Reply With QuoteA de buyer pan in carbon steel is a steal for the money. Best pan I’ve had, proper non stick when seasoned properly. Everyone should have one.
i would class myself as a pretty decent home cook - from comments passed on my food by others
i don't have any particular style as i do everything from classic French to Far East fusion
but over the years i have used and pretty much destroyed far too many pots and especially fry/saute pans - either by ignorance or poor quality products
so for discussion i have settled on the following
a) casseroles, nothing but Le Creuset (not tried Staub to be fair) - my newest must be over twenty years old and my oldest well over thirty years old - pretty much bulletproof but do not waste your money on the very expensive Le Creuset cleaner
b) shallow saute 'dish/casserole' - Le Creuset non stick with glass lid - recent addition and probably used now for 75%+ of my cooking as so versatile and will even tolerate metal utensils with care
c) wok - Fissler non stick one bought a long time ago from Tesco under a promotion
d) griddle pan - as above Fissler
e) saute pan stainless with glass lid - Mauviel 1830 - relatively new - but the best imo
f) frying pan - Mauviel 1830 stainless steel with non stick coating - the best imo
g) saucepans - Mauviel 1830 stainless steel with glass lids - the best imo
Le Creuset and especially Mauviel are very expensive - but i bought my Mauviel from Borough Kitchen as a 'set' and saved a few hundreds plus they were able to substitute the original steel lids for glass lids
the great thing about both Mauviel and Le Creuset is that they can go from hob to oven - but the long handles of Mauviel often means a 'standard' oven is not large enough
the stainless steel interiors of Mauviel pans are so tough 0000 steel wool is good for cleaning heavy deposits!!!!
watch Saturday Kitchen or James Martin shows and they have the wider Wolf ovens - modern wide ranges with a single oven are a cheaper alternative
Last edited by nick h; 10th March 2021 at 08:53.
A de buyer pan in carbon steel is a steal for the money. Best pan I’ve had, proper non stick when seasoned properly. Everyone should have one.
thanks - never heard of De Buyer so will investigateOriginally Posted by jonasy
A long recent thread on this topic -
https://forum.tz-uk.com/showthread.p...en-dishes-pans
Nisbets get mentioned a lot. I bought a set based on the recommendations here and am very impressed. I cook lot and have a cordon bleu qualification so can speak with some authority. They have an offer on a set of 3 domestic size pans, great value.
https://www.nisbets.co.uk/special-of...cepan-set/s128
You can also get some cashback through Quidco if you're signed up there.
looks reasonable but why not glass lids?
with glass you can see the cooking action whilst maintaining the temperatures
lets be honest its never going within a country mile of Mauviel
as to your Cordon Bleau qualifications - thats bloody pretentious and gives you no right to speak with 'authority' - sorry
i actually buy quite a lot of utensils etc from Nisbetts and find them very good
Last edited by nick h; 10th March 2021 at 10:23.
When I cook, it's all about the taste, not what it looks like whilst it's cooking. The lid is either off because I'm boiling veggies or reducing a sauce. The lid only goes on when it's finished cooking and gas turned off or when it's gone onto very low for final simmer. Can't say I've ever felt the need for a viewing window.
What is important is a thick heavy base for better heat distribution. The Nisbet Vogue's are good on that score and they do sell glass lids if for their range if that's your requirement.
Le Creuset and Pro-Cook Elite Tri-ply meets all of our cooking/baking needs.
In my younger days I could buy Le Creuset at a 60% discount due to trade connections, so it was a no brainer. We have saucepans, frying pans, griddles and even a set of roasting trays which are nearly 40 years old and still look almost brand new. They are all excellent but recently we have been using a good stainless steel steaming pan for the veg which gives good results.
Also it is worth investing in good quality cutlery and again thanks to a generous trade discount we were able to buy several sets of Arthur Price which back in those days was hand made in Sheffield.
I received a Scanpan wok at Christmas from my parents, amazing piece of kit & tempted to replace my 20yr old stainless Stellar pans with more of them.
The concern is they are too bloody expensive to be relaxed with (wife refuses to use the wok) as it’s about £140 and she only has 2 gas settings she can use, off or flat out. Nothing in between.
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I have been using Lodge cast iron skillets for a lot of things recently. You cannot beat them for value and they are exceptional for searing steaks and other meat, eggs and omelettes. You can bake in them, if that's your thing.
Being cast iron, I find they work best on gas, but they retain the heat excellently and spread it evenly.
They are heavy, take a little extra care in regard to seasoning, drying and cleaning but I find food tastes better when I cook in them.
Exactly what we have and the pro cook pots wipe the floor with my old non stick le creset pots. They punch well above their price. I'd add in scanpan frying pans as well
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I have one cast iron Dutch oven & using the lid as a skillet, I’m really enjoying it, might get a couple of pans as need a proper handle to hold - already lost 2 oven gloves by setting light to them with the gas trying to shake the pan.
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I am surprised so many people use Le Creuset and equally surprised no one uses Netherton
Le Creuset are excellent for specific applications, and really crap at others. Add to that that they are fragile and weigh a ton. I've know them all my life, my mother used some le Creuset pots for soups and stews, as my grandmother did. The quality of the modern stuff is not on par I think. I still use my searing grill and my wok, as they are excellent at keeping really hot when you add cold ingredients in them.
Netherton are lighter than Lodge (spun iron vs cast) but properly seasoned they make a mockery of more expensive items, and will last you a lifetime
'Against stupidity, the gods themselves struggle in vain' - Schiller.
I will be honest and admit that I have never heard of Netherton but after a bit of googling I wish I had. Their stuff looks very impressive.
My wife is slowly recovering from a stroke and if she finds that the Le Creuset is becoming to heavy, then it will be replaced by some Nethereton. That was a good recommendation.
PS Before someone moans that she should not be doing the cooking, she hates having me in the kitchen.
Last edited by Mick P; 11th March 2021 at 13:20.
Haven't got any so can't really recommend but I've always liked the look of SOLIDTEKNICS cookware and hope to try someday. Unusually, they're one-piece handles and all.
https://www.solidteknics.com/
I have a le Cruset casserole with Frying pan lid. Several cast iron fry pans in various sizes. But for absolutely brilliant cooking my black iron (carbon steel) pans by Genware take some beating. Seasoned they’re brilliantly non stick.
https://www.crosbys.co.uk/back-of-ho...37/genware-m20
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Just to continue this thread, the wife who is still recovering from her stroke wants the Le Cruset frying pan got rid of because of its weight.
I notice that the De Buyer and the Netherton have attracted good comments and I was wondering if anyone has used both of them and is able to say which one they prefer and why?
Just replaced all our stuff with Stellar very impressed without breaking the bank. They have pouring lips and glass lids with strainers, also a nice touch is the measure marking’s inside the pan. The bottoms are quite substantial.There are probably better pans but I doubt it for the money.
Last edited by hilly10; 23rd December 2021 at 10:24.
@Mick P
A properly seasoned and taken cared of De Buyer is an amazing piece of pan - non stick, can take high heat, amazing heat distribution, makes the best crust on everything from meat to fried eggs, and pretty much indestructible.
It comes at the price of the weight. I have a 28cm and missis complains about the weight, and she’s quite tall. Even I think it’s a heavy pan (were in our 30s and reasonably fit can be added)
I bought my dad a smaller version, I can’t recall exactly if it’s 22cm perhaps? Surprisingly versatile size, and MUCH easier to handle.
So I’d say buy a smaller De Buyer.
Last edited by jonasy; 23rd December 2021 at 10:41.
Mic drop!
What I meant to say is that we've had our Le Creuset for about 20 years and love it.
I only got round to properly seasoning the large cast iron casserole recently and the difference is astonishing. Wish I'd done it 20 years ago.
Last edited by Gyp; 23rd December 2021 at 11:47.
I have been a frying pan nerd for the last few days which is a bit sad really. I have to say that after watching loads of Youtube videos and and reading loads of Google article, the 10" de Buyer it is.
No experience of them but I keep looking at Solidteknics, https://www.solidteknics.com/, Australian one-piece wrought iron or steel pans.
I would vote Stella 1000, I bought a set and have added to it from when I moved into my first house 25 years ago, I still use it everyday and it is indestructible I am sure. I cannot fault it. Superb quality, great cooking results, oven proof, wok burner proof, dishwasher proof, 18/10 stainless steel with some kind of sandwich base for even heat distribution. Perfect. I have pretty much the full range from a little milk pan, mixed sauce pans, large frying pan, stock pot and casserole pan. I am sure they will last me out given the past 25 years of use.
The wife prefers the Netherton, so on the basis of happy wife happy life I have ordered one.
Just been told the could be a four week waiting time.
The management quite likes Kuhn Rikon.
good source of quality cookware, usually for the trade.
https://www.russums-shop.co.uk/
Just seen this thread.
Funnily enough I have just gone through this process and bought a DeBuyer pan.
I have heard great reviews of Solidteknic but couldn't quite justify the difference in price
I’ve mainly used Mauviel pans in the past but I’ve recently bought an All Clad tri-ply frying pan and it’s outstanding. Pure quality and a pleasure to cook with.
Iron casseroles and skillets yes. And once you make the jump to good quality stainless (especially tri-ply) for your general pans, diminishing returns starts to kick in heavily in my view. Any of the good makes are fine and will outlast you, no need to overspend.
Last edited by Scepticalist; 12th January 2022 at 07:10.
Slightly off topic, but can anyone advise how to properly look after a non stick pan? I seem to go through them within a year and by then they have burnt in grime and lose their non stick properties. I would like to buy a more premium set i.e. circulon, anolon etc. but worried they will get destroyed quickly.
I have non-stick Circulon pans and wreck them too.
When I returned a couple as they were wrecked very quickly, they replaced them 'as a gesture of good will' but told me that it was not their non-stick which had failed, my food was getting stuck onto the burnt on debris which was stuck to their non-stick coating.
I have yet to understand what that meant, as there would not be any debris stuck to their coating - if it was genuinely non-stick. I now treat all non-stick pans as disposable items, but generally use cast iron pans now 99% of the time.
I think all non stick have a limited life span. Wash them gently in soapy water, dry and then wipe with oil. Our le Creuset wok and frying pans have lasted a few years. I wouldn’t bother with non stick saucepans except perhaps for a milk pan.
They aren’t all equal.. I’ve had two of the Tefals, the ones that are guaranteed ten years and both lasted the ten years. And would still be going if someone hadn’t knifed them.
Easy to keep. You just wash it..
Lower temperatures than you think for may dishes.
Stops the stuff sticking, there is either not enough oil, or you are too hot.
Amateur.
I've never got on with non-stick. Must be my incompetence.
Get on just fine with stainless though. Get it to the right temperature first (so that a drop of water forms a little ball and whizzes around the pan like a marble) and it doesn't stick. Wash, dry, reuse.
Have a cheap stainless pot from Wilkos that must be 20 years old. Good as new.
Recently bought a ProCook tri-ply stainless frying pan and very pleased with it.
But then, I only cook because I have to. It's not something I enjoy and I'm not good at it.
You're lucky, I had one just like it, but it started to fray right after I turned on the gas. You have to be careful with this company, too.
Last edited by bobocat; 20th December 2022 at 03:20.
Wow great to join in after almost a year
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