that so a opposed to buying 24 pieces i dont need the 10piece set i got didnt really have anything i didn't want

there is no restaurant supply store anywhere closer than a 13hr drive, there is probably a restaurant supply in seattle but then i would have been living in seattle

I've lost count of the non-stick pans I have destroyed "just cooking along" so the very last fucking thing i wanted was a non-stick frypan and purposely bought SS

you somehow missed the part of my post where i said IME the Zwilling SS fry pan seems to cook a steak > my cast-iron on the 1st go

[old goat]

The only thing I use nonstick for any more is eggs--I got tired of replacing it. I use cast iron most of the time and I've had it and seasoned it enough that it's virtually nonstick. The carbon steel pan I haven't had long enough to get equivalent non-stick, but my woks I've had forever and they're as good as the cast iron. I have an All Clad ss pan that I use for acidy sauces--tomato sauces, lemon and lime sauces, since those ruin the seasoning on the cast iron, or if I need another pan.

I wouldn't buy a set. Buy what you need. And when it comes to pots for boiling water the cheaper the better. You don't need thick walled pots with aluminum cores etc because the water spreads the heat. One thing--if you have a gas stove with high output burners it's nice to have a pot wide enough to turn the burner up full, unless you enjoy waiting for water to boil. (Watching an old Julia Child--the guest chef puts a couple of coins in the water to tell her if the water is getting too low. Never knew that one.)

I love restaurant supply places. I got my favorite knives at one. Aluminum skillets which I rarely use any more, and my proudest possession--a stainless steel pot sink with a high volume high pressure sprayer that sits in the laundry room. Great for pre rinsing pots before scrubbing, especially pots too big for the kitchen sink, and especially good for cleaning paint brushes. The high flow faucet is strictly against CA residential code of course.

[Benny Profane]

There has to be a ton of used cookware for sale somewhere with so many restaraunts closed.

Cuisinart is a very good bargain brand.

[skaredshtles]

The only thing I use nonstick for any more is eggs--I got tired of replacing it. I use cast iron most of the time and I've had it and seasoned it enough that it's virtually nonstick.

My cast iron pan *is* my non-stick pan. Even for eggs.

I would suggest if the idea is to get lifetime cooking pieces (and the looker is young-ish), get pieces that are induction-compatible - as eventually, I suspect, you will have an induction cooktop.

[ötzi]

The All Clad Hard Anodized HA1 nonstick they have on Amazon is pretty cheap, durable, and works fine on induction stoves if that's a concern.

[The AD]

It almost seems like the general rule is that the more non-stick a pan starts out, the more sticky it will end up being. Those ones that are slippery as hell at first go to shit pretty quickly. Better to get something durable like All-Clad or Calphalon.

[ötzi]

The first stuff we bought when we got the induction was this ceramic nonstick from Henckels, it was great at first but I just threw the last piece out a few weeks ago, that shit became useless.

[danmelon]

I get all my kitchen stuff form the thrift store. People with money are always giving their old shit to thrift stores because it makes em feel good (or just putting it on the curb if they lazy) and you can get it for next to nothing. As cheap as Canadian Tire if not more and reduces consumerism and putting more useless shit into the world.

[tgapp]

I'm surprised no-one here has recommend Tramontina.

About our kitchen, in brief: we use an eclectic mix of high carbon steel, and inherited pans from college days. We love to cook, but we're not particularly pretentious (except when it comes to coffee) - functional pans > name brands, all day every day.

A friend turned us on to Tramontina - they're basically identical Allclad style pans (try-ply, copper, riveted handles, etc), but they seriously cost about 1/3 the price, maybe less. America's Test Kitchen loves them, and they're virtually identical to Allclad in every way, except they're made in Brazil and not the US.

Check 'em out here: https://www.walmart.com/ip/Tramontin...B&gclsrc=aw.ds

[highangle]

https://www.costco.com/cooks-standar...100122200.html

https://www.costco.com/kirkland-sign...100494015.html

[oftpiste]

Re: your high pressure sprayer....

I want one of these on my main sink, but when I've looked at the ones at the resto supply stores I haven't quite figured out how to make the plumbing mate up well. Can't remember exactly why at the moment as it's been a while since I looked, but there was something in the way of a relatively simple swap.

Did you buy a commercial or consumer sprayer? I also have a two-hole contertop so probably need some sort of mixing valve setup (might be what made me hesitate). Did you do any mods or....? Tips and tricks?

The only thing I use nonstick for any more is eggs--I got tired of replacing it. I use cast iron most of the time and I've had it and seasoned it enough that it's virtually nonstick. The carbon steel pan I haven't had long enough to get equivalent non-stick, but my woks I've had forever and they're as good as the cast iron. I have an All Clad ss pan that I use for acidy sauces--tomato sauces, lemon and lime sauces, since those ruin the seasoning on the cast iron, or if I need another pan.

I wouldn't buy a set. Buy what you need. And when it comes to pots for boiling water the cheaper the better. You don't need thick walled pots with aluminum cores etc because the water spreads the heat. One thing--if you have a gas stove with high output burners it's nice to have a pot wide enough to turn the burner up full, unless you enjoy waiting for water to boil. (Watching an old Julia Child--the guest chef puts a couple of coins in the water to tell her if the water is getting too low. Never knew that one.)

I love restaurant supply places. I got my favorite knives at one. Aluminum skillets which I rarely use any more, and my proudest possession--a stainless steel pot sink with a high volume high pressure sprayer that sits in the laundry room. Great for pre rinsing pots before scrubbing, especially pots too big for the kitchen sink, and especially good for cleaning paint brushes. The high flow faucet is strictly against CA residential code of course.

[old goat]

My cast iron pan *is* my non-stick pan. Even for eggs.

I would suggest if the idea is to get lifetime cooking pieces (and the looker is young-ish), get pieces that are induction-compatible - as eventually, I suspect, you will have an induction cooktop.

Good point--eventually natural gas will be phased out, currently banned in CA in some locations.

Re: your high pressure sprayer....

I want one of these on my main sink, but when I've looked at the ones at the resto supply stores I haven't quite figured out how to make the plumbing mate up well. Can't remember exactly why at the moment as it's been a while since I looked, but there was something in the way of a relatively simple swap.

Did you buy a commercial or consumer sprayer? I also have a two-hole contertop so probably need some sort of mixing valve setup (might be what made me hesitate). Did you do any mods or....? Tips and tricks?

Ours is commercial. It's wall mounted, like the faucet it replaced. I'm not aware of how you might adapt one for a sink mounted installation but I imagine a plumber could figure it out. BTW--the high pressure and volume spray is also very good for cleaning dog poop from Vibram.