Having a saucepan audit

[AimlessWanderer]

When my slow cooker needed replacing a few weeks ago, I decided to go through all my cookware, and give them a good sort out. Clear out the junk, and upgrade things if necessary.

I started with the electrics, and ordered a new modest priced multicooker, 6.5 litre slowcooker, and a food processor. Unfortunately the order went awry (not my fault) and I never received the slow cooker. I got the money back, but was still down the appliance. The multi cooker can slow cook, but only about 3.5 litres or so. I was about to order another, then stopped to think...

I have a couple of pieces of cast iron, which are great for cooking stuff slowly. I have a 26cm Le Creuset shallow casserole, which can be used on the hob or in a low oven (due to the phenolic knob on the lid), and the base of which can be used as a frying pan.

I also have a Le Creuset Marmitout, which is a 2 litre pan, with a 20cm frying pan for a lid. Together, that too can be used as a casserole.

I also have a Le Creuset stovetop kettle too. Then there's a pile of cheaper stuff that's accumulated over the years...

• 3l stainless saucepan - not oven compatible
• 3.8l stainless saucepan - not oven compatible
• 1 litre milk pan
• An old 14" Tefal frying pan
• A small supposedly non-stick wok that sticks to everything better than velcro
• A three tier steamer, with two stainless steamer baskets over a 4.1 litre pot.

Now, instead of getting a slowcooker, I'm thinking of maybe getting a 6+ litre cast iron (enamelled interior) casserole, and using that as a slow cooker instead. That way it takes up no extra room, but can be used for other stuff, like a roast for example. Then I started thinking about all the other stuff, and how to consolidate all the functions, with less more versatile items.

So now I'm wading through various kitchenware websites, looking for ideas of how to bring all the functions together with less crap. Right now, it's raising more questions than answers. How many saucepans? What size? Wok/saute/high heat frying pan? With or without lids? Reversible griddle? Oven compatible?

I think I'm going to stick with mainly (red enamelled) cast iron, and uncoated stainless. The steamer is a keeper, as that's a great little stockpot with the baskets removed, as is the Le Creuset stuff. I've had too to many supposedly non stick coated items that weren't, or whose coating came away far too easilly. I've been gradually upgrading my baking trays the same way.

I think the large enamelled casserole instead of a slow cooker might be a really smart move, but beyond that, i'm a little less... focussed...

 

[ajkel64]

Sounds like a great idea to have an audit. We don’t have too many saucepans but we do have too many frying pans for two people. Most do need tossing as the non stick surface is no longer non stick.

 

[AimlessWanderer]

Thanks Andrew. I have been building up to this a while, as it's been an area that I've cut corners on and bodged my way through for many years. Time to get it put right, stop having to replace crappy stuff every few years, and free up some much needed cupboard space.

I'm thinking a large uncoated stainless chefs pan, the large deep saute type pans with the sloped sides and lid, will be a good addition. It's a third saucepan to back up the steamer pot and marmitout, which can also be used as frying pan or wok. That alone should replace four of the old crappy items. The large enamelled cast iron casserole will handle batch slow cooking on the hob, and handle the initial searing of meats and wilting of onions for the same recipes, plus handle roasts in the oven.

I think I should still retain some form of small milk pan or similar too. I managed without for years, and was quite surprised how useful it was when I finally got one. I think that should round off the arsenal quite well.

That's 6 items total, which gives:

• Three assorted casserole/roasting/baking sets
• Three assorted fry pans (ranging in function from omelette pan to wok)
• Three assorted saucepans (from 1 litre to 4-ish litres)
• Plus large and small stockpot

I need to stew (pardon the pun) over this a while, to see if I've missed anything, or if anything's redundant and can be cut down further. If I can do everything I'll ever need with six items, I think I'll be quite happy. Most of the time I'll be cooking for one, but occasionally cooking for up to six.

 

[TexLaw]

We are (very slowly) upgrading our saucepans from the set of three that my parents bought for me at Sam's in 1993. We've added to that set, but it's getting time to replace them.

I very rarely pull out either of my slow cookers since I got enameled dutch ovens (some time ago). About the only times I do are if I am doing something fairly small (so the 4 qt slow cooker makes sense--my dutch ovens are no smaller than 6.5 quarts), I don't want to tie up an oven (rare), I'm taking the dish somewhere else and will want to plug in the slow cooker, or it's something I want to keep warm while serving (such as chile con queso).

For those purposes, the slow cooker is fantastic. For anything else, I much prefer the Le Creuset in the oven if for no other reason than better temperature control. While the slow cooker can do a decent job, the "low" is too low and the "high" is too high to get things just right. I much prefer having the ability to set that dial right where I want it. Of course, a proper lid also makes a difference. The slow cookers come out so rarely that I'm about to move them out of the kitchen cabinets to make room for something I might touch more than once every year or two.

 

[AimlessWanderer]

Thanks for the vote of confidence on the big cast iron, Tex. I hadn't considered the fine tuning of the temperature, but you're quite right

 

[Doc4]

I think I'm going to stick with mainly (red enamelled) cast iron, and uncoated stainless.

Let me throw in something for your consideration ... uncoated cast iron (but seasoned of course!) dutch oven.

Get the kind, shown above, that doesn't have the legs on the bottom (which are more for campfire cooking.) Make sure it has the wire handle shown above (a good one will lie flat in one direction and come to rest at an angle above "lying flat" in the other direction.) And make sure it has the "loop lid handle" shown above rather than a knob handle ... this makes it a lot easier to lift the lid with either an expensive purpose-built tool or an inexpensive homemade tool ... or the handle of a wooden spoon.

That takes care of worrying about the knob in the oven, too.

Properly seasoned, this will stand up to all sorts of stews and casseroles in the oven, and unlike enamel coatings, if and when the seasoning/coating breaks down, the seasoning can be easily re-done and "good as new".

And this doubles as a cast-iron fry pan (with really high walls) suitable for lots of frying chores ... provided you don't need good side access for things like flipping pancakes. Fry your onions, garlic, and meat; add tomatoes &s to make a pasta sauce, and then add cooked noodles to blend together and make a meal!

Yes, some dutch ovens are quite pricey. But others are quite inexpensive. It's just cast iron, after all, and nowadays even the pricey stuff is going to lack the innate smoothness of vintage (which can be inexpensive too, if you look in the right spots.)

 

[Rhody]

I tossed the non stick and ceramic fry pans and recently got the made in blue steel and stainless pans. Fantastic quality.

 

[AimlessWanderer]

Let me throw in something for your consideration ... uncoated cast iron (but seasoned of course!) dutch oven.

View attachment 1088080

Get the kind, shown above, that doesn't have the legs on the bottom (which are more for campfire cooking.) Make sure it has the wire handle shown above (a good one will lie flat in one direction and come to rest at an angle above "lying flat" in the other direction.) And make sure it has the "loop lid handle" shown above rather than a knob handle ... this makes it a lot easier to lift the lid with either an expensive purpose-built tool or an inexpensive homemade tool ... or the handle of a wooden spoon.

View attachment 1088085

That takes care of worrying about the knob in the oven, too.

Properly seasoned, this will stand up to all sorts of stews and casseroles in the oven, and unlike enamel coatings, if and when the seasoning/coating breaks down, the seasoning can be easily re-done and "good as new".

And this doubles as a cast-iron fry pan (with really high walls) suitable for lots of frying chores ... provided you don't need good side access for things like flipping pancakes. Fry your onions, garlic, and meat; add tomatoes &s to make a pasta sauce, and then add cooked noodles to blend together and make a meal!

View attachment 1088088

Yes, some dutch ovens are quite pricey. But others are quite inexpensive. It's just cast iron, after all, and nowadays even the pricey stuff is going to lack the innate smoothness of vintage (which can be inexpensive too, if you look in the right spots.)

The issue I have with bare iron, is that I use a lot of tomatoes when slow cooking. The acid can attack the iron, and leach metals into the food. A lot of cast iron cookware manufacturers specifically advise that bare iron is not suitable for tomatoes. I appreciate that seasoning may offer an element of resistance against this, but not enough for me to feel comfortable with it for my requirements. Note that's nothing against seasoned iron, I've used them many times in the past (specifically a griddle and a wok), but I've kept tomatoes and other acidic foods away from them. Alas, in this instance, I specifically want to be able to cook tomato recipes, so I'm specifically looking for enamelled.

Aside from that, everything you describe, is exactly how the marmitout in the opening post works. I often use that for pasta, frying bacon and onion in the lid, while boiling pasta and peas in the pot. Strain the pasta, stir in the bacon and onion, and a healthy dollop of green pesto, pop the lid on and leave off the heat for a few minutes to let the residual heat help the pesto do its magic. It also works great for searing meat for a stew or small pot roast type affair

 

[AimlessWanderer]

I tossed the non stick and ceramic fry pans and recently got the made in blue steel and stainless pans. Fantastic quality.

I'd always had non-stick pans before I got the two cheapo stainless pans I've been using for the last few years. Albeit cheap and cheerful, they've been great. The colour coating on the outside is all coming away, and the rubber grips on the handles slip all over the place now, but aside from that they've never let me down. If it wasn't for the fact i'm trying to cut down on the number of pans, whilst regaining wok and other functions, I'd just remove the grips, and get a few more years out of them. I think I'll be avoiding non stick from now on.

 

[Rhody]

I'd always had non-stick pans before I got the two cheapo stainless pans I've been using for the last few years. Albeit cheap and cheerful, they've been great. The colour coating on the outside is all coming away, and the rubber grips on the handles slip all over the place now, but aside from that they've never let me down. If it wasn't for the fact i'm trying to cut down on the number of pans, whilst regaining wok and other functions, I'd just remove the grips, and get a few more years out of them. I think I'll be avoiding non stick from now on.

Having the made in 10" pan for about a week i put some water in it and put it on the gas to clean it. Not proud to say i then forgot about it until it was burned and black i had to put it out on the driveway to cool as it stopped smoking. However after learning a lesson im pleased to report that i got it completely cleaned and looking brand new with a scotch brite pad and some elbow grease. Not sure my previous cheap pans would bounce back like that.

 

[AimlessWanderer]

Decisions made, and orders placed!

To replace the three crappy saucepans, and the "sticks like crap to a blanket" wok, I stuck to the plan, and ordered a couple of these.

I got a 16cm one, which is supposedly 1.2 litres. That should be great for reheating my chilli, soups, pasta sauces etc that I batch cook and freeze. It should also be great for scrambled eggs, making sauces, warming through a tin of beans, and any other small quantity stuff. I also got a 20cm one, which apparently holds 3.4 litres. That should do everything else I'd want from a larger pan, including stir frying, reducing stocks and soups, and searing/basting meats. I got lids for them both too. Of course, I still have the steamer and marmitout pan too.

Then I abandoned the plan.

Instead of getting a large casserole/dutch oven for slow cooking, I decided to hold off and wait. I didn't see exactly what I was looking for this time around anyway. Instead, I decided to try out a 6 litre stainless pressure cooker. I've never used one before, but I've heard good things about them, and I don't know of anything that can be cooked in a slowcooker/crockpot, that cant be cooked in a pressure cooker. The added bonus was that it was cheaper (it was on sale), and lighter, than an equivalent sized cast iron casserole.

I'm hoping that this reduced array will do everything I could possibly want. None of these items are a direct replacement for the 30cm non stick frying pan that I was hoping to chuck out too, however I'm going to try sticking with the lid of the marmitout, and the base of the shallow casserole, and see how they pan out ... pardon the pun!

(Quick note for those still using the old system of measurements, that we Brits abandoned in the 1820s - replace litres with quarts for a good approximation of volumes )

 

[ruckin]

I really like the idea of doing an audit and thinking about what I really need. In my case I probably have too much(tm). Heck we have 2 slow cookers. We use the small one when it is just the wife and I and both when we entertain or do some crazy potluck thing. I have a pressure cooker that is used several times a week - in the last week I have hard boiled 2 dozen eggs, made yogurt and am now cooking some short ribs. On the stove it is a mix of carbon steel and cast iron for skillets, I have a stainless everyday pan, and a bunch of calphalon sauce pans. I have a couple woks, a flat grill an bbq for cooking on the deck.

When I slow cook acid stuff I tend to use the enamel cast iron. I have a 4qt and a 6qt and sometimes wish I had something larger when entertaining or batch cooking.

 

[AimlessWanderer]

I really like the idea of doing an audit and thinking about what I really need. In my case I probably have too much(tm). Heck we have 2 slow cookers. We use the small one when it is just the wife and I and both when we entertain or do some crazy potluck thing. I have a pressure cooker that is used several times a week - in the last week I have hard boiled 2 dozen eggs, made yogurt and am now cooking some short ribs. On the stove it is a mix of carbon steel and cast iron for skillets, I have a stainless everyday pan, and a bunch of calphalon sauce pans. I have a couple woks, a flat grill an bbq for cooking on the deck.

When I slow cook acid stuff I tend to use the enamel cast iron. I have a 4qt and a 6qt and sometimes wish I had something larger when entertaining or batch cooking.

Wow! Sounds like you have a lot of stuff. I do need to do some reading up on the pressure cooker, to see what it can do that I haven't considered yet. Your yoghurt and boiled eggs are something I wouldn't have considered.

Although I'll be down to just those 6 items for the hob* I genuinely can't think of anything I'm liable to cook that these can't handle. I haven't tried them yet though! I don't actually have any "normal" saucepans or frying pans in the line up, and have opted for stuff that can (hopefully) fulfill those roles, plus have other functions too. It might be that some adjustment of technique is needed. I think the only thing that's missing is a griddle, and I might add one of those reversible iron griddle plates at a later date if the two enamelled items don't handle all the frying as well as I'd like. Or I might just hang on to the frying pan for a while, just in case.

* The pressure cooker is a stove top one. I do also have a stove top kettle, and a few extra bits for the oven too. Plus of course, there's the electric multicooker, but I mostly expect to use that for pasta, and steaming rice.

 

[ruckin]

@AimlessWanderer I just wanted to point out that my pressure cooker is a sit on the counter and plug in type. For hard boiled eggs I put the eggs on the racks add a cup of water and a bit of apple cider vinegar and set the timer for 5 minutes. It will heat up, cook for 5 minutes, then shut off and let the pressure naturally dissipate. Once the pressure is released I rise in cold water and put in the fridge. Having chickens and ducks means I always have a ready supply of eggs.

For the yogurt the feature that I use is the ability to hold a warming temperature (118F) for 10-12 hours. I don't think that would be possible to find the perfect setting on my stovetop to do that. I have not tried it but I have heard that a sous vide setup works for yogurt and you would likely be able to use one of your existing pans.

If I was honest with myself I have way too much kitchen stuff especially when I include the little appliances, and tools.

 

[AimlessWanderer]

@AimlessWanderer I just wanted to point out that my pressure cooker is a sit on the counter and plug in type. For hard boiled eggs I put the eggs on the racks add a cup of water and a bit of apple cider vinegar and set the timer for 5 minutes. It will heat up, cook for 5 minutes, then shut off and let the pressure naturally dissipate. Once the pressure is released I rise in cold water and put in the fridge. Having chickens and ducks means I always have a ready supply of eggs.

For the yogurt the feature that I use is the ability to hold a warming temperature (118F) for 10-12 hours. I don't think that would be possible to find the perfect setting on my stovetop to do that. I have not tried it but I have heard that a sous vide setup works for yogurt and you would likely be able to use one of your existing pans.

If I was honest with myself I have way too much kitchen stuff especially when I include the little appliances, and tools.

Ahhh OK. So it's part pressure cooker, part multi-cooker. Mine are (or rather will be) separate, but there's no yoghurt function on my multi-cooker.

I was pretending I didn't have too much stuff for years too A friend of mine was moving into his own flat a few years ago, after a separation from his Mrs, and I took the opportunity to box a load of duplicate stuff up for him to get him started. It did us both a favour