My pan essentials are:
.10 inch cast iron, or mineral steel fry pan with deep, straing sides. The pan must be well seasoned. I can stir-fry in this type of pan almost as well as I can in my carbon steel, flat bottomed Atlas wok. I can also cook pasta and rice in it, so long as it has a tight fitting lid. It's great for making sauces and gravies as well. I even make pizza in this type of pan, and have been known to make a few cakes and other deserts in it. The cast iron pan is great as a fryer if you are making batter-coated, breaded, or tempura veggies.
2. ceramic, mineral steel, or stainless steel saute pan. Uncoated aluminum also works well as a sauce pan. The inside of the pan must be seasoned, just like with cast iron, to prevent sticking, and form a barrier between the raw metal and the food to prevent alkali or acidic food reacting with the aluminum. But if you season the aluminum pan, just as you would cast iron, or high carbon steel, it acts the same as those pans, but with better heat distribution.
. Tri-ply, or encapuslated bottom Stainless steel dutch oven with lid. The dutch oven can also be made of enamled cast iron, stone wear, ceramic, or cast iron. Butit must have a tight fitting lid. If cast iron, it must be seasoned, inside and out, and the lid. The dutch oven will do everything from cooking pasta,to boiling eggs, to poaching eggs, to makkng stews, soups, chowders, chili, apple betty, crumb cakes, even cheeseca. ke. It is very versatile. You can also use it as a deep fryer, orto steam chellfish, crabs, rice,or whatever.
5 double boiler, essential for a host of sauces that require low heat to prevent scorching the foods, It's the pan to use when tempering cocolate, makng a cheese sauce, or a Hollandaise sauce.
That's my essential pan list, unless we want to start talking about baking, roating, and BBQ. I also use my pressure cooker a lot, as it is a great tine saver. But it's not an aboslute essential.
Hope that helps.
Seeeeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North
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