The Big Pots & Pans Thread (Merged)

Sigma Force

I'm not sure what the quality is like nowdays but 11 years ago I bought a set of stainless steel saucepans in Argos.

One large pot great for big stews/curries.
A good sized saucepan good for larger portions or pasta etc., another slightly smaller one handy for noodles/spuds etc another one great for peas or other veggies and a milk pan at the time it was about 30 quid. Obviously prices have gone up since.
With glass lids. Can't remember if the lids are oven safe so I've never used them in the oven.

They've been through a dishwasher I zillion times and are still going strong, the handles are still strong and they are pretty tough.

A casserole dish with oven proof lid would be handy to have and some various sized frying pans.

Argos do the oneforall vouchers.

olaola

Arnotts is great - and I think they have a sale on. One thing I really recommend is a good saute pan with lid. You'll use it every day.
I have a good Circulon one, and I wouldn't live without it!
And a casserole dish is also a good buy, my MIL has a Le Creuset one from her wedding gifts, and it lives on top of the hob.

Sparks

Don't think you need to get a complete set from one source for a start, your pots and pans don't have to match (and the food will taste better if they don't).

Not sure if TK Maxx take those one 4 all vouchers, but if they did, I'd go there rather than anywhere else (except maybe online). Last week saw a Denby lasagne/cassarole dish for €20. Walk to the nearest arnotts/wherever and you can probably triple the price at a minimum. A month ago, it was individual serving enamalled cast iron pots from le creuset for €7 each, which were selling across the street in Stock for €22 each...
...but, you do need to know what you're looking for and it's the kind of place you go to regularly to hunt down items because it's about as seasonal as blueberries.


As to what to buy, my personal list would be:

• a cast iron frying pan
• a stock pot (useful for stocks, broths and also for cooking things like pasta and noodles and so forth -- but don't bother with anything heavy for this, just get one that's taller than it is wide and holds a few litres - and big enough to get a whole chicken into)
• a small pot for rouxs and sauces
• a wok
• a cast iron dutch oven if you can find one - Dunnes were doing some nice ones a while back, but be sure to get one with the dimples on the underside of the lid)
• A decent sized ceramic (or pyrex at a stretch) cassarole dish with a pyrex lid (be sure to get one that's at least two to three inches deep and rectangular will be better than round - it'll make lasagne, pot pies and enchilades a lot easier to do quickly and it'll do cassaroles just as easily)
• and a saucier

That's pretty much going to do the bulk of your day-to-day cooking.

And don't forget to get one or two baking sheets, one or two baking trays, one or two pie pans (and I do not mean sandwich cake tins, I mean slope-sided pie pans), and one or two cooling racks - and the heavier all of those are, the better (in general).

Sparks

Incidentally, if there's just the two of you then try not to get the giant family-sized versions of all of those, except for the cast iron stuff (which lasts forever, so you might as well get a decent set from the get-go; a 10" pan and a similar-sized dutch oven would do, larger and they're too heavy to move), and the stock pot (which won't work unless it's reasonably large to begin with).

But a three-foot-long cassarole dish isn't worth getting until you're cooking dinner for six on a daily basis.


Or unless it's a really lovely le cruset one


(and incidentally, if any of those things - bar the cast iron stuff, which is a special case - say they're not dishwasher safe, don't bother with them. And if the cassarole dish can go on the hob, that's pretty useful)

lucylu

Circulon Saucepans are excellent. We got the commercial brand. Can be got in Arnotts, House of Fraser, Debenhams, Shaws Nationwide
A cast iron Casserole Dish like Le Creuset will last you a lifetime.

aoifefc

You could use this as an opportunity to buy pots and pans for life. My friend the chef recommends Analon, don't know if they are available in places that take the One4All vouchers but you see them in TK Max from time to time. Usually sold in sets! Will last a lifetime apparently!

Dinkie

I have circulon pot and pans and they are fantastic! I got mine in Debenhams - I got them as a set, but you can buy them individually.

boodlesdoodles

I got a Stellar set a couple of years ago half price in Brown Thomas. The pots are really generous sizes with a jug pot that's perfect for making gravy cos of the dinky pouring spout like normal jug. I've had no problems with them and I do quite a bit of cooking.

duploelabs

I just did a blog post on stuff that you could spend your money on for cookware here

Radiotower

Thanks for all the advice, think most places mentioned accept the one for all vouchers except for TK Maxx.. I have to go looking around now

bonkey

duploelabs wrote: »

I just did a blog post on stuff that you could spend your money on for cookware here

Nice....but I'd take ICM's "le Pentole" range over the Alessi set any day

Mr.David

Check out Le Creusets stainless steel pots too - I have the full set and they really are superb!

gizmo

I'm finally looking at getting some decent pots and pans for the house and I was hoping to get some advice from you fine ladies and gentleman. I've read through the previous threads on this so I've taken that advice into consideration as well as my own personal thoughts having gotten my hands on a few over the last while. I should also point out that these are my first set so hopefully you can advise accordingly.

For starters, I was going to get this Circulon Infinite 4-piece set. That should cover me for my basic pots and the 24cm frying pan should be my every day pan. I would have preferred a 26cm pan but unfortunately one isn't available in that range.

To go along with these, I was also going to add a Le Creuset Cast Iron Grillit for my meats.

Now, I also had my eye on the Circulon Infinte Saute pan following some great reviews but since it's also 24cm, would it be superflous given the fact that I already have the 24cm frying pan? Would I be better off with the 26cm Chef's Pan? Or perhaps getting the frying pan separately and going with a 20cm model and 24cm saute pan?

If it did turn out that I needed a larger frying pan then I think I'd look at a 26/28cm Bourgeat model.

So, how does that sound to get myself up and running?

Toto Wolfcastle

We got some Circulon pots during the summer. We bought them separately rather than in a set. I think one of the most important things is to actually hold the pots if possible to see if you like the feel of them. The Circulon stuff we have is similar to what you posted (without the pan) and I love it.

We also have the Le Creuset griddle pan and my husband loves it. It replaced a crappy cheap griddle pan though so it's always going to be good.

We got the Circulon sauté pan too and we use it a few times a week. It's a nice piece of equipment. Very useful.

If you have the pan included with the set then I'd see how you get on with that first before buying a bigger one. I didn't really like the Circulon pans I saw so we got a different brand. Can't remember what brand now, possible Anolon, and again it's very good quality.

I think you're pretty well covered with what you have posted though. It's good quality stuff.

Cheshire Cat

Personally I would prefer pots without the long handle. The long handles mean they need more space in the presses and on the hob.

Spanish Eyes

Circulon all the way for me now. What you buy depends on your needs, how many you are in the house, the type of food you cook etc.

They really are good, and the pans are SO non stick too, at last I found the perfect non stick pan. I only have the smaller one and the griddle, both more than adequate for my needs, and for pancakes tha I can flipping flip at last!

breen_og

Personally I would go into Sweeney O'Rourkes on pearse st in Dublin. Have a look at the bourgeat range. I know some of them can be quite expensive but they will last a lifetime. Cast iron pans are the way to go. Reasonably priced and will also stand the test of time. Le creuset are worth every penny my mam has some at home that are over 30 yrs old and still going strong.

gizmo

Spanish Eyes wrote: »

Circulon all the way for me now. What you buy depends on your needs, how many you are in the house, the type of food you cook etc.

Well technically there's only me but I do enjoy cooking for friends so I won't want to limit myself too much. Dito goes for what I cook, I'm one of those "I'll eat anything folks" so again, I'm trying to cover the basics with this round of purchases and can build up my collection over time.

breen_og wrote: »

Personally I would go into Sweeney O'Rourkes on pearse st in Dublin. Have a look at the bourgeat range. I know some of them can be quite expensive but they will last a lifetime. Cast iron pans are the way to go. Reasonably priced and will also stand the test of time. Le creuset are worth every penny my mam has some at home that are over 30 yrs old and still going strong.

Unfortunately I'm not in Ireland at the moment so no can do. From the stores available to me I've been able to get my hands on the Circulon, Le Creuset and Tefal ranges and based my decisions above on both hands on experience and what folks around here have said.

Now that you mention it though, are the Bourgeat pans that are so frequently recommended from the regular non-stick range or the Indestructible range?

breen_og

I personally never go with non stick as there is a limited life span. Good heavy pots and pans don't require Teflon. Where about are you based. Ireland is not as cheap as the mainland or the UK for bourgeat so you might luck out

gizmo

breen_og wrote: »

I personally never go with non stick as there is a limited life span. Good heavy pots and pans don't require Teflon. Where about are you based. Ireland is not as cheap as the mainland or the UK for bourgeat so you might luck out

I'm in the UK all right but while getting them online is easy, finding them in a brick and mortar store has been less successful.

breen_og

Hey gizmo had a quick search online and there seems to be a few catering supply shops in London atleast that stock them. Nisbets also deliver and if you have a vat number or know someone that does you can claim the tax. As far as I remember orders over 100 are free. The ones I used were excellence I only have 1 personally, but they were the pot of choice in professional kitchens I worked in. As for larger pots say for stock etc I bought a prestige pressure cooker. It's a great heavy pot even if not being used as a pressure cooker. I've left flour based sauces unattended and they never scorched.

gizmo

Quick update, had begun to veer away slightly from the Circulon set and towards picking up various pieces seperately but Amazon then decided to drop the price of the 5-piece set to £119 so I couldn't say no.

Will probably add the Le Creuset or similar cast iron skillet down the line, look at the Saute pan from the Circulon range if I need something with a lid and a larger Bourgeat pan if needed but for now I think I'm sorted. Cheers for the advice both on thread and off!

meoklmrk91

I am moving into my own place and I need to get a decent set of pans as I enjoy cooking quite a bit, having my own large kitchen is something I am really looking forward to, however I am of course on a budget, can anyone recommend a set for around the €30 mark?

tfak85

I would say your best bet is to go to your nearest TKMaxx and have a really good search around the pans they have there.

Perhaps even just buy one or two bits that you think you could get by with for now, say a frying pan and a medium size saucepan, then add to your collection in the coming weeks, to spread out the cost. Generally speaking buying cheaper items can be a false economy, because you have to re-buy the item soon after. Now, I'm not saying buy anything mad expensive either, usually you can get a really good frying pan for about 15quid in Tkmaxx and a saucepan for around the same, maybe 20. You can also get roasting dishes for under a tenner.

Best of luck with the move!

meoklmrk91

tfak85 wrote: »

I would say your best bet is to go to your nearest TKMaxx and have a really good search around the pans they have there.

Perhaps even just buy one or two bits that you think you could get by with for now, say a frying pan and a medium size saucepan, then add to your collection in the coming weeks, to spread out the cost. Generally speaking buying cheaper items can be a false economy, because you have to re-buy the item soon after. Now, I'm not saying buy anything mad expensive either, usually you can get a really good frying pan for about 15quid in Tkmaxx and a saucepan for around the same, maybe 20. You can also get roasting dishes for under a tenner.

Best of luck with the move!

Thanks, will give that a go so, my last set of pans were bought for €15 and like you said we're false economy, absolutely rubbish!

MissFlitworth

This is Dublincentric advice so apologies if you're no where near but I really like Ikea 365 pots, I have 2 (a 5l one and a smaller one) and they're 3/4 years old & in perfect nick. They have metal handles & metal lids, so they can go into the oven, & really thick bases.

They have a set that's sort of twice your budget at €65 but they really will last a while and not do things to you like burn the a*se out of your dinner when you turn your back because the bases are whisper thin like cheaper pots will.

They have cheaper sets as well that I'm sure are decent quality.

Failing Ikea being nearby am in 100% agreement on TK Maxx & sometimes even Tesco has great deals on pots & pans. Can be really worth picking up a pot as and when you can afford them, if you get a decent heavy based large pot you can do a lot with it (fry, boil, use it as a casserole dish) until your next pay day when you pick up a smaller one & the next payday when you get a good frying pan

meoklmrk91

Thanks, but I am not anywhere near ikea, I think I will just buy my pots as one at a time, I can certainly manage that way. Are there any particular brands that I should be looking for?

belcampprisoner

heavy is good don't buy not stick or aluminium

meoklmrk91

belcampprisoner wrote: »

heavy is good don't buy not stick or aluminium

So TEFAL isn't good then?

MissFlitworth

meoklmrk91 wrote: »

So TEFAL isn't good then?

I have Tefal frying pans I love, got a deal on a 2 pack in Argos. Some people really don't like non-stick & I can see why but not a whisper of a complaint from me about these. 2 years of faithful service in the omelette & steak department and still going good