What to look for with pans?

sancho

After trying to clean one of my pans after it set on fire i'm not sure it's not able to be rescued. So it's time to buy a new set!

They were bought for us when we moved into our first house 10 years ago, so I've never bought pans before, i'm a great believer of you get what you pay for, especially with kitchen stuff.

Had a quick look at the John Lewis website, lots of different types and coatings, anodized?, and got confuddled, what should i be looking for?

Thanks in advance

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Been there last week and bought Meyer Circulon Infinite (top of the range). Their two skillet 30cm and 24cm set for £65 cannot be beat (John Lewis is about £60 just for the big one !) and free delivery to my office within 36 hours.

I chose the pans after much research and they are top notch. When the pots come up for replacement they will come from this range as well.

http://www.hartsofstur.com/acatalog/Circulon_Infinite.html

Mayflower10cat

I used to be a big fan of Circulon, and have had three different skillets over the last ten years, but very sadly, the non-stick finish just hasn't lasted. Hard to believe I know, and I probably should have written to complain, but didn't! I do have a Circulon casserole which is three years old and so far, so good. My current frying pans are made by 'Procook' from their professional range; stainless steel outer and hard annodized non-stick interior (they were dearer than Circulon) and are incredibly heavy. I made certain I kept those receipts!!!

My other saucepans are Meyer professional stainless steel, I bought a set from John Lewis about five years ago, cost about £80 and they've been fantastic. Look beautiful, too!

Personally I steer well clear of aluminium pans. Even the slightest link to Alzeheimers disease is enough to put me off.

There's always cast iron of course and the eternally popular 'Le Creuset' range (often to be found in TKMaxx & the like) but they really are very heavy to lift - don't ever drop a lid on a ceramic tiled floor!

daveyjp

Check out Stellar stainless steel pans. They often have offers on and they are excellent quality - IIRC James Martin branded pans are Stellar. Ours are over 15 years old and look brand new - always cleaned in the dishwasher and even the casserole pan comes up gleaming.

becs

We bought 2 box sets of Anolon in the sales. One from John Lewis and the other from Debenhams and got a really good selection of pans. I am a huge fan of them. We've had them for coming up 4 years now and they get a lot of use including heavy duty stuff like jam making etc an they look as good as they did when first out of the box. The exception to this is where dear Hubby has been cooking sausages or something in the frying pan then once the fat has splattered outside of the pan he's put the whole thing in the oven! So they have those lovely brown mottley marks on the outside of the frying pan which I'm sure would come of if I could find the right product! I would say though I have never ever used anything metal in them, I use the nylon plastic utensils and they have never been in the dishwasher. It does say they're not dishwasher proof but I know some people disregard this. I think they're fantastic and I would say I'd buy them again although shouldn't need to.

Yorkie1

I have the meyer circulon saucepan (anodised). It's great. Comes clean every time and because it's smoother than most non-stick pans, it doesn't get roughed up when in use.

diable

I just bought a large Le Creuset frying pan with a lid and a Skillet, not cheap but hey ho they match my (small) collection of Global Knives.

sancho

Yeah, we have a large creuset frying pan with lid, and when I can find a 28cm casserole for under 100 I have the funds for one of those, I think the saucepans are too heavy for day to day use (they live on top of the fridge!)

Do all anodised ones have to be kept out of the dishwasher? If so that's a no go!

WestonDave

I'm a stainless steel fan - I grew up with parents having had a set throughout their marriage (I've a feeling they still have some of them) and they are pretty indestructible - even if you burn them really badly you can eventually bring them back to life (even if it takes wire wool!). Stellar are really nice, but when I bought my first house I couldn't afford them so bought a set of Judge stainless steel ones (made by the same company as Stellar but without the really high gloss finish etc). I've had them since 1998 and they are still as good as new - the only slight issue I have with them is having to tighten the screw on the handle from time to time.

sancho

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Circulon-Infinite-Anodised-Cookware-Piece/dp/B0018S13MM/ref=sr_1_1?s=kitchen&ie=UTF8&qid=1283625692&sr=1-1

These seem quite good?

becs

As far as I know none of the anodised ones are dishwasher safe. To be honest I thought it would be a real issue but they are so easy to clean it really isn't. Even when I've used one to do jam and burnt some on the bottom within 2 minutes it is sparkling again. Normal day to day use is literally a quick dunk in the water and a wipe with cloth and they're pristine.