If you were going to buy new cookware....

[SpiceUmUp]

I have Kitchen Aid SS cookware that I love, Copper cookware that is better yet, and I have Le Creuset that is not only wonderful to cook with but also does double duty as weightlifting equipment

 

[Caine]

I currently have Le Gourmet Chef tri-ply stainless 10-inch Frying pan, 1 quart sauce pan & lid, 2 quart sauce pan & lid, 4 quart stock pot & lid, 6 quart stock pot & lid, 5 quart covered Saute & lid; a Lodge 8-inch skillet and 12-inch skillet; and a Calphalon nonstick 10-inch omelette pan & cover (strictly for cooking eggs), and I am extremely happy with all of them. The Le Gourmet Chef tri-ply is EXACTLY like All-Clad, at less than half the price. I bought all of mine of sale, so they were 1/3 the price of All-Clad, and I guarantee you can not find any difference. I bought the Calphalon omelette pan at Le Gourmet Chef on sale for 15 bucks, and The Lodge skillets are just about the same price everywhere, but I happen to like shopping at Le Gourmet Chef. Check out their website for a location near you.

 

[mudbug]

Caine, I agree with you about Le Gourmet Chef. It's a must-stop every time I go to the outlet mall. Love their samples of dipping oil and sauces. The only equipment I have purchased there so far includes a marble board for rolling out pastry and a re-conditioned blender for the bar.

 

[Andy M.]

I have four saucepans from LeGourmet -2 1-qts., a 4-qt and a 6 qt. I think I paid $40 to $60 for the biggest one. They are a steal for the money. I agree with Caine that they do a good job. You can't beat the price.

In comparing LeGourmet to All-Clad, I notice the LeG is thinner, and as a result, lighter in weight, than the All-Clad. In the four pieces I have, there is no performance difference.

 

[buckytom]

avoid emerilware at all costs, even tho they are from all-clad. the pans perform nicely, in my limited experience with cooking, but the non-stick surface wears off too easily.

 

[mudbug]

Actually, bucky, HH got me a set of emerilware saucepans for Christmas a couple of years ago, and the non-stick is still in fine shape. Wonder if your experience is due to all those termater-based gravies you do?

 

[buckytom]

thanks 'bug, but most of my tomato sauces are made in ss.
we have 2 sets of emerilware. we had one and were given another. the frying pans in the older set wore out very quickly, especially the pans dw uses everyday for things like eggs, the one food you really need non-stick for. so now i baby the second set, and they seem to be holding up ok, but i don't like to have to be so careful.
when they finally become unuseable, i have my eye on some heavy duty copper sandwiched ss, i think from france. wms-sonoma had it the last time i looked. about 7 or 8 bills for the set.

 

[mudbug]

Well, I don't have any emeril frying pans 'cept for a teeny one just for eggs and stuff like grilled cheese sandwiches. My big fryers are an ancient, well-seasoned cast iron, a SS All Clad, and a non-stick Calphalon. I mostly use the SS and the cast iron. I also have an All Clad non-stick grill pan that gets used a lot that is holding up well and cleans up easily.

 

[Robo410]

Well if I had all the $$$ in the world I would prolly spring for the ultimate Falk Culinair set. However I don't. I also like a variety of different types of cookware for different tasks and recipes. So I like to bargain hunt...left overs of the old Calphalon before the hybrid wars, real French copper at places like Marshalls, seconds on AllClad or LeCrueset, and of course my inherited Griswold cast iron. But my fave pan is a hand crafted copper saute from Tasmania. Check out LaraCopper !

 

[sparkiem]

Stainless Steel

I my opion stainless steel is the way to go. Check it out at this site. Edited to Remove Link

 

[Claire]

I cannot imagine living without a non-stick skillet. But I don't buy expensive. I assume they're going to get thrown away eventually (I do have good mid-priced cookware that is for eternity). When I was a kid, Mom used to buy "throw-away" teflon skillets. She'd use them until the finish was starting to go, then she'd put them in our camping gear. Use them on the fire, then throw them away at the end of the camping trip.

BTW, my copper bottom pans live next door, and I can visit them whenever I wish. I was going to give them to charity, and my (then new) neighbor expressed an interest. I just gave them all to her. So I still occaisionally visit my old pots & pans! Revere Ware rules! Just not in MY kitchen!!!

 

[Allen S]

We bought our first new Vulan range in 1982. With 28,000 BTU burners we soon discovered our old stainless cookware couldn't take the heat even with the flame adjusted to the lowest level. I made a couple 1/2 thick aluminum disks to put between the pots and the flame. Shortly after that we purchased cast iron cookware that suited our needs. We even got a full size cast iron wok. It really didn't matter which brand of ironware we got, it all seasoned and took the heat well. A year ago my wife thought it would be nice to get stainless triclad cookware to go with our new larger Vulcan range. We shopped and read everything we could. We went to the stores with a micrometer and magnet. The All Clad is .114 thick. The Le Gourmet Chef is .114 thick. Both have cast stainless handles riveted on the pots and lids. Cosmetically the rivets look the same. Both are made from 18/10 magnetic stainless inner and outer layers. We purchased one All Clad 2 qt sauce pan and one Le Gourmet 3 qt sauce pan. We tried them out on our range at home. They both took the heat equally. Yes the All Clad is made in USA and the Le Gourmet Chef in China. But like many other manufactures in this country, I suspect the materials used to manufacture these pots and pans come from the same source. Look at the boxes the All Clad cookware is packaged in. Some is made in USA, some in China. We bought our Le Gourmet Chef cookware on sale for for 1/3 the price of All Clad. We love it. When I use one of our Le Gourmet pots I sometimes wonder if some company in China is hydro forming all this things and supplying the whole industry. Perhaps another company in China does the cast stainless componets and ships to the assemblers in the world. We do enjoy our triclad cookware and we don't need the aluminum disks either, but our favorite piece of cookware is an old 12" Lodge frying pan.

 

[Andy M.]

AllenS:

Welcome to Discuss Cooking, you'll like it here.

I also have both LeGourmet and All-Clad and am pleased with the performance of both.

 

[sassy]

A few years ago I changed out most of my cook/bakeware to All-Clad and LeCreuset. They are indeed spendy but well worth it.

 

[Corey123]

I've thrown out just about all old peeling Teflon-coated cookware in favor of the Emerilware Stainless Steel 10-pc. Cookware Set and some of its optional open stock pieces!!


~Corey123.

 

[Stevie]

All-Clad nonstick is lifetime warranty and from what I've read isn't made the same as other nonstick. I have two and like them alot. I think most people dont read the directions that say nonstick should not be used above medium heat. I try to use SS mostly but the nonstick is cool to me anyway.

 

[Corey123]

My Emerilware Stainless Steel cookware without the nonstick coating.

I will NEVER buy non-stick cookware again!!


~Corey123.

 

[Michelemarie]

Okay, here I go. I received, as a gift, a set of ss pans from Costco - Kirkland brand. They are 5-ply with copper. From all the research I have done (alot!) - they are comprable to All Clad at a fraction of the cost. They are beautiful and they work very well. They also have a lifetime warranty. I keep searching for an All Clad pan (but one I need) at a good price so I can compare the two myself - but in the meantime, I have no complaints.

 

[Andy M.]

Okay, here I go. I received, as a gift, a set of ss pans from Costco - Kirkland brand. They are 5-ply with copper. From all the research I have done (alot!) - they are comprable to All Clad at a fraction of the cost. They are beautiful and they work very well. They also have a lifetime warranty. I keep searching for an All Clad pan (but one I need) at a good price so I can compare the two myself - but in the meantime, I have no complaints.

MM:

I bouth a Kirkland set of tri-ply SS 4-5 years ago and I'm completely pleased with them (12 piece set for $149.00). They are as heavy or heavier than the All-Clad I own and I've never had a problem.

Enjoy them!