We are in dire need of a good set. Ours is completely kaput. We need a very large skillet (ours was WearEver, I believe) for family sized meals and a smaller skillet for eggs, etc.
Any recommendations?

By Luvn29 on Monday, October 24, 2005 - 12:26 pm:

I couldn't tell you because I use my large electric skillet for EVERYTHING!!! It fries eggs perfectly, and I never fry my meat in anything else. I even fry potatoes, steam kraut, etc. in it! It makes the best pancakes! I just spray non-stick spray on it, and I get light fluffy pancakes that aren't greasy.

My mother doesn't live far away from me, and I've been known to borrow hers, too, when I am making a meal that has two different things I'd like to use my skillet for.

By Sunny on Monday, October 24, 2005 - 12:48 pm:

They're pricey, but I've heard a lot of good things about Calphalon. I plan on getting a few specific pieces when my current Wearever pans finally bite the dust (or I can convince myself to part with the money ).

By Wandilu on Monday, October 24, 2005 - 12:59 pm:

Also,does anyone know which ones are supposed to cause alsheimers ? I read somewhere that certain kinds may help cause it,and certain kinds are better to use to prevent it from happening.

By Amecmom on Monday, October 24, 2005 - 02:32 pm:

Magnifica Cookware by Rondine. Non-stick and oven safe to 350 degrees. I love it!
I had other pans that were more expensive and they used to burn on my electric stove.
I got it at Tuesday Morning, but maybe some other discount places will have it as well. It was not at all expensive and was open stock so I could buy just the pieces I wanted.
Ame

By Mrsheidi on Monday, October 24, 2005 - 03:31 pm:

Wandilu, I think you're referring to aluminum pans. Not sure...

By Kay on Monday, October 24, 2005 - 03:33 pm:

I have a set of T-Fal which I love and have had for about 10 years. They're guaranteed for life, and when I recently had a broken pot lid, I emailed the company and they promptly mailed me a replacement at no charge.

By Reds9298 on Monday, October 24, 2005 - 03:57 pm:

I have had T-Fal and was never happy with it, but that's just my experience. Calphalon is WAY expensive. 2 years ago I bought Cook's Essentials hard anodized from QVC. I bought a whole set, plus some extra pieces I know. THEY ARE WONDERFUL! My SIL who has Calphalon says they are just as good if not better than hers for way less $$. I can't say enough good things about them. They are non-stick, mine have the stainless steel lids (although they have some sets with clear lids). Check out qvc.com and if you don't need them right away, keep your eyes open there for some sales or the today's special value. I get my extra pieces when they are the today's special value. Cook's Essentials has a cheap line, then stainless steel, then the hard-anodized.

By Karen~moderator on Monday, October 24, 2005 - 04:00 pm:

We have Calphalon and we love it. Pricey, but we bought ours on sale, and it's worth it.

By Colette on Monday, October 24, 2005 - 04:35 pm:

I have Calphalon and I hate it, the set we have cannot go in the dishwasher and I hate washing pans.

My favorite pans are my cast iron ones. They can't go in the dishwasher either but they are a snap to clean if properly seasoned.

Second favorite is my old farberware that I got years ago, they can go in the dishwasher and still look fine.

By Boxzgrl on Monday, October 24, 2005 - 04:49 pm:

I have Revereware. It's okay for a cheaper set. I want Calphalon. DHs' Grandma wants to get me a pot and pan set for the holidays and asked me how much money she needs to send. I havn't answered her yet because there's no way i'd expect her to foot the cost of those. I've been looking for deals though...

By Kaye on Monday, October 24, 2005 - 04:52 pm:

I had that same big frying pan. When it wore out (3 or so years) I replaced it with the pampered chef family skillet. It has the same shape and I LOVE IT! I have had it going on 6 years and it is still in great shape. I probably paid about 100 dollars, but it was well worth it. They go on sale at some point, but I am not sure when.

By Dawnk777 on Tuesday, October 25, 2005 - 03:39 am:

I have a small revereware set and a Farberware 12" skillet. I love that BIG skillet. Instead of browning the chicken in 2 pans, I can do it all in one!

All-Clad pans would be nice, but they are soooo expensive! I have a Martha Stewart 8" skillet for stuff that doesn't need the room of the 12: skillet. My Reverware one warped on me.

By Bea on Tuesday, October 25, 2005 - 07:13 am:

We have Calphalon and find the hand washing to be a breeze. I thought it would be a pain, but they are so easy to clean that it's not. I love mine.

By Karen~moderator on Tuesday, October 25, 2005 - 07:46 am:

Ditto Bea, ours are non-stick and EASY to clean. I've never put large pots and pans in the dishwasher anyway.

I used to own some Magnalite (?) cookware - my X-inlaws used to give us a piece every year, and I HATED the stuff - it was too heavy for me to lift! It would take a bomb to destroy it, and you could scrub it with any old thing, but the stuff weighs so much, it's not worth having.

By Eve on Tuesday, October 25, 2005 - 08:51 am:

I have mostly T-Fal. I've never had any issues with it. I cook a lot, but I am not a serious cook. We have a flat top stove surface and it works well for me. I am not someone who can spend a fortune on cookware. Just me.

By Marcia on Tuesday, October 25, 2005 - 09:28 am:

I have odds and ends at this point. My favourite pot is my new pasta pot. The lid locks on, and has holes for draining it. I boil the water, throw in the pasta or rice, set it to low, and it cooks so quickly. I make almost everything in it now, and pitched several of my other pots.
I have one big family skillet, and use that for anything that needs a frying pan. It's just some cheapie from WalMart, but it's big and deep, which is what I wanted.

By Karen~moderator on Tuesday, October 25, 2005 - 10:16 am:

Marcia, that pot sounds like a dream! What brand is it and where did you buy it?

By Jilly on Tuesday, October 25, 2005 - 10:44 am:

We have All Clad and LOVE it! We bought a set through Amazon's auctions and have been adding pieces to it that we like. They clean up really easily with "Barkeeper's Friend" (a Comet-like abrasive cleaning powder).

We still have a couple of cheapo non-stick pans for the quick and easy meals (eggs, etc.).

If you cook a lot - and enjoy it, it might be worth investing in something like this. We'll NEVER have to buy another set again!

By Hlgmom on Tuesday, October 25, 2005 - 01:54 pm:

Love Calphalon! Never had any trouble with it and you can usually always find pieces on sale!

By Vicki on Tuesday, October 25, 2005 - 02:01 pm:

I also use Cooks Essentials from QVC. I currently have the hard anodized line (they have a pot like the one Marcia talk about) but I am really thinking about taking this set to the camper and buying the Cooks Essentials stainless 500 line. Love the set I have now, but there is something about the stainless line I like too. If I don't do that, I will get another set of what I have now. I love them. They also have a 30 day guarentee, so if you don't like them, you can send them back!!

By Livvy on Tuesday, October 25, 2005 - 04:57 pm:

I bought a Wolfgang Puck set off of QVC on a pretty good sale. My sister saw it, bought it and passed on the info. Since my DH is the big cook in our family and he says he loves it, it must be OK.

By Emily7 on Tuesday, October 25, 2005 - 06:55 pm:

I got a Wolfgang Puck set for Christmas, I will never buy anything else.
What I need are some good baking pans/cookie sheets.

By Marcia on Friday, October 28, 2005 - 12:14 am:

Karen, this is the pot ...

pot

I bought it at a Canadian store, Giant Tiger. The page above says you can get it at Target. I only paid $20 for it, and it's $35 there. Still, a great pot!

By Fraggle on Friday, October 28, 2005 - 01:50 pm:

I love my Stainless Steel All Clad. I run them through the dishwasher and really beat them up and they still look great. They are very heavy though and it took me awhile to get used to them. The only one I was not happy with is my non-stick frying pan-I never really abused this one but the black non-stick surface started to flake off after 3 yrs. of use. I just bought two new heavy restaurant grade frying pans at Sam's and they are working great so far-and they only cost $24 for the pair.

By Karen~moderator on Friday, October 28, 2005 - 02:07 pm:

Marcia, thanks! There's a Target near me!

By Annie2 on Friday, October 28, 2005 - 09:10 pm:

I have Revereware for my pots and love them. I also have a huge non-stick frying pan. The only item I am lacking is a lid to cover the pan.