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Sam Iam, the Cuisinart pans seem like good quality at a good price...however, the current ones for sale have that groove in the top of the handle like All-Clad does, and that groove bites viciously into my hand. I wonder if it's a proportion thing, I have large mitts with stubby-ish fingers and any of those grooved handles deliver a fair amount of pain to me.

I totally agree on the whole rental market thing. I am enamored with the induction stoves since my wife, who grew up with electric stoves, refuses to consider a gas one The pans sound like what I'm looking for. I checked out the heft over at Kohl's today and liked it. The gourmet cooking in any case will be waiting until the little boys (3.5 and 1) are a little older and slightly less time consuming to parent

Thanks! Any comment on how the multi-ply bottom behaves? Most in this price range have just a thick aluminum disk.

I'm looking at the Kitchenaid Gourmet Distinctions cookware set. Stainless steel, aluminum/copper/aluminum bottom with a magnetic steel outer layer for induction capability, which will be nice when I get my induction stove (someday!). I'm tossing my collection of teflon coated stuff ASAP. Amazon Link: http://tinyurl.com/2hhswk Any thoughts on this? The price isn't too bad, my wife likes the aesthetics, there's enough pieces to complement my existing stash of cast iron and a loan carbon steel crepe pan.

You know, it did take like 3 weeks to get that pan from them. With what you say I will not bother with them again. The Homichef pan was accidentally left on the stove with a small amount of water (for oatmeanl) while I was doing diaper duty...it did not take well to being heated on 'hi' for 12 minutes. After cooling it made loud cracking noises when I tried to scrub out the inside so I tossed it, fearing the bottom would separate completely from the pan. It's been replaced with an all-aluminum 1.5 qt. sauce pan from a local restaurant supply store. $8.50.

I've received my $10 Homichef 1.3 qt stainless steel pan from Instawares. It's pretty decent: the handle is spot-welded in 6 spots and is water tight. Comfort-wise it's ok but not great. The bottom has 0.25 in of aluminum in a trapezoidal shape (a bit wider at the edges of the pan than at the very bottom) clad in magnetic steel. The inside has a brushed finish and a nicely rounded corner from the straight sides to the bottom. Overall, it's nice, and the price is unbeatable. From what I can tell from the their incomprehensible website, the brand is the house brand of some Chinese factory that makes cookware. I'll let y'all know in 10 years how it's stood up to the test of time

I liked the handle design and full annular weld on the Bourgeat compared with the Sitram. I don't mind a few extra bucks here and there when this stuff should last a very long time Thanks for the tip! I had been concerned about the edge of the disk on the Sitram pans. Right now my apartment has an electric stove so the hot edge won't matter. Our next place (projected for March 2007) will have whatever stove it comes with... I will definitely look into that JB Prince pan, that looks like an excellent bargain. Thanks!

I am in the process of slowly replacing 6-year old thin aluminum Farberware cookware, complete with peeling teflon. Due for replacement: 1 qt and 3 qt saucepans, 3 qt saute pan (which we use for everything). I ordered a Homichef sauce pan on a lark to see what this very cheap brand is like, that should arrive soon. I have a Le Creuset 1.3 qt pan too which cooks exquisite oatmeal. I have since come across the Bourgeat Exellence stainless steel line. I like the welded handles, especially after years of cleaning crud out from handle rivets. Does anyone have any experience with this brand? How does it compare to the Paderno or Sitram brands? The specific pans I am interested in are the 3 (or so) qt suacepan replacement, and a bigger 11" diameter saute pan, both of which can be had from Sitram or Bourgeat. I'm also going to order the Sitram 3.4 qt saucier pan since my wife and I do a lot of cooking involving smaller quantities of meat with sauces. Down the line I'll look into some fully-clad frypans, but that can wait, especially due to the higher prices for that style of cookware.

I read the Knife Sharpening article last night. I have an old, terribly cheap set of knives that deserve recycling. However, the new chef's knife is going to wait until October or November (I'm going with that $50 Tojiro gyuto). According to the article I can use a pair of old mouse pads that I have next to me, pick up some sandpaper at the automotive store, and sharpen away. Then I just need to invest in a smooth steel and I can resurrect my cruddy knives (and practice sharpening technique) for a few months? Could it really be that easy and cheap??