Should you purchase a whole set of pots or buy them one at at a time?

A great question and one that really depends on several things including your cooking needs, level of cooking, and how much you want to spend.

Over the years I purchased a few pots and pans made by Calphalon, still use them today but can also recommend All Clad, Viking and Circulon. Since I bought my pans years ago, they have come up with some great new technology including handles that don't get hot and a better selection of non stick products.

I purchased my pans over time and in the end it has probably cost me more than just buying a complete set. At the time though, I didn't have the bucks to buy a whole set so it didn't matter. I still enjoy shopping for new pans and love when my wife surprises me on my birthday or during the holidays.

If you don't purchase a complete set, buy a couple of good quality essentials and add to your collection as you go along. Like investing in stocks, you wouldn’t buy your whole portfolio at one time but add to it when the market is right. See below for some good RESOURCES.

Cookware Pot Information Posted By: Blueshoots.com

Orignal Source :http://www.reluctantgourmet.com/

What to look for in a good soup pot?

Size: Soup pots typically come in sizes ranging as small as 4 qt. to as large as 20-qt. before getting into commercial sizes. Although a soup pot doesn't have to be as big as a stock pot because you typically don't make as big a batch, you don't need to have one pot for soup and anther one for stock. I'm recommending you look at a 6-qt. - 12-qt. range so it will be versatile for your other cooking needs.

Shape: As show in the picture on the left, a soup pot usually has a round base, deep straight sides and a cover. Although this shape is more important when making stocks and stock reductions, it works well for making soups too. Could you use a shorter, smaller, wider pan for making soups? Of course and depending on how much you are making you just may want to use a large sauce pan instead.

Structure: No matter what type of pan you buy, you want it to have a thick, heavy bottom to prevent burning. This is especially true with soup pots. Soup requires time to cook so the pan will be sitting on the stove tip for long periods. You don't want the ingredients to scorch and stick to the bottom because it is too thin or made of cheap materials.

Materials: There are lots of different schools of thought to what a good pan should be made of. For a good article on cookware material from a professional chef, check out contributing chef Mark Vogel's, How to Choose Cookware. In his article you will learn about the various materials you can choose from including as copper, aluminum, cast iron, stainless, nonstick and a combination of different materials. Each material has its own pluses and minuses including cost.

Companies like Calphalon created a "hard-anodizing" aluminum for cookware using an electrochemical method of preparing raw aluminum that was developed by NASA for the aerospace industry. Talk about cooking with George Jetson. The end product is actually harder than stainless steel and non-reactive to acids. So you can see there are a lot of choices when it comes to materials. Which on you choose will depend on what's available, cost and what feels good in your hand.

Conductivity: What this means is the pots ability to transmit heat from the heat source to the food and do so both evenly and efficiently. Well-made soup pots are considered highly conductive when they can transfer heat evenly across the bottom and up the side so the food cooks the way it is supposed to. You want the soup at the bottom of the pan to be cooking evenly with the soup at the top. Every metal conducts heat differently so that's why its important to find the right match the type of pot you are using and the way you cook.

Handle: Whether you are using it to make soup or just to boil some corn, you want a well constructed pot with a handle that you feel secure won't fall off when you are lifting a pot of hot liquid. So look for soup pots with handles that are securely attached to the pot. So pick a pot that uses heavy screw or rivets with their handles.

Some of the new cookware on the market have handles that resist getting hot when using on your stove top. This is great if you want to move the pot from the burner to the sink but you want to be careful if you put it in the over for any reason. Cool resistant doesn't mean cool proof. Always use your Silicone Oven Mitts when taking any cookware out of a hot oven.

Another think to look for in a handle is the shape and size. You want enough room to be able to grab with potholders and a comfortable shape for picking up.

Cookware Pot Information Posted By: Blueshoots.com

Should you purchase a whole set of pans or buy them one at at a time?

A great question and one that really depends on several things including your cooking needs, level of cooking, and how much you want to spend.

Over the years I purchased a few pots and pans made by Calphalon, still use them today but can also recommend All Clad, Viking and Circulon. Since I bought my pans years ago, they have come up with some great new technology including handles that don't get hot and a better selection of non stick products.

I purchased my pans over time and in the end it has probably cost me more than just buying a complete set. At the time though, I didn't have the bucks to buy a whole set so it didn't matter. I still enjoy shopping for new pans and love when my wife surprises me on my birthday or during the holidays.

If you don't purchase a complete set, buy a couple of good quality essentials and add to your collection as you go along. Like investing in stocks, you wouldn’t buy your whole portfolio at one time but add to it when the market is right.

Cookware Pot Information Posted By: Blueshoots.com

Original Source : http://www.reluctantgourmet.com/

Copper cookware 5 and 8 piece sets

Good quality copper cookware, pots and pans that will withstand the daily rigours of a any kitchen, at an affordable price.

Handcrafted copper cookware, copper fry pan, sauté pan, crepe pan, saucepan, saute pan and casserole, perfect for everyday cooking.

All our pans and lids are spun
by hand and constructed from


Body of pan:

We use 1.6mm solid copper.

Modern cooking appliances provide a very even and consistant heat. The thickness of our copper cookware allows for a very fast, even and efficient heat distribution.
The spinning process creates a very hard and durable product.
All pots and pans have a drip free edge.

Interior Lining:

Heavy tin lining is applied to our copper cookware by hand in the traditional way.
Enhances heat conductivity and is non-ractive to food.
The characteristics unevenness and wipe marks.

Handles:

Hand forged wrought iron handles which will stay cool a lot longer than: eg. brass handles. The handle is attached to the copper cookware with counter sunk rivets which are flush with the interior surface.

Size - volume:

As our copper cookware is handcrafted size and volume will vary slightly.

Cookware Pot Information Posted By: Blueshoots.com

Orignal Source :http://www.laracopper.com/