What do you prefer and why?

LameWolf

The only saucepan that we've bought ourselves is a small milk pan, about £5 from John Lewis. Other than that, we have 3 saucepans of varying sixes, the middle sized one of which is non-stick, which all belonged to Mr LW's mother, and are still perfectly good. One's a bit battered looking, but it still does its job.Our large jam cauldron belonged to Mr LW's grandma originally, then to his mum, and now we have it. It must be at least 60 years old, if not older.

I've looked at Le Creuset, but they're so heavy, I can't lift their stuff empty, let alone with food in it.:(

stef240377

Thanks for the varied views in which cookware and bakeware to buy it certainly is an eye opener getting thoughts from every day users on here than those reviews you see typed up online that you often wonder are too good to be true.

mi_jardin

I have Le Crueset, and they are lovely, but I would not buy them again. They take ages to come to the boil, although I have found that I can turn off the hob and they keep cooking the veg for a good few minutes. However the main reason is their weight. They are heavy enough as they are, but when they are full of veg and water it can hurt your arm while dishing up.:o
Next time its a set of stainless steel cheapies..but I hope my pans will last for many years to come.

rosalie-lavender

I have a set of solid based stainless steel saucepans and a Meyer stainless steel multi cooker with two steamer sections and a bain marie. I also have two heavy based prestige frying pans that I bought from Lakeland. They were expensive but worth every penny. I wa getting fed up of having to buy a new frying pan every year because the food kept sticking and the non-stick coming off.

One thing I am glad I invested money in is good saucepans.

Stephen_Leak

My money has to go for stainless steel, and with a nice heavy bottom to distribute the heat, so you don't have to spend time stirring. They are, IMHO, the best VFM. You only really need two, a 1 litre and a 2 litre - capacity is more important than diameter. A lid is essential to keep the heat and steam in, and a glass one, whilst not essential, is nice to be able to keep an eye on what's happening inside.

If someone is just starting cooking, cheap aluminium ones might be worth going for at first, just in case of accidents.

The Le Creuset ones are fabulous, don't get me wrong. However, they aren't indestructible - they can crack if moved from hot to cold too quickly. They don't like being heated with nothing in them. The wooden handles can char with heat and don't like being soaked in water. They are also bl**dy heavy!

stef240377

I went for my Tefal ones last year as they seem to be a good all rounder. At the time i had a ceramic hob and now have a halogen one. I found it quite hard to find pans suitable for both.

greenbee

I don't buy sets of anything... I work out what individual items I need and then look for that.

I don't use non-stick (I'd rather the food stuck to the pan than the pan stuck to the food ).

I have a mixture of le creuset pans (all older than me - from my mum, my godmother and my grandparents, so no probs with wooden handles as they're all metal) and odd stainless steel items that I've bought to fill the gaps. I have to say that decent heavy (but not too heavy) frying pans without non-stick are the most difficult things to find - I have several failures in the cupboard which I must get rid of .

Woks - traditional chinese steel woks that need seasoning are great. Light enough to stir fry properly (i.e. by shaking not stirring) and easy to maintain.

Calephetos

My mother's Le Creuset was bought with her wedding present money - in 1977! It's still in the kitchen at home and used everyday. Her frying pan is non non-stick...but I think only because it wore off.

I do like Le Creuset, and would certainly come down in favour of 'investment pieces' that will last a good long time (not to mention quality and colour - pretty!), but cast iron cookware definitely requires taking the weight into consideration. We have one or two 'good' stainless steel pans that I inherited from my late grandfather, and they're a good mix of manageable weight and durable cookware. The 2 Le Creuset pans I have are very heavy - but I can manage them. Ask me again in another 29 years

Like Greenbee, I don't buy in sets either My aim is to buy cast iron/long life stuff in bright, different colours a piece at a time as I find them/the money. Life is too short to keep buying cheap pans.

wogglemaker

I got a a set of stella pans and fry pan with lid about 10 years ago, they are brilliant (the fry pan does not get used for fry ups much as it tends to stick (but I use it to saute then add the remaining ingredients if I'm a chilli or the like).

Tesco finest copper bottomed stock pot is very good especialy for vats of stock, Cast Iron griddle is to die for, especialy when feeding the five thousand with sausage sarnies after snowball fights (eldest son & his mates were 24 going on 4 in the snow).

Primrose

I find as I get older, I am veering away from heavy cookware. It's just too awkward to handle, especially in and out of hot ovens, although my one large Le Creuset caserole dish will not be made redundant. I used to love the non stick frying pans which came with a lightweight aluminium lid. Now they all seem to have heavier glass ones which I hate.
I have a set of stainless steel saucepans but I find the handles often get too hot to handle. My most faithful old friends are a set of good quality aluminium saucepans with wooden handles which I had as a wedding present 43 years ago which are still going strong. Over the years they have survived just about everything which has been thrown at and in them.