3-Ply vs. 5-ply

[Stock Pot]

I think 5-Ply is better and by a noticeable margin. I have some 5-Ply from "Made In" cookware that is stainless-aluminum-stainless-aluminum-stainless, sandwich and also a couple of pieces of All-Clad Copper Core, which I think is stainless-aluminum-stainless-copper-stainless. Both are better than Tri-Ply (stainless-aluminum-stainless). It's not that the Tri-Ply is bad, but I think the 5-Ply has the edge.

I went a little overboard on the cast iron, carbon steel stuff and am having fun re-discovering stainless steel pans.

Also, I have an induction cooktop now and it is so fast and responsive that the legendary heat retention of cast iron doesn't matter so much anymore.

 

[Steve Kroll]

Better in what way?

 

[Andy M.]

I've been using try-ply cookware (All-Clad and other brands) for about 15-20 years now. They perform much better than plain SS. I have no issues with them. My cooking isn't fussy enough that 5-ply or 7-ply cookware would make any difference. I'd bet that in 99.9% of the cases, there is no practical difference.

However, if that's what you want, go for it.

 

[Stock Pot]

Mainly even heat distribution. It's subtle but noticeable. Also, quicker pre-heat times. Just a little bit of an edge. But now that the 5-Ply are selling at competitive prices, why not?

 

[Andy M.]

Mainly even heat distribution. It's subtle but noticeable. Also, quicker pre-heat times. Just a little bit of an edge. But now that the 5-Ply are selling at competitive prices, why not?

I can't imagine that more and thicker metal heats up faster than less and thinner metal but I'm not a metallurgist.

As I said before, if that's what you want, go for it. If I thought it would make a difference for me, I'd do it.

 

[Stock Pot]

Oh, I agree. Nothing wrong with Tri-Ply. And the 5-ply has only a very small edge.

 

[caseydog]

It makes sense to me that the coper core would be great for spreading heat, since copper is such a good conductor. I'm not as sure about five-ply with just SS and aluminum. But, I have no experience with either one.

Thanks for sharing your experience with this cookware. Food for thought.

CD

 

[Stock Pot]

The 5 ply are not thicker, as far as I can tell. Mine actually seem to be lighter. I think it is just a more advanced metal fusing technology. The copper core is heavier than the 5-ply aluminum, though. But that's copper. Copper is heavy.