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Non-stick pan suggestions

blbst36

By blbst36
in Kitchen Consumer

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boilsover

boilsover

Posted
Posted
  On 3/21/2018 at 2:53 PM, gfweb said:

Companies introduce new models for various reasons only some of which are intended to be innovations.  They come out with more versions to get more shelf space (do dogs really need 5 flavors of canned food?)...or to have something to promote...or to reach a new demographic...or because somebody else comes out with it. 

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That's fatal in this industry.  I happen to know it took 6 YEARS for All-Clad to develop d3 Armor.  That kind of investment isn't done purely for marketing reasons.  They view these things as innovations.  The $6 million question is whether it sells.

 

The problem is that major innovations come along about every 50 years.  In the case of conductivity, it's been at least 3 millennia.

gfweb

gfweb

Posted
Posted

The Phillies spent more than 6 years trying to turn Dom Brown into an outfielder. Bad idea it turned out. Commitment doesn't require wisdom. 

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Toliver

Toliver

Posted
Posted

A few years ago, when Calphalon was phasing out their "Professional" non-stick line, I bought just about every pan/version of it on Amazon.

It's all still going strong in my kitchen. But then I treat them right (don't use metal spatulas, etc, in them). Plus, they still clean up easy peasy. 

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paulraphael

paulraphael

Posted
Posted

All Clad is annoying because their basic clad stainless line is very good. I have a couple of the 10" fry pans from this series, and for responsiveness and tossability they're as good as any pans I've used. Whenever I've used the saucepans in other people's kitchens, they've given me nothing to complain about. It would be great if they feld they could thrive just selling the simple stuff that actually works. 

 

People complain about the handles, but I think they're exceptional. It gets overlooked that that they were designed for professional kitchens, where no one ever grabs a pan without using a side towel. Grab one of those funky AC handles with a towel, and then grab any other kind of handle, and I think you'll get it immediately. 

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Notes from the underbelly

boilsover

boilsover

Posted
Posted
  On 3/21/2018 at 4:31 PM, gfweb said:

The Phillies spent more than 6 years trying to turn Dom Brown into an outfielder. Bad idea it turned out. Commitment doesn't require wisdom. 

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Yeah, well, 6 years isn't out of the ordinary in bringing cookware to market.  Consumers somehow think new products just magically appear.

boilsover

boilsover

Posted
Posted (edited)
  On 3/21/2018 at 10:16 PM, paulraphael said:

All Clad is annoying because their basic clad stainless line is very good.

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IMO, the stainless triply was very good in the 1980s.  It's still good, and I think better than any of their other clad lines.  The original MC and now the MC2 are even better, IMO.  The Copper Core, d5, d7 underperforms--at higher prices.  Such are the dictates of "exclusives" and the "aspirational" market in general.

 

Color me one of the handle haters.  It's just senseless at this point--there are plenty of handle designs that stay cool and work well both with a side towel and barehanded.  IMO, the "iconic" A-C handle is one of the few ways A-C has left to distinguish its brand.  The majority of home cooks are unhappy with the handle, and IME it really isn't getting a lot of love on the pro side, either.   A-C has altered it a bit on lines like TK, which I take to be an admission of sorts.  But if you like it, great. 

Edited by boilsover (log)
paulraphael

paulraphael

Posted
Posted

My only experience is with the 3-ply stuff. The MC series always looked like serious and capable designs. Agree that the copper core and 5+ layer pans are dumb gimmicks.

 

I knew one west coast chef who bought AC for his restaurant largely for the handles. It's definitely illuminating if you pick up one of the original-handled ac pans with a side towel and do the same with anything else in your kitchen. Y

 

Nevertheless, it surprises me that the design has lasted so long. Every home cook I know dislikes it, and the whims of home cooks seem to dictate all AC's other decisions.

Notes from the underbelly

weinoo

weinoo

Posted
Posted

I love my original MC line of all-clad.  After many, many years, the pieces I had which were non-stick, weren't any more. So I sent them off to all-clad, and they happily replaced them with updated versions of their non-stick, which are nowhere like those pans of 30 years ago. But I still have my stainless lined, original MC pans, and they're just as awesome as when they were new. Made in Canonsburg , PA - as opposed to, you know, China.

 

I do have a set of those Tramontina non-sticks, also bought quite a few years ago - oven safe to 450F or so, and they don't make those any more. Simply used for eggs.

 

But yes, it's all about technique - not only the correct temp, but leaving stuff in the pan without futzing around with it, and it will release itself. Just like on a grill.

 

the real deal...

 

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gfweb

gfweb

Posted
Posted
  On 3/22/2018 at 1:31 AM, boilsover said:

 

Yeah, well, 6 years isn't out of the ordinary in bringing cookware to market.  Consumers somehow think new products just magically appear.

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You miss the point. Committing 6 years could be more a sign of bad judgement as anything else. 

 

If something sounds dumb it probably is. 

 

I have seen plenty of big companies , who should know better, stick with a doomed project because killing it would make somebody look foolish. 

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boilsover

boilsover

Posted
Posted
  On 3/22/2018 at 2:40 AM, gfweb said:

Committing 6 years could be more a sign of bad judgement as anything else.

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By this standard, none of the major cookware companies is doing it right.  Tune up your resume!

rustwood

rustwood

Posted
Posted (edited)

Has anyone seen or tried those pebbled ceramic coated skillets?  I am not sure what they are called*, but I cooked on one at a vacation home we borrowed and was impressed.  I bought a set for my mother and she seems to like them a lot.  I wouldn't say she is a cookware connoisseur, but she has owned and used many different pans (including a Griswold 43b that I covet).  I was afraid she wouldn't like them and she was skeptical at first, but she has been surprised by how well they work.

 

*update:  J. A. Henkels calls this a Ceraforce surface (link to frying pan)

Edited by rustwood (log)
chefmd

chefmd

Posted
Posted

Scrambled eggs this morning  in my old but no name cast iron skillet.   Cleaned it with dry paper towel.  Did not even have to use kosher salt.

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paulraphael

paulraphael

Posted
Posted (edited)
  On 3/22/2018 at 2:17 AM, weinoo said:

I love my original MC line of all-clad.  After many, many years, the pieces I had which were non-stick, weren't any more. So I sent them off to all-clad, and they happily replaced them with updated versions of their non-stick, which are nowhere like those pans of 30 years ago. But I still have my stainless lined, original MC pans, and they're just as awesome as when they were new. Made in Canonsburg , PA - as opposed to, you know, China.

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Yeah, I have a couple of pieces of nearly 30 year-old Calphalon that are similar. Back when it was just the Commercial Aluminuminum Cookware Co. of Toledo, OH. The stuff is totally burly .. 6 or 7mm thick throughout, riveted iron handles, commercial lids.  Much of the anodizing has vanished from the interior of these pans, and I don't love anodized cookware generally. But these pans still work, and will probably outlast me. I've occasionally thought about replacing the 5qt beat-to-hell rondeau with a heavy copper one, or an induction-ready clad stainless one, but then sobered up and realized that the old war horse is more than good enough. In a perfect world I'd prefer old beat-up All-Clad MC or stainless.

Edited by paulraphael (log)
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Notes from the underbelly

  • 2 months later...
blbst36

blbst36

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted
  On 6/16/2018 at 11:01 PM, Orbit said:

I'm thinking about buying this: https://www.amazon.com/All-Clad-Stainless-Tri-Ply-Dishwasher-Cookware/dp/B00FUF5K8W/ref=sr_1_3_sspa?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1529189855&sr=1-3-spons&keywords=all+clad&psc=1

 

and wondered what the hivemind thought about the pan. Good deal? Durable?

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I've had my All-Clad for almost 15 years (maybe longer).  They aren't what I would classify as non-stick.  Lots of fat needs to be used.  If you have never cooked on a steel pan before, it will be like learning how to cook again.  That being said, I still love them and use them often with my cast-iron.  Between the two sets, there's not much I am missing.  Others may have a different opinion, though.

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Orbit

Orbit

Posted
Posted
  On 6/16/2018 at 11:13 PM, blbst36 said:

 

I've had my All-Clad for almost 15 years (maybe longer).  They aren't what I would classify as non-stick.  Lots of fat needs to be used.  If you have never cooked on a steel pan before, it will be like learning how to cook again.  That being said, I still love them and use them often with my cast-iron.  Between the two sets, there's not much I am missing.  Others may have a different opinion, though.

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I realized it's not nonstick--I guess I put my query in the wrong thread. Thanks for your comment, I'm thinking about it....not liking the learning to cook again part so much lol

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blbst36

blbst36

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted
  On 6/16/2018 at 11:18 PM, Orbit said:

 

I realized it's not nonstick--I guess I put my query in the wrong thread. Thanks for your comment, I'm thinking about it....not liking the learning to cook again part so much lol

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:)  It's kind of the same curve as learning to cook on cast iron.  I'm sure you'll catch on quick.  It's more about being aware of the heat settings and the amount of fat being used.  Things like that.  If I can do it, anyone can :D 

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