Pots and Pans

[Guest]

Cooking with cheap pots and pans can be very frustrating. A $40 set of pots and pans may a well be a roll of aluminum foil.

I paid less than $200 for a good set that has lasted now over 10 years. I expect them to last the rest of my life.

I do agree that paying $1000 is not necessary. Most expensive does not equal best.

[Guest]

I had an $40 set ($100 in today's dollars) that lasted 10 years from when we first got married.  We could have kept the set longer and it was functional.  But some of the handles were getting loose and there were various stains.  Then Mrs. Carb finally declared that she just didn't like the set.  We hummed and hawed for several more years.

 

So, we got another set for $200 that didn't last long at all.  Then we got cheap replacements for a while longer.  We got the $200 set we currently have.  That set has been going fine for several years now with no sign of wear.

 

The danger of getting a more expensive set (that is "in the middle") is that you really don't know how good it is.  That earlier set should have sold for $20.  But it sold for $200.  It fell apart immediately.  We eventually got another $200 set that is fantastic.

 

It's a crap shoot.

[Guest]

It can be a crap shoot. But hooray for the Internet! I do a lot of research on almost anything I buy, and only get things with good reviews.

[Backroads]

Our big qualifications are pieces that cool well and don't flake. Our dutch oven and frying pan are presently useless.

[Guest]

Well, for those two criteria:

 

1) Thick aluminum, anodized with a dark surface will cool faster than any other common cookware material.  But aluminum is the least durable.  There are methods of design that will allow for steel to cool just as fast, but it is not because of the material properties per se.  It is the geometry and mass distribution.

 

2) Flaking:  Unless you're talking about really poor quality, or teflon/other coatings, or highly corroded cast iron, most cookware doesn't really "flake".  So, what are you experiencing?

 

Your frying pan should definitely be a cast iron one.  I personally see no need to get any other material for a frying pan.  The dutch oven may be an issue with cast iron because we often boil stuff in ours.  I'd imagine you do too.  Boiling water in cast iron... not a good plan.

 

As mentioned we have a pretty good stainless steel set that we use for most of our cooking.  No stains so far.  Still durable.  Cools fairly fast.  Stainless/no teflon doesn't flake.

[Iggy]

As mentioned we have a pretty good stainless steel set that we use for most of our cooking.  No stains so far.  Still durable.  Cools fairly fast.  Stainless/no teflon doesn't flake.

Even though it is called stainless, they still do stain. 

http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-clean-stainless-steel-pots-and-pans-cleaning-lessons-from-the-kitchn-200580   over time stainless steel cookware can acquire brown spots and discolored areas that won't go away with routine dish washing. This type of staining is fairly common for stainless steel, but it's a little unsightly, particularly if left untreated.

 

 At the same web site it tells how to clean your stainless steel. Also one thing I learned from working in a restaurant (back in the 70's - 90's), cheap stainless steel has more steel, the best quality stainless steel has less steel. So put a magnet in your pocket when you shop for a pot. The magnet will not stick to the best quality. 

 

Also as the dishwasher in the restaurant in the late 70's - they had me clean the pots with baking soda inside, and with either Bon Ami or Bar Keepers Friend on the outside every time. Not once a month or once a week - but every time they were washed. 

 

I much prefer my enameled cast iron dutch ovens. Both the inside and out. Love them on the stove for making my stews, chili, and Husbands Mexican Chix Tomato Soup (if I am just making a small batch, like for dinner when I feed the Missionaries). I use my 16 & 20 quart good quality stainless stock pots when I am making 24 to 36 serving batches. They hold WAY more, and are much lighter to tip with my left hand when I am filling up the Rubbermaid containers to put in the freezer. 

[Backroads]

So I made a sixty-dollar purchase of a Dutch oven (our most pressing pan need) and went with an enamel-covered cast-iron model.

I'm in love with it.

[classylady]

I have a glass-top flat surface cook stove.  So, I have to be careful what pots and pans I use.  Back in the 70's, my mother bought me a RevereWare copper bottom pot and pan set for my hope chest.  After my wedding, I used them for over 25 years.  They were a great set.  But, with my new glass top, they weren't the best set of pans to use.  They weren't exactly flat on the bottom, so with my new stove they didn't conduct the heat like they needed.  So, my husband and I bought a stainless steel heavy bottomed set.  We love the new set.  And, as time goes by we will occasionally buy a new pot/pan to add to our collection.

My husband loves to window shop in the pots and pans aisle.  Every time we go into a large department store, Walmart, or Costco he always heads to the department that holds the pots and pans.  I have, in my opinion, too many stock pots, all because my DH couldn't resist buying new ones.  We have around 5 large stock pots, and I only use 2 of them.  And, only one of them on a regular basis.  I don't know what he was thinking!!!

BTW, my old copper ReverWare set is still in use, but only as my camping pots and pans.  I'm too attached to them to actually get rid of them.  DH wanted to throw them away, but I wouldn't let him.  They still have some good use in them.

[Blackmarch]

On 1/8/2016 at 0:30 PM, Backroads said:

When Husband and I were dating years ago, he became sick of visiting my apartment and only having old cheap cookware to work with. So, gambling on the odds he would later propose to me, he bought me a less-cheap set. Now, years later, the coating is heavily flaking off most of the pans despite the best care.

 

Anywho... what are your recommendations for purchasing new pots and pans?

avoid teflon or something similar. Go for cast iron for pans, on pots it's not quite so bad but you'll want something that has a good handle and lid. My familly had those copper coated bottom pots and those have been in use for well over 20 years.

[Backroads]

The other night I made mac and cheese with a whole wheat flour-based roux and a pepper jack cheese sauce in my new cast iron Dutch Oven. It cooked so beautifully...