What’s your favorite brand of BIFL cookware for induction?
I'm looking to upgrade my kitchen with industrial-quality pots and pans. After about a month of searching, I came to the conclusion that the most important requirements are:
- 3-ply (or 5-ply). Fully clad (not just the bottom disc).
- 18/8 or 18/10 stainless steel on the inside
- 18/0 (or 200-grade or 400-grade) magnetic stainless steel on the outside.
- Thick layers of metal (ideally >= 3mm of aluminum)
- strong, serviceable rivets on handles (not welded)
- Handles on both sides of the pot (helper handle)
- Handles have a hole in them, for hanging
- Fits a 28 cm (or 11”) lid (easily replaceable standard size that’s interchangeable between metric and dumb units)
- Top rim should either have a pour spout or flared lip, for easier pouring
- NSF certified
From what I’ve read, stainless steel isn’t a very good conductor (NIST says that aluminum transfers heat 16x better than aluminum). But stainless steel is a better surface to cook-on, because it’s less reactive and won’t absorb flavours. So, 3-ply sandwiches a thick aluminum layer between two different types of stainless steel (nickle-free [eg 18/0 or 200- or 400-grade] on the outside, which – though less corrosion resistant -- is important for induction) and either 18/8 or 18/10 on the inside.
5-ply is also a thing, but my research suggests that it doesn’t really matter how many layers. What’s more important is the thickness of the material.
And that’s why I’m here. Because, confidingly, the manufacturers of these pots don’t seem to even know how thick the layers of their 3-ply cookware is!
Ideally I’d just find the technical specifications of their cookware on their website, make a spreadsheet, and then buy the one with the thickest material (or close to the thickest, depending on my trade-off between quality vs weight & cost).
But I’ve called maybe a dozen manufacturers, and none seem to know the specifications of their own cookware :(
So, fediverse, I ask you: does anyone know what the thickness of the layers in these manufacturer’s 3-ply cookware is? Otherwise, what’s been your experience? How do you feel about these brands? Is there some other one (not listed) that you prefer?
- Browne Thermalloy
- All-Clad
- Made-in
- Tramontina
- Cuisinart
- Other?
Edit: I should be clear that I’m specifically asking about 3-ply or 5-ply stainless steel cookware. This is for a community house, so I need something that can be (ab)used by housemates who don’t know or care for the seasonings on the pans. And I don’t want cast iron, because it’s more likely to break the glass-topped induction cooktop.
11 Comments
Onomatopoeia@lemmy.cafe · 4 pts · 5d
3 ply is what you need. America's Test Kitchen did a lot of research (basically bought several sets and have everyone cook with them in test conditions) and their results showed 5 did work a little better, but not significantly greater than 3.
The inexpensive brands that work fine include Cuisinart and Tramontina (surprisingly). I have a few Cuisinart pieces that work as well as brands that cost 3x as much such a Zwilling and Hestan (I have pieces from several brands).
My experience mirrors ATK - if it's decently made and 3 layers or more, it works fine.
https://therationalkitchen.com/best-stainless-cookware/
hdsrob@lemmy.world · 4 pts · 5d
It's probably at the bottom end of this range, but we've had a Cuisinart set for about 14 years and I'm pretty happy with it (but this set probably isn't induction capable, and Cuisinart quality may have declined over the years).
We cook from scratch most days, and at least 2 meals a day (although I keep an inexpensive non stick set for a few things like eggs or fish). They are showing their age, but only in scratches from using stainless utensils on them or dents from being dropped, and things like that. We've never had a loose handle, and the bottoms are all still dead flat after using them on both an electric coil stove, and gas.
Prior to this we had a generic set from Sam's Club that looked like it was the real deal, but the bottoms bowed up over time and everything ran to the edges, and using them on a glass top stove became problematic.
maltfield@slrpnk.net · 1 pts · 5d
Yikes. Yeah, warping on the bottom is a big no-go for induction. The heating loss is pretty exponential the further it is from the ceramic glass top above the coils.
bigfish@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 3 pts · 5d
Mine are all All Clad 3 or 5 ply steel and I love them. Going strong for 15 years daily use on induction and still performing like new.
Cast iron is great too, but I worry in a community setting as much for the seasoning as the cooktop. Those beasts are heavy and induction tops are often glass composite that can scratch or crack from misuse.
JayleneSlide@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 5d
I'm also running All-Clad. Not sure/don't think All-Clad meets all of your specifications, but so far mine are absolutely BIFL. I use mine on induction, propane, and sometimes natural gas (I bring my cookware with me when I'm going to be cooking for people).
Here's my pitch: we live on our sailboat. These pans get knocked around hard. Pacific Ocean storms, salt air, salt water washing, all stainless cooking utensils (my partner knocks the utensils on the rim and the inner surface :/ ). I've had some of these for ~13 years of this abuse.
maltfield@slrpnk.net · 2 pts · 5d
As stated in OP, my understanding is that induction-capable stainless steel use a less corrosion resistant (nickle-free) outer layer.
You wash that in salt water, and it doesn't rust?
JayleneSlide@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 2d
We use a foot pump with a seawater feed for initial washing and then do a final rinse with RO water from the tanks. Our pans have halide damage + mineral deposits (clouding) on the inner surfaces from outright cooking abuse, but the pans themselves are doing great.
Please disregard the mess; I interrupted my partner mid-breakfast:
You can see the wear and tear, but the oil in the pan obscures the clouding
The other side:
No clouding, but lots of polymerization.
Here is a better pic of the clouding from reducing salty and acidic marinades in our soup pot:
The white spots are just starch from prepping my lunch this morning. The dark spots however are crevice corrosion from when I "lost" the pot on a beach for two months with an inch of tallow in the pot. Don't be like me. :D
Here you can see how the outside of the soup pot held up despite my dumbassery and abuse:
maltfield@slrpnk.net · 2 pts · 2d
ah, final rinse with freshwater makes sense. You're not thaat abusive ;)
Pots look great! Thanks for sharing
noxypaws@pawb.social · 2 pts · 5d
Stuff that works great on our induction cooktop:
an ANCIENT pot/strainer/boiler pot branded "Crate & Barrel by Berndes"
All-Clad saucier and skillet
Scanpan skillet
Staub La Plancha (griddle)
Ozeri tiny skillet
Hario gooseneck kettle
Le Creuset dutch oven
Sorry I can't breakdown more specifics on materials here, but hopefully this helps!
godot@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 5d
The front facing sides of the pan manufacturers don’t know thickness because it impacts but isn’t performance. Steel mix of the cladding layers, thickness, and 3/5/7 layer construction inform the real performance factors: heat distribution, rate of heating, weight, and tendency to warp. ATK measures most of those things fairly well. I just skimmed a review on YouTube from Prudent Reviews that looks valuable, too.
You may be undervaluing the lid. There is a practical difference between a perfectly fitted lipped lid and a compatible lid that’s close.
You are correctly valuing the hole in the handle and the helper handle. Past a certain point of performance convenience is more important than better performance. If it’s hard to lift or stuck in a drawer you won’t use it as much. Same goes for weight, I have a cheap Yoshikawa saucier that I use constantly because it’s extremely light and good enough.
I would be more worried about warping on an induction cooktop than about riveted vs welded construction, or even a pan’s finish. My Matfer carbon steel frying pan has a welded handle that I think would survive use as a war club, but the cooking surface is warped. I’m not careful with it, but your peers might be no better.
In general All Clad deserves its strong reputation. Made In is also good, but I’ve used less of their stuff. I’ve tried a few stainless pans from other higher end brands and I don’t think they’re appreciably better. All on gas, sadly for this discussion.
If it isn’t already your plan, consider buying different tiers of pans based on your needs. Were I starting from scratch at home I’d skimp as mercilessly as necessary on everything else to afford one great frying pan. It does 90% of the work, it should get most of the budget.
FauxPseudo@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 5d
I use my Queen cookware. It's slightly older than I am and literally the same set I grew up with. I've replaced a few handles over the years, but replacement parts are available on eBay despite it being half a century. The downside is that they're from Amway. But I didn't pay for them. But they still look good as new.