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P

Proinsias

Pretty much all the kitchen equipment I have was bought about ten years in a spree to quickly, and as cheaply as possible, acquire the basics. One of those 'we just spent all our money on an empty house' moments.

About a year ago, thanks to the B&B group buy, I picked up a nice Kochi 210mm wa-gyuto which I'm still having a love affair with. I'm sure I'll add to the knife collection in time but for now one size fits pretty much all.

About 6 months ago I got a nice cast iron pan, wonder where I got that idea? I'm really happy with it and use it daily.

Next on the list is pots. I think the set I have were non-stick once upon a time, but now they look sad, have wobbly plastic handles, rusty screws and I think most meals consist of a little non-stick coating.

I'd prefer to buy one all round quality pot and give it a few months to get a feel for it before expanding and was hoping for some recommendations. I'm generally cooking for three and would be looking for something to accommodate the day to day boiling of rice, pasta, noodles and soup making. Since getting the cast iron pan I've been using it for a lot of meaty dishes I would have previously cooked in a cheap pot or slow cooker but it's often dangerously close to full and it would be nice to have a little more room.

So, good single pot recommendations? or should I follow the advice of my mother in law and get a half price set from the local department store with a picture of a celebrity chef on the box?
 
johnniegold

johnniegold

"Got Shoes?"
What I know about pots is not a lot so I will be subscribing to this thread. However, I did read that buying a set is a good way to get certain pots you don't need or won't use.
 
saf

saf

If you are not in a hurry and don't need the warrantee check out Marshall's from time to time they have All Clad. The pickings are slim but the price is right for quality. They might have a small dent or finish issue. I don't personally care about those issues. I got a copper core sautee pan for 150 off normal price for a dented lid.
 
SiBurning

SiBurning

Jim said:
I have and enjoy these from JB prince- I have not been disappointed yet and have 6 so far. I like a nice amount of headroom in a pot so I have slightly larger/taller that my bride cares for.
Click to expand...
+1 for Sitram for a stock pot. Though I have the aluminum bottom Profiserie versions, preferring other brands for other things. Really solidly built, and NSF certified, which means they're good to 1500F or something ridiculous like that. Some other popular lines are only rated to 450F, which means I'd end up leaving the aluminum bottoms on the stove after lifting the rest of the pot.

Any thin stainless pot will work fine for pasta, rice, etc. For soups, you generally start with a base, which means frying some vegetable in bacon or browning something or other. The cheapest arrangement that works for this that's still very high quality is stainless with a thick aluminum bottom. I stress stainless because it's non-reactionary. Thin aluminum can be cheaper, but might react with acids, and color some other foods. I'm almost tempted to recommend enamel coated cast iron, which is what I'd want if I were stuck with a single pot, but in some ways, it's impractical as an only pot. Thing is, you need to be careful with a disc bottom pan. If you fry on too high a flame, you can burn things at the sides where they're thin. This is why I prefer my frying pans to be solid all the way through. I'm not really sure, but I hear Sitram's catering line might be better designed from that that point of view.
 
maxman

maxman

I've been using Paderno pots for 10 years now and i'm not careful with them at all.
they are built to last thats for sure.
 
Acmemfg

Acmemfg

Calphalon. Been using them for 30 years. Seldom fail. If they do, their lifetime warranty and willingness to stand by it are excellent
 
JoshuaNY

JoshuaNY

I would suggest something that is clad. Alluminum or copper sandwiched between stainless steel. I find they heat more even and retain heat best. Some just have a cladded disk on the bottom with stainless steal sides, others are clad throughout the whole pot. For things like stews and what not I like to have the clad throughout the pot.

I have a few Cuisnart Multiclad pro that work quite well and won't break the bank. Good tight fiting lid, rolled lip so they pour easy.
Available in a bunch of sizes.
 
blary54

blary54

saf said:
If you are not in a hurry and don't need the warrantee check out Marshall's from time to time they have All Clad. The pickings are slim but the price is right for quality. They might have a small dent or finish issue. I don't personally care about those issues. I got a copper core sautee pan for 150 off normal price for a dented lid.
Click to expand...

+1 there was a bunch of All-Clad at my location. Save about 30-50 dollars a pan there then if you purchase from Amazon. Its a crap shoot for what each location has, but they usually have at least some decent Cuisineart or Calphalon pans. And usually excellent prices.
 
Tim_McD

Tim_McD

Picking through the All Clad at Marshalls, TJ Maxx, Homegoods is a great idea if you arent looking to have an instant set. I bought my All Clad pasta pentola off of eBay and it is a great multi-function pot

Also, you get more flexibility depending on what type of cooktop you are using. I have a smooth ceramic cooktop now and it is critical to have a pots & pans with a heavy flat bottom. If the cookware is thin or warps even slightly, the heating across the bottom is noticeably uneven.

I have a mix of cookware; mostly All Clad with a few pieces of Le Cruset. The enamel cast iron pieces are a 5.5 qt dutch oven and a 12in signature frying pan - perfect for that glass cooktop when I am doing soups/stews/chilis and batch frying.
 
ouch

ouch

Stjynnkii membörd dummpsjterd
Proinsias said:
About a year ago, thanks to the B&B group buy, I picked up a nice Kochi 210mm wa-gyuto which I'm still having a love affair with. I'm sure I'll add to the knife collection in time but for now one size fits pretty much all.
Click to expand...

Further proof that one good knife is better than a set of meh.

Apply the same logic to your pots, and you'll do fine.
 
badgerstate

badgerstate

I recently bought an inexpensive ceramic coated wok. (Vina roz?) Supposed to be non-stick. I have been disappointed more things stick to the surface than to teflon, but it cleans off easily. The ceramic surface (white) seems to scratch very easily.

... and speaking of knives, a few years ago I saw ceramic knives at Harbor freight VERY cheap. How bad could it be, I thought? Absolute rubbish. I kept in the drawer for a long time as a painful reminder, then threw it away.
 
T

tango68

stainless steel with thick bottoms that extend up to the sides. Go to bed bath and beyond. you can get single pots and pans for not too crazy expensive. add one at a time and avoid sets. half the stuff in sets is worthless. you only need a few pots and pans to do most of the heavy lifting provided your not cooking for a platoon.
 
P

Proinsias

Thanks for all the suggestions. I'm in the UK so can't follow up on all the leads but plenty food for thought.

I'm in no rush so will potter around the shops and play around with some before I pull any triggers.
 
P

Proinsias

Mother in law to the rescue!

Our aluminium anniversary was yesterday and the in-laws gave us a nice disc of aluminium hidden away in shiny stainless steel.

A 22cm Stellar 1000 deep saucepan:
$Stellar Saucepan.JPG
 
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