which saucepans to buy?

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Hi danz01,

There's an earlier thread that should help so I've added your thread to it to keep all the suggestions together.

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danz0l

MRSMCAWBER wrote: »

Hi there

Im affraid im a le creuset fan ...I know they aren't the cheapest.. but heck they are virtually indistructable :T and i figure with how much time i spend in the kitchen -they have more than earnt their keep;)

I uise an electric hob, would le creuset be ok for them ? And what type do you use ? Cast iron ?

They are so expensive but i see them regularly being used by top chefs on TV as well as advertised everywhere. I wonder if i should bite the bullet and swallow some pride and get some. Do they stick ?

Ellidee

danz01 if I had the money I would buy Circulon pans made by Meyer. You do sometimes see the sets on offer at Debenhams & other places for £100. I have got the frying pan and it's fab. Le Creuset are too heavy for me.

Vampgirl

We bought a 5 piece Anolon Professional set in 2004 and I absolutely love them. They are a good size, they cook very evenly and nothing ever ever sticks (that's no exageration...I've tried to make things stick before to really test them and I couldn't!)

They still look almost like new despite being used virtually every day for 4 years on a gas hob and I just know that they'll keep going for years. I would never go back to ordinary non-stick or stainless steel now, and I've never like le creuset coz they're far too heavy. Yes they were pretty expensive (£150 and that was half price!) but definately worth it!

danz0l

Vampgirl wrote: »

We bought a 5 piece Anolon Professional set in 2004 and I absolutely love them. They are a good size, they cook very evenly and nothing ever ever sticks (that's no exageration...I've tried to make things stick before to really test them and I couldn't!)

Would it be these ones Vampgirl ?

http://www.clearancebuys.co.uk/Anolon-Professional-5-Piece-Set-p-16598.html

They seem reasonably priced but wonder if thats some kind of budget range.

outrageous_monkey

We have 2 sets of pans...... a really cheap set (3 for £10) out of TJ Hughs and then an expensive non-stick set (3 for £70)....I prefer the cheap ones, the dearer ones tend to take longer to get to the boil...but the cheap set are about 8 years old now and still as good as the day we bought them.

Stephen_Leak

danz0l wrote: »

I uise an electric hob, would le creuset be ok for them ? And what type do you use ? Cast iron ?

They are so expensive but i see them regularly being used by top chefs on TV as well as advertised everywhere. I wonder if i should bite the bullet and swallow some pride and get some. Do they stick ?

Le Creuset:

Good points: Whilst they aren't formally non-stick, they don't stick, if you see what I mean. They are very durable. They cook very evenly.

Bad points: They are expensive. They are heavy. They take a long time to heat up but don't like being heated up with nothing in them. They can crack if you move them too quickly from heat to cold water. The wooden handles can char if you cook on too high a heat or leave them over a hot ring. The wooden handles also don't like being soaked in hot, soapy water.

General advice:

How many? 2. Size? 16cm/1L and 22cm/2L (The capacity is more important than the diameter). Non-stick? Yes. Lids? Yes (The glass ones are quite useful).

My advice for a new cook is to go for two cheap aluminium non-stick ones. They will wear out in a couple of years but, by then, you will know if you are going to continue cooking and whether to buy the same again, or trade up to stainless steel.

SS is a bit more expensive but also much longer lasting. Therefore, IMHO, they represent the best VFM. Thicker bases, which distribute the heat more evenly are better than thin bases, which mean more stirring.

dan1979

I can't see the point in using Le Creuset saucepans as they're heavy and slow to heat.

I use a combination of Stellar branded stainless steel saucepans and Le Creuset casseroles (all of which I got for under half price by keeping an eye on amazon) which I use for hob/oven.

For stuff like pasta it's always got to be the steel pans but if it's something that's going to sit on the hob and simmer then I use the casseroles since they hold the heat better.

I wouldn't go near the Le Creuset frying pans that they sell in the UK, paying a premium just to get the same iffy non-stick coating (I wouldn't use any sort of Teflon but that's another issue) you'd get on a pan half the price. I use a proper enamelled cast iron pan by Chasseur which doesn't have non-stick and doesn't need it, nothing sticks at all - even eggs.

Decla

There are some cast iron enamelled pans in Aldi at the moment. Just like Le Creuset (which I love). The casserole is £20 and there is also a frying pan, a skillety thing and a huge casserole type pan. I heard about them from JoJoB on the Grocery challenge.

Also I have a Le Creuset from the 1970s that's still going strong so they aren't necessarily bad quality like some have observed. I don't know what's special about mine.

Vampgirl

danz0l wrote: »

Would it be these ones Vampgirl ?

http://www.clearancebuys.co.uk/Anolon-Professional-5-Piece-Set-p-16598.html

They seem reasonably priced but wonder if thats some kind of budget range.

Those look like they're from the same range, but our set is slightly different. They're definately not a budget range, though they have come down in price since we bought them. Debenhams sell the set we have for £200: http://www.debenhams.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_10001_10001_19804_515597_-1