what are the best pot and pans to buy?

Question

i need to buy new pots and dont know what the best kind r, anyoune got any ideas?

i have a gas hob. i want to get agood set but cant really afford more than £60 for a set

Answer 1

I find Cast iron ones are brilliant and last for years!

Answer 2

There's le Creuset, they are popular. Or a heavy gauge stainless steel such as Prestige. It depends on the style you are looking for.

I bought a set of good quality stainless steel pans about 20 years ago, (I can't remember the name of the at the moment) I looked around the shops for ones I liked the look of, then kept an eye out for sales so that I could get them cheaper. Nowadays you have the internet to make good use of, just keep checking for offers and sales, and have a look at the online mail order catalogues, they have information as well.
It's well worth buying the best you can because they work out cheaper in the long run.

Answer 3

Here’s my assessment of cookware based on many years of experience as a chef and home cook:

Nothing beats All-Clad. Their pots and pans warm and distribute heat very evenly. This is a must for good cookware. They are also well balanced so that they sit flatly atop a stove. They are heavily constructed so that they don’t warp over time from exposure to high heat. The lids are tight fitting, the handles are metal and riveted on, and the pans are oven safe. I’ve used the same pots in a commercial kitchen for more than 20 years and they are good as new. I would not buy their LTD line since that coating is not dishwasher safe (the pans will still be good, but the shiney finish will be ruined over time), but all of the others are fine. They are expensive, but well worth the price. Note that virtually all tv chefs are using these pans.

Kitchen-Aid also makes a line very similar to All-Clad in both design and price. I have one piece and have been happy with it.

I’m not a fan of Calphalon. I don’t like their lids or the lighter weight of the pans. Better than the cheap stuff, but no where near the quality of All-Clad.

Le Crusett. Enamal coated cast iron. Dutch ovens are very good and worth having. The enamal coating avoids the reactive problems of black iron and are great for making stews and other braised dishes. Downside is that they are very heavy and like all cast iron, prone to hot spots. Skillets make no sense since the pans are prone to uneven heating and weight. Some pans have wooden handles and are not oven safe.

Cast Iron. Excellent for a few things, poor for others. Every chef has a few prized pieces. Nothing is better for getting a good brown crust on a grilled steak, fish, or chicken. The skillets are great for frying chicken, making home fries and such. The downside includes: uneven heating, they pans are heavy, higher maintenance (you must keep them well seasoned and they cannot be used in a dishwasher), and the iron reacts to acidic foods like tomatoes and will impart a metallic taste to foods containing acids. You wouldn’t want to make spaghetti sauce in cast iron for this reason.

Revereware. Durable enough for light home use, but a generally low performance cookware. Cheap junk usually sold in big box stores. Pans are very lightweight and prone to hot spots, not oven safe, easily warp under high heat, food burns easily due to thin metal construction. Only buy if it’s all that you can afford..

Cheap uncoated aluminum pans, various brands. Usually very cheap. The pans heat evenly, but because they are usually very thin, are prone to burning food. Aluminum is very reactive to acids and can actually make people ill if acidic foods are stored in them. Leave acid foods in them long enough and holes will be etched into the pans. Teflon coated though can be very good. I use those all of the time.

I know that you have a small budget, but my advice is to save and buy an All-Clad set on sale to serve most of your daily needs, and a add a few other cast iron and Le Crusett type pieces to fill special needs over time. The All-Clad set will run 2-3 times your budget, but the value over time is well worth it. For any non-stick pans I never buy expensive pans. For non-stick skillets I buy heavy aluminum skillets at the restaurant supply since I know that I’m going to wear the coating out every 3 to five years. It’s a lot easier to throw away a $30 pan than a $130 one.

Answer 4

Gillian, go for the best you can afford, as it makes a huge difference, if you are skint, just buy Tesco as they are very good and cheap. Le Creuset is expensive but worth it. Ask around, and decide if you want them to last or just last until you get better.

Answer 5

Le Creuset or any other enamel covered cast iron sets are great and they last FOREVER I recently bought a set from HSN called "country cottage" and they are just like my larger Le Creuset pots- check the home shopping networks, overstock.com and smartbargins.com

Good Luck

Answer 6

Le crueset are wonderful. They are extremly expensive but well worth the money because you will never have to replace them, they will literally last forever. I got mine from a factory outlet shop in york so they were a little discounted which saved a few (not many though!) pennies.

Answer 7

Depends whether your cooking on gas or electric heavier pans are recommended for electric then they do not distort they also last longer. If you are getting none stick then you will also need plastic utensils so as not to scratch the none stick.

Answer 8

The big daddy of them all is All-Clad... but expensive !!!

Other high quality are Calphalon and Cuisinart. I have a set of Calphalon and really love it. Nice distribution of heat, easy clean up.

Answer 9

If you can afford it, buy Le Creuset - they will last a lifetime. They are top qaulity, my Mother is still using my Grandmothers set!

The cast iron cookware sets are my favourite: http://www.lecreuset.co.uk/Default.aspx?PCat=53

Answer 10

My family is still passing down Iron skillets, Revere Ware and Farber Ware. If they last that long, they must be the best!