ottawa foodies

I am looking ffor a great set of cookware as a gift. A family member recommends Lagostina while others say J.A. Henckels. I like the Calaphon tri clad. Any suggestions?

What ever you get, I suggest you seriously consider getting riveted handles. They are what most professionals use.

I had an expensive Lagostina that had it's welded handle break. It broke not because it was a Lagostina but beacuse of the weld getting fatigued over the years.

Also see:
chowhound.chow.com

I really like my stainless steel All-Clad. They have riveted handles.

I was gifted a set of Lagostina pots in the mid '90's and one of the pots cracked at the handle some years later. I sent it back and it was replaced no problemo. Lifetime warranty was good to have,as well as the original warranty, no bill of sale as it was a gift, maybe they didn't have gift receipts back then? I've done a lot of cooking with those pots, good value imo. And I still have the lifetime warranty.

I think bolts are generally stronger than rivets, but you need to tighten them if they get loose, or perhaps install a locking washer. And you can replace the handle if it breaks.

Plasma cookware is really great, but pricey. You can buy pieces individually though. www.plasmaic.com/

Has anyone ever had a non-stick pan's finish last as long as a stainless steel pan? I had a high end pan surface wearout/degrade after just a few years, while my stainless is still going strong after 23 years.

I find I get a better result (tastier) when de-glazing a stainless pan than a non-stick. There seems to be less brown bits (caramelization) in a non-stick.

Don't pro's prefer stainless/aluminum over non-stick ?

I only use a non-stick for melting raclette cheese.

Well, a non-stick pan is going to give you different results. In order to get those delicious brown bits to deglaze, you CAN'T use a non-stick. It needs to stick in order to create those bits. You don't want a non-stick stock pot, but sometimes it's a great idea to have a large non-stick dutch oven.

One style of cookware isn't going to do everything. Non-stick is certainly more convenient, but it isn't what is needed in all situations.

Plasma Innovation Cookware® ... Oh no !

Mixed reviews ... mostly negative.... really really negative. Caveat Emptor.

www.bbb.org

www.complaintsboard.com

homestars.com

www.complaintboard.com

Tree Pug - All-Clad is often considered the best stainless cookware, but it is rather expensive. All-Clad is highly recommended by Cook's Illustrated in virtually every cookware category. It rarely goes on sale though so again, not sure if this would make an ideal gift due to cost.

In Canada, the Paderno brand out of PEI is fairly good. Their Fusion product is a good tri-ply (Fusion5 is 5-ply.. don't think they make it anymore) and can be had at Costco for a fair price. It is made in PEI, Canada and comes with a 25yr warranty.

Cook's Illustrated named the Tramonita set it's best buy (All-Clad, winner) - only issue is I'm not sure who sells this in Canada/Ottawa. The Calphalon is also recommended, but for the money, I'd probably go Paderno.

Personally, I'd avoid the Henckels set which is likely made in China.

Captain Caper - A non-stick pan will never hold the same out-of-the-box non-stick properties over time. Most will only last for 2 years or so before the coating either becomes useless or starts chipping in which case you don't really want to be cooking with it. Personally, I'd try to find an inexpensive T-Fal (made in France, if possible) skillet/fry-pan and change it out every 1-2 years. Should cost under $40 for it. There are better, non-"teflon" products out there, but IMHO, they are not worth it.

I prefer a good carbon steel pan over stainless any day. See the pan I'm using in the paleo stir fry video in the other thread. That's a crappy carbon steel pan but is still pretty good. I got it at Russell Equpiment on Preston, cheap as heck.

Looks like kitchenvirtue.com only has a single small pan, but these look like one of the better ones

www.kitchenvirtue.com

I also really like cast iron ... speaking of which ...

Hey zymurgist - we sell alot of the de Buyer line.

www.kitchenvirtue.com

It is pretty expensive though.. so again, for a gift it would be a bit over the top.

Also, FutureShop/BestBuy often sell much of the de Buyer line for 40-50% off.. usually every 4 months or so.

It appears that FS and BB have them on sale right now, not at such a steep discount as mentioned, but on sale none the less.

My friend switched to a set of De Buyer pans and he loves them. The one downside, the handles get HOT... which if you've worked in a professional kitchen or have used cast iron, you already know, use a handle cover or rag. Otherwise, awesome and they have high heat resistance.

Oh here is the carbon steel stuff I was looking for on Amazon

www.amazon.ca/dp/B000RWJ5DY

Lodge L5HS3 5-Piece Pre-Seasoned Cast-Iron Cookware Set

$163.33CDN + shipping in Canada

www.amazon.ca

OR

$63.99US + free shipping to Ogdensburg

www.amazon.com

Big price difference. I guess cast iron cookware was exempt from the North American Free Trade Agreement.

We had a plasma creuset; eventually the coating did start to erode, but it took many years. I did have a funny run in with customer service. My wife used the lid of another pot and it got stuck inside the plasma. So I called them and the girl made funny / sarcastic remarks to me :-) Actually I was rather amused, because they were snarky / clever comments. Whatever. I drilled a hole in the lid to release the vacuum but it still remained stuck. Finally in desperation I held the lid and wacked the rim of the pot with a mallet, out on the front lawn, and it eventually came off. Who knew ? And it was none the worse for this treatment either.

Lagostina, Henckels, kitchenaid sets, etc on sale starting tomorrow at Can Tire.