I think it is too heavy. I think it is great for slow cooking, not so much for sauteing. I find that when I use really heavy cookware not only does my arm get tired from flipping and shaking the pan, but I usually wind up banging it into things like sink taps and the side of the sink. I actually put a lovely chip in my old sink that way. I think that open stock I might buy a dutch oven, but otherwise I still say stainless. Buy the best quality you can, in only the sizes you need. I wound up with a giant skillet from a set my ex bought (because it was such a good price) that I never used. I finally took it down to the rescue mission, where they were thrilled to get a professional pan that could fry 20 pieces of chicken at once…I was thrilled to get the space back.
Yeah, I suppose I should have commented that my Le Creuset pieces are the pots for slow cooking. For frying etc., I’m slowly building up a set of All-Clad, and I wouldn’t bother with Le Creuset for that purpose. If you’re dead-set on getting an iron frying pan, I’d just pick up regular cast iron (or that Lodge Logic stuff)–it should work as well for a fraction of the price.
I may consider getting Le Creuset pots and stainless saucepans, then. And I’ll try to bogart my grandmother’s (now my mother’s) frying pan, of course, and a couple cheapish nonstick things for eggs and such. Should that cover me adequately? (I’ve been thinking about deciding what all I’ll eventually need for kitchen stuff now, because people keep asking me what they can get me for gifting occaisions.)
Anyone have some hints for keeping All-Clad cookware clean? I bought a 10-pc set for my wife for Christmas, and she used it today for cooking the Christmas meal. Its cooking qualities are superb - I’ve never seen pots and pans heat up so fast and so evenly. No hot spots, no burning if you stop stirring for a second.
But it’s hard to clean. I got her the stainless set, and it was a pain. One pot had what looked like little white dots in it, and it took about five minutes of scrubbing to get them out. If you don’t dry the stuff immediately, water spots form, and they’re tough to get off. I did a little reading, and it looks like there’s quite a lengthy list of don’ts for this stuff - you have to be careful with salt, you can’t use cleansers with bleach, etc. My wife was a bit upset at how much work it was to get everything clean.
Or is it the case that after a while you just don’t worry about keeping it looking pristine? Do you just ignore the water spots, the little white dots, and other cosmetic issues?
Heavy? Yes, but that’s also the reason why Le Creuset hold heat and that’s what you want in many cooking tasks. Second, foods cook in LC never have that metalic taste that cheap cookware will give. Third, Le Creuset will last for years - I have one that is about 30 years old.
Le Creuset for pots used in making soups, curries, stocks, roux/sauces, rices, grains, beans - stovetop or in the oven w/o top
Only Small Le Creuset for any type of eggs such as fried, scrambled, omelet.
Reason: Le creuset holds heat superbly. You can use the cast iron stuff which is much cheaper; however it rusts if not taken care of properly. Le creuset cleans wonderfully [I burnt lentils last week to the point of being charred - pot looks new after 10 minutes of hard scrubbing].
SS only for such things as blanching, cooking pasta - but you need the pasta insert for pulling out pasta al dente as quickly as possible.
As for frying pans: pick an assortment because your needs are constantly changing.
As I said Small Le Creuset for eggs; any bigger pan is too heavy to handle easily.
Copco crepe pan is ancient, it’s perfect; I inherited it and think loving thoughts of the person who gave it to me.
Large Chicken fryer with two handles and glass top; I’ve bought so many of these through the years
I was given a nice set of the professional non-stick, non-copper Calphalon cookware last year. I was going to donate my old RevereWare set but decided to wait and I’m glad I did. Turns out that the non-stick is great for heating sauces and frying eggs, etc. However, they’re not all purpose. For instance, you’re not supposed to use metal cooking tools with the non-stick surface so if you want to make mashed potatoes you have to boil them in one pot and then transfer them to a bowl before mashing them. That’s a waste of time, not to mention more to clean, so I kept my RevereWare copper bottom 6 qt. pot and dutch oven for such tasks.
Pretty much. They’re more or less indestructable, but you’ll drive yourself nuts if you worry about things like water spots. I’m not sure what you mean about the little white dots, but I do know the inside surfaces of All-Clads tend to discolor and scratch a little. It’s no big deal, and I ignore it.
What type did you buy? I go for the Stainless, as they can be put in the dishwasher. So far, it does a pretty good job.
Lately I’ve been following the reviews in Cook’s Illustrated magazine and going with what they recommend. IIRC for cookware, they most often choose stainless All-Clad, but they review by piece, not by set, so this may not prove true for all pieces.
I typically avoid non-stick, except maybe for a skillet for cooking eggs. The nonstick coating tends to wear off after a while, even if you don’t use metal, and it’s more difficult to get food to brown nicely in those pans.
I’ve got one of those Tefal (T-Fal in the US) thermospot non-stick frying pans. Cheap and VERY good. I don’t really bother with the thermospot thing, but the coating is the best non-stick ever. I’ve got 2 copper bottomed saucepans which are fabulous, I can’t remember the make, but they do heat nice and evenly and are great for soups and stews.
Since I’m getting married in September, I’m going to put some nice Le Creuset stuff on the registry, but only griddle pans and oven ware, not pots. Mostly though that’s because my mother has the orange Le Creuset stuff, and it just feels right to cook in the stuff I remember her using.
I got the stainless set. It seems like really good stuff. And the stay-cool handles actually seem to stay cool.
I don’t know about All-Clad, but I have never had any of these problems with my stainless…and I am hard on them. I have burnt stuff on them, had actual fires in them (I am a careless cook :smack: ) but maybe it is just the type of cookware. I am not even sure who made the stuff I have. I only know that it is “professional quality surgical grade stainless steel” from the box when my ex bought it from our local restaurant supply house. I have cleaned them with all sorts of stuff, and no water spots, staining, or other problems. I have used bleach (soft scrub sort of stuff with bleach in it.) I think all cookware develops a patina of use over time, and that is, in my opinion, a good thing, it proves you use them. Unless you are determined to display them, what difference does it make?
Coupla thoughts for Sam Stone.[ul][li]I assume the small white spots are in your saucepans and come from boiling liquids? If so, they’re easily removed by soaking in a light acidic solution such as vinegar or lemon juice. If the “pits” come from salting your water too early, then they’re a lot harder (or impossible) to remove, but don’t hurt the pan’s performance.[/li][li]For all other stains, a product called Bar Keeper’s Friend works wonders on stainless steel. You should be able to find it at your local grocery or discount store, but if not, there are lots of places to order it online.[/li]Life’s too short to obsess over gleaming cookware, even if it is expensive, high-end stuff.[/ul]
We’ve had very good results from Calphalon, but it’s VERY heavy. If this is a consideration, that’s definitely something to keep in mind.