Customer Reviews

All-Clad LTD2 1-1/2-Quart Sauce Pan

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(0)
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This pan cooks like a champ. I've used it on gas and electric and it always heats evenly. Gas stoves normally leave a cold spot at the center of the pan. But in this pan, the spot vanishes. I like the LTD2s because the exterior of the pans are aluminum which is more conductive than the usual stainless steel. As a result, the pan soaks up heat around it very quickly. Even if you have an old electric stove, you'll be amazed how fast water boils--especially given how thick the pan feels.

The one thing that might surprise a new buyer is the length of the handle. It's very long. I like that two oven mitts fit on the handle easily so it's stable in and out of the oven. On the cook-top, the handle almost never gets too hot to touch. When pouring pasta into a strainer, my hands are so far from the pan there's little risk of a steam burn. The handle is a good design choice for a pan that holds a gallon of hot liquid. But storing it in a cupboard is awkward. I did it for a while by stuffing smaller things under the mighty handle, but that is sub-optimal. You're really best off hanging this pan. If you live in a place where storage space is at a premium, consider a small stock pot instead. I think All-clad makes a 6 quart stock pot. Get it. It'll hold more liquid and store much easier.


If you've got room, this pan is a great workhorse. I love it and so will you.

My first observation is that the LTD2 cookware is not and should not be considered `black' in color. They are dark gray with a silver tone to them (for example, they do not look like a shiny black aluminum MagLite for example). The package came with an inspection tag, and judging by the completely flawless pan, I believe it was indeed personally inspected. The finish is first-rate, I can't see any way to improve upon it. In my case I bought a small 1.5qt but the heft of the pan is quite impressive. The pan IS heavy, but not uncomfortably so, more like just right. It exudes a sort of professional feel which is what I was hoping for. It is very balanced, it won't tip over on the handle side if empty. Speaking of the handle, it's MUCH better than the previous versions. I honestly didn't think the handle upgrade would make that much of a difference, but it has such a better feel to it that I'm convinced to only seek out their products with the new handle. The little 'bump' on the bottom of the handle is a good indicator of where your hand is in relation to the body of the pan and acts as a sort of 'stop' for your hand. On the top side there is a nice relief for your thumb to sit in, together they give you good balance when maneuvering the pan. I URGE you to go to a store and handle pots and pans with the older versus newer versions of handles, you'll see what I mean.

As for cooking, I have only one critical observation. The LTD2 pan heats up slower than my All-Clad Stainless pan of the same size. I've tested them side-by-side and every time, the Stainless heats quicker. Is that bad? No not necessarily. In fact I've found it to be a good thing. My primary use for this pan is for delicate sauces. I am less concerned about how quick it gets to temp as I am how stable it is. When making sauce and stirring or whisking, you are introducing air into the pan and cooling it down. My totally unscientific observation is simple, when whisking a simmering sauce, the All-Clad LTD2 pan continued to simmer, that is it did not drop in temp. The Stainless pan would cool off and lose its simmer when I whisked the contents, which meant I had to increase the burner temperature at the risk of overheating and burning. Totally unscientific, but it was a simple and easy observation for me to see how the LTD2 (and its heavier construction) kept the temp a little more stable.

I am a little skeptical on how well the exterior finish will hold up but I am willing to take care of it by not scouring it to death. The anodized finish seems incredibly hard, and based on about 20 cooks with it already, the bottom of the pan is just fine. My one gripe with this pan is that it doesn't have a rolled lip to facilitate pouring from the pan. Now to be fair, one should use a spoon to delicately apply sauce to a plate. You're buying All-Clad because you're either a pro or you're quality conscious, which means you're not pouring packaged gravy out of the pan onto a lump of fries. That said, if you find yourself needing to pour directly from the pan, you WILL end up with a BIG MESS down the side and then the bottom of the pan.

In short, the pan is beautiful, heats slow and VERY steady, and has a great professional feel to it. I firmly believe this is the best bang-for-the-buck in the All-Clad lineup.

I love this pan! The black exterior always looks nice and is easy to care for.The heavy weight of the pan balances it perfectly, even when empty. It hears evenly. It's perfect!

The LTD2 collection by All-Clad is my first experience with truly gourmet cookware. There is one word that can sum up the experience. WOW! As a pessimistic consumer, I have come to expect very little quality from modern manufacturing. Even some of the time honored names have sold out their quality for the sack of earning a little extra profit. I have now collected the 1.5, 2, 3, and 4 quart sauce pan, and it is indeed worth the price! These pieces are thick with their five layers which beautifully distribute the heat and eliminates hot spots. The stainless interior is easy to clean. I usually would have trouble cleaning up my old pots after cooking starches (potatoes and pasta), but those "starch lines" are no problem with the LTD2.

Now some things that are not the best: The nub on the handle really helps when lifting these pots, but the 4 quart can be a bit awkward to handle if it is full due to its weight.

Also, I ordered the 3-quart from the amazon warehouse deals. First time I received it, it was LTD, not LTD2. Quick and easy return with Amazon. Then I saw another one come up on the warehouse deals, and I hoped against hope that it wasn't the same one. Silly me. It was. Once again, it was LTD instead of LTD2. In fact, the exact one I had returned. SO! important lesson to take away from that, if you see a 3-quart in the warehouse deals, it's probably LTD.

Unfortunately, the LTD2 appears to be retired, or in the process of being retired. These are still AMAZING pots and pans, and if you find a good deal on them, grab a set! Or two. They come with lifetime warranties, and they'll probably be the last set of cookware you ever buy!

This is a great all-purpose pot for smaller sauces. We use it for heating jars of pasta sauce and for cooking smaller amounts of our own sauces. The stainless interior accumulates just the right amount of stuck-on material for deglazing, cleans up beautifully, and the pot distributes heat well. The only (minor) drawback is that it's somewhat tall given its width, but that's not a major issue.

Quality is the All Clad hallmark. Have purchased many of these pans over several years and all preform flawlessly. The cost is the only drawback. Have wanted this pan for some time and as a Prime member the saving on shiping and taxes helped add value to this purchase.