Pots and Pans Essentials

[BigDL]

Originally posted by Mibz
Have you decided on a gas range then? Your options change considerably if you go induction. Not sizes or anything, just brands/materials.

Yeah induction makes a huge difference on what you can choose for your pots and pans.

I also have to agree with everyone else and get a good big stock pot.

I believe the one I have at home is 15QT and sometimes I wish it was bigger for when I have to do my massive veggi stock batch for Christmas or chicken noodle soup batch (i freeze the extra and share some with my sister).

Another thing I am saving up for is a good quality Cast Iron dutch oven.

If you are looking at knives you must visit Knifewear in Inglewood

http://www.knifewear.com/

[BerserkerCatSplat]

Originally posted by Strider


Personally, I prefer to wait for a good sale on cookware sets (50% off or more), rather than buying mismatched pieces... but I might just be a little OCD that way.

Maybe something like this for $270, which seems like a pretty reasonable deal
http://www.thebay.com/eng/home-cookw...-thebay/235090

I agree, I kept an eye on The Bay for a while and bought a set of the Jamie Oliver T-fal stainless collection for about the same price as that set (they seem to rotate the sales, all the $800 sets seem to get dropped down to $250 regularly)

http://www.thebay.com/eng/home-weeke...-thebay/154775

Despite the silly celebchef branding, it's a really solid set of cookware. I've had mine for ~5 years and zero complaints. Comfy-ass handles, too.

[flipstah]

Originally posted by BigDL

If you are looking at knives you must visit Knifewear in Inglewood

http://www.knifewear.com/

+1. They also sell hand-made copper pots. Mucho expensive though.

[Neil4Speed]

Thanks everyone for the suggestions. I haven't exactly settled but a lodge logic set will be coming my way.

[blitz]

Don't worry about getting something that will last a lifetime, just get a normal non-stick set on sale at the Bay + a cast iron skillet + a wok.

If you're not sure what you need, that probably means you don't need anything fancy. If you get into it, then you can step up and find something expensive that suits you.

[heavyfuel]

Originally posted by BigDL




If you are looking at knives you must visit Knifewear in Inglewood

http://www.knifewear.com/

Oh f*** yeah! They have an insane selection there. I bought myself a handmade Japanese knife 2 Christmas's ago and I haven't sharpened it yet, still slices tomatoes paper thin with no effort.

[Supa Dexta]

Cast iron is a pain in the ass to be using all the time. Canadian tire puts frying pans on sale every flyer or 2, some of them $80 on for 19.99 or something.. Use it until it starts to stick and throw it away for that price. Its lighter to handle, easy to clean, and you dont need to maintain it. (Ive got 3 sizes of tfals I use all the time, and a cast iron that hardly ever finds its way out of the cupboard anymore)

Same as their pot sets really, 600 or 800 dollar sets on for 199.. Cant be beat at that cost, and you have to remember this guy opened the thread wanting to make several simple things, he doesn't need an exotic $2000 set of cookware.

[sputnik]

Originally posted by Supa Dexta
Cast iron is a pain in the ass to be using all the time.

A properly seasoned and maintained cast iron pan and dutch oven are essential in kitchens.

Originally posted by Supa Dexta
Canadian tire puts frying pans on sale every flyer or 2, some of them $80 on for 19.99 or something.. Use it until it starts to stick and throw it away for that price.

So use it until you start eating pieces of Teflon?

[Supa Dexta]

Yes. You're cooking knowledge impresses me kitchen wizard.

I love how these threads always bring out the most amazing chefs that just have to share their views on the 'must haves'.. When in fact 99.9% of the population uses exactly what I posted, or even cheaper.

[Pacman]

I'm not a pro cook by any means, but I really prefer using my $20 Lodge frying pan and $60 Lodge dutch oven over anything else I have in the house.

I don't like the teflon coated non stick pans as I find the teflon flakes off easily and I would prefer not to be eating it.

Once your cast iron pan is seasoned properly, it will have a glass like surface and nothing will stick to it. I can fry eggs without any oil, or just a very thin layer and they slide off onto the spatula without breaking.

Don't get me wrong, I would love to have $1,000 fancy looking Le Creuset or Staub stuff in the kitchen, but more for aesthetics than actual cooking performance.

I've got a bunch of Calphalon Anodized pans and pots and they rarely get used now as the cast iron retains the heat much better than the aluminum and doesn't stick like the anodized stuff.

[r3ccOs]

I use my 12" cast iron lodge pan all the time...
its well seasoned and used
It retains heat & distributes evenly, especially good for fried food and items like grilled cheese & french toast

I have an 8" greenpan, which I use as my egg pan, and while almost as good as telflon, its good to know that its a ceramic and isn't as potentially dangerous to my health

I have a large greenpan wok, which is deep and perfect from stir frying, or using as a pot to make just about anything wet that doesn't require braising. An example would be first browning some meat, and then adding stock and subsiquently a startch to the mixture.

I use 2 dutch ovens, one Le Creuset and a Staub pumpkin... I routinely use them to braise anything from lamb curries, to chinese style beef brisket
Also amazing to make stews and soups in as well...

as to pots and pans, I have a variety and as long as they have a decent base, and a long enough handle, that's all I care about

Knives - I own a whole pile of everything
Henkle twin 4 star everything
3 knives from knifewear (1 santoku, 1 sushi, and one pairing)

of the bunch, I use: My japanese santoku, my henkle twin chef knife, and a yellow handled henkle twin master butcher knife

[msommers]

I don't have any cast iron stuff at the moment...What do you guys mean by well seasoned?

[blitz]

It's a series of oiling the pan and heating, over and over, to fill the empty pore space of the iron with oil. Turns it into a sort of non-stick surface that's easy to wipe clean.

[Supa Dexta]

Thoughts on these henckels?

http://www.canadiantire.ca/AST/brows...=en#product_aa

[msommers]

Fuck that's a lot of knives. "We call this the Dexter Edition"

[flipstah]

We have a MiracleBlade set that just sits there...

Cleaver and a chef's knife. Life is good.

[ExtraSlow]

If I was me, Instead if buying a $200 set from canadian tire, I'd buy one good knife that was $195 (chef or santoku) and a $5 parking knife.

[r3ccOs]

Originally posted by ExtraSlow
If I was me, Instead if buying a $200 set from canadian tire, I'd buy one good knife that was $195 (chef or santoku) and a $5 parking knife.

& those Henkles aren't the twins...

I bought mine online at cutlery & more when they go on sale online

[Strider]

I just bought a ceramic (PTFE & PFOA free) non-stick pan to replace a teflon pan that got wrecked by the dishwasher.

HomeSense at Market Mall has a great selection of these (Greenpan, Paderno EcoPan, DannySeo, and a few unknown Italian brands), all roughly $25-$30 vs $70+ at Home Outfitters.

[ExtremeSi]

I still don't understand how it's sanitary to eat off of a cast iron pan that has never been washed with soap. How does that work?