Kitchenware needed.

[tskeeter]

After hanging out in restaurant kitchens for 10 years, or so,in my younger days,  I'm kind of fussy about my kitchen equipment.  

For basic pots and loans, I like stainless with aluminum sandwiched in the bottom.  Good heat distribution and can be run through the dish washer, if you like (aluminum, alone, darkens and may pit and become rough).  For brands, I'd love to have All Clad, but have used Farberware for over 30years.

For stews, beans, and the like, I don't think you can beat Le Creuset.  Expensive, but worth the investment.  Much easier to clean and maintain than plain cast iron, but works just as well.

For baking, I like a basic half sheet pan for cookies and similar items.  Bought at a restaurant supply store for about 1/3 of what you'd pay most other places.  A cooling rack for each sheet pan often comes in handy, and are cheap at the restaurant supply.  For cakes and small roasting processes, I like Pyrex, or other glass pans.  For ease of cleaning, of course.  They're dishwasher safe.

[Knee Deep in Water Chloe]

naughtybear, it depends on what you mean by expensive. We have Calphalon for the larger pans. They're holding up well. We have a Le Crueset non-stick egg pan. It's been used daily for three years; I don't think it'll last another two. 

We use USA PAN for baking sheets. 

Our knives are Henckels and Wusthof. I've had the Henckels for over a decade. They're serrated; I desparately need to get them sharpened. I think it was milee who recommended the Wusthof knives. We found some last Thanksgiving on Black Friday. They're phenomenal. 

tskeeter, my husband is the same way but only spent three years working in restaurants. In addition to pan preferences, he has an affinity for certain spatulas. 

[CCL]

Nov 2, 2016 10:38:31 GMT -5 The Walk of the Penguin Mich said:

Your best bet is to avoid a set and buy pieces you need and use.  

Cooks Illustrated did a review on cookware several years ago and while they liked the All Clad, they preferred due to price Walmart's Tramontina.  We bought a few pieces, and use them almost exclusively as pots.  They aren't cheap, but they are nice.

www.walmart.com/ip/Tramontina-2-Qt-Tri-Ply-Clad-Sauce-Pan-with-Lid-Stainless-Steel/23000705

For the rest, I use a Le Crueset Dutch oven, Lodge cast iron skillets, and Cephalon lined skillets for things like eggs.

I've had a couple Tramontina and was disappointed. I didn't expect them to last forever. I figured I'd use them a couple years then move on, but after just a few months the bottoms warped so would not sit flat. Then the lack of surface contact from the warping caused them to slide around on the stove, downright dangerous, so I trashed them. I can't recommend them at all.

[weltschmerz]

Love, love, love my Le Creuset Dutch oven. I inherited it from my mother.
It's ancient, but almost like new.
Yes, they're expensive, but worth it.

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

Nov 2, 2016 21:58:50 GMT -5 CCL said:

Nov 2, 2016 10:38:31 GMT -5 The Walk of the Penguin Mich said:

Your best bet is to avoid a set and buy pieces you need and use.  

Cooks Illustrated did a review on cookware several years ago and while they liked the All Clad, they preferred due to price Walmart's Tramontina.  We bought a few pieces, and use them almost exclusively as pots.  They aren't cheap, but they are nice.

www.walmart.com/ip/Tramontina-2-Qt-Tri-Ply-Clad-Sauce-Pan-with-Lid-Stainless-Steel/23000705

For the rest, I use a Le Crueset Dutch oven, Lodge cast iron skillets, and Cephalon lined skillets for things like eggs.

I've had a couple Tramontina and was disappointed. I didn't expect them to last forever. I figured I'd use them a couple years then move on, but after just a few months the bottoms warped so would not sit flat. Then the lack of surface contact from the warping caused them to slide around on the stove, downright dangerous, so I trashed them. I can't recommend them at all.

There are about 3 different levels of Tramontina pans, and these are the most expensive.  I think we paid about $150 for the 4 we have, and have used them daily since this article came out in CI.  They still look new.  There is no way that these these are warping, the bottoms have a heavy core in them.

[tskeeter]

Nov 2, 2016 21:11:01 GMT -5 Knee Deep in Water Chloe said:

naughtybear , it depends on what you mean by expensive. We have Calphalon for the larger pans. They're holding up well. We have a Le Crueset non-stick egg pan. It's been used daily for three years; I don't think it'll last another two. 

We use USA PAN for baking sheets. 

Our knives are Henckels and Wusthof. I've had the Henckels for over a decade. They're serrated; I desparately need to get them sharpened. I think it was milee who recommended the Wusthof knives. We found some last Thanksgiving on Black Friday. They're phenomenal. 

tskeeter , my husband is the same way but only spent three years working in restaurants. In addition to pan preferences, he has an affinity for certain spatulas. 

So, spatula fantasies are a problem?  

[milee]

Nov 2, 2016 21:11:01 GMT -5 Knee Deep in Water Chloe said:

Our knives are Henckels and Wusthof. I've had the Henckels for over a decade. They're serrated; I desparately need to get them sharpened. I think it was milee who recommended the Wusthof knives. We found some last Thanksgiving on Black Friday. They're phenomenal. 

I don't think it was me.  I have mostly the Victorinox that were recommended as the top pick by America's Test Kitchen.  Thanks to them, I have a really eclectic mix of incredibly expensive and very inexpensive kitchenware.  The Victorinox were inexpensive but have been fantastic.  That same year I got the knife sharpener that they recommended and since my oldest son was fascinated with it, let him learn how to use it.  Now he keeps them nice and sharp.  Not sure what I'm going to do when he goes off to college...

[Blonde Granny]

Absolutely! Le Creuset wins first place in my kitchen. You will buy a piece once and will never replace it, but it will get handed down to future generations.

[milee]

Nov 3, 2016 7:27:37 GMT -5 Blonde Granny said:

Absolutely! Le Creuset wins first place in my kitchen. You will buy a piece once and will never replace it, but it will get handed down to future generations.

One of my favorite frying pans is an ancient Le Creuset that someone handed down to DH and I when we first got married.  It isn't pretty, but it cooks evenly and I love it.  

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

Back when I had one of my surgeries in WA, a friend/coworker was in the process of getting a divorce and had moved out of his house.  He offered to take care of my cat for 6 weeks while I was recovering and wouldn't accept money, so I put together a basket of kitchen goodies for him to get him started in his new place.  I thought it was a lot of fun shopping for this, and as he liked to cook knew he'd appreciate it.

What I bought him was a 2 quart and 3 quart Tramontina sauce pans, a 5 quart Lodge enameled Dutch oven, a cast iron skillet, a set of 2 Cephalon lined skillets, a Victorinox Chef and paring knife, a set of dish towels.  Since CI likes Oxo, I picked him up a slotted spoon, tongs, spatula, can opener, grater and potato peeler.  I figured that this would take care of most of his needs, and he could fill in the holes later.  

I think he was bawling on the phone when he called me to thank me for this.

[Tiny]

I have a hand held Kitchen aid mixer that I think is great. I don't do much that requires mixing so the big Kitchen aid mixer would be over kill. The handheld beats up egg whites nicely, whips up mashed potatoes, and the occasional boxed cake mix. It's comfortable to hold and easy to clean up.

I use a food processor much more often and as soon as my "starter food processor" from black and decker dies I'll be getting a higher end one. Love the B&D... but could easily justify a larger capacity more expensive/sturdier one in the future.

[dee27]

Mich,


That was a very nice gift for your friend. I am the gadget queen, so when our kids and our friends kids moved to apartments, I asked them to send me a list. I mailed a lot of gently used items that I had doubles or triples of to start their kitchens.

[bookkeeper]

I cook quite a bit at home. I have a set of stainless steel pots and pans with a heavy aluminum clad base. I think they are Wearever and I bought them at Walmart. They go in and out of the dishwasher beautifully and I have had them 10 years. I also have a set of cast iron fry pans that were a gift back in 1990. They work the best for frying or deep frying as well as baking items in the oven (think homemade pizza).

I have a set of nonstick fry pans that are Anolon brand.  I have had them for a year, but I don't put them in the dishwasher.  I accidently left the burner on when I sat down to eat the other day and burnt the finish on my large non stick pan.  I scrubbed it with baking soda and vinegar and the burnt grease came off.  I was amazed.  I thought I had ruined the fry pan for sure.

If I was starting from scratch, I would shop the thrift stores for Pyrex and Airbake bakeware.  A $20 bill will buy you one of every size of Pyrex baking dish and probably a few cookie sheets to boot. I have been collecting Tupperware modular mates at my local Hospice Thrift Store for a dollar or two each container.  I like the way they all stack together and the lids are interchangeable.

I bought some Henckels and Wusthof knives at a yard sale.  These are some of the nicest knives I own. 

Other considerations may be a Swingaway can opener and a Pampered Chef vegetable peeler.  Both good products that get used often.

[Tiny]

If you are looking at second hand pyrex/corningware OR if get some from someone - and it's got that brownish 'residue' on it (aka baked on 'grease') you can easily remove it.

The trick is soaking the item in baking soda and water - usually overnight. DON"T DO THIS WITH ALUMINUM ANYTHING OR NON_STICK ANYTHING!!!! The baking soda/water soak will darken aluminum and it may ruin a non-stick finish. A baking soda and water soak will make cleaning the baked on 'gunk' off of just about anything - easier.

To clean the edges of a pyrex bowl/casserole or corning ware - I find something that the upsidedown casserole fits in - sometimes it's a plastic dishpan - sometimes it an old already ruined no longer used jelly roll pan. I dissolve a couple of table spoons of baking soda per quart of water, pour the solution into the plastic pan (or jelly roll pan) and then set the pyrex with the edges down into the water. Basically you want enough soak water so  All of the brown stuff is covered by water.   Let it set over night (or longer) and then give it a scrub with a plastic scruffy.  An old toothbrush is good too for scrubbing -- if there's decorative indents in the glassware.     The brown stuff should be gone.   If there's some left do a second soak and scrub. I've done a couple of "family heirloom" old well used pieces of pyrex a 'side' at a time - I filled it with the solution to clean out the inside, I let it soak right side up in pan of solution to clean the bottom and then a final day of soaking upside down (to the lip/rim/edges) clean.   I didn't have anything deep enough or big enough to submerge the entire piece in one shot.   

I'd be careful scrubbing any of the 'painted' oldtime pyrex/glasbake/fireking stuff - you'll scratch remove the finish. Cleaning up the clear bakeware is easy peasy... so don't let the icky brown stuff turn you off a piece of old pyrex or white corning ware... the baking soda solution and some patience will make it as good as new.

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

Nov 4, 2016 7:34:57 GMT -5 @wxyz said:

The set I mentioned above is a PRIME item on Amazon.  It has 4.5 star review with 1125 people reviewing it.  Regular price is $670.  It is on sale right now at $199.63.

The problem with sets is that there are usually a few pieces that you never, ever use.  If you live in a house with more cabinet space, it may not matter.  When I lived in apartments, every single piece I bought had to be a multitasker (thanks, Alton) because my cabinet space was extremely limited.  My counter space was also very limited, so I had to consider very carefully what small appliances to buy.  

ETA:  I just took a look at this cookware set.  There are 3 pieces I would never use (the 2 skillets and the small sauce pan....too small to cook anything).  The only time I'd use the 8 quart stock pot would be to make stock, but it is too big to make soup in.  I have 5 quart pots for that and it still makes a lot of soup for 2.  

[dee27]

For naughtybear:


Wayfair has cookware on sale.  Here are the links.


www.wayfair.com/Cookware-Sets-C417496.html



www.wayfair.com/Dutch-Ovens-Braisers-and-Casseroles-C1766916.html
  There is a limited selection of LeCreuset, but Artisan and Lodge has a greater variety.


www.wayfair.com/Bakeware-Sets-C417535.html?sku_boost_list=WFBS1132