Customer Reviews

Cuisinart 77-14 Chef's Classic Stainless-Steel 14-Piece Cookware Set

5 star:		(38)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(10)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I purchased this set a year ago. I already had the 12 inch skillet, the 5 qt. saute pan and a 2 qt. saucepan, which I LOVE and use on a regular basis. I expected this set to be the same quality as these other Chef's Classic pans that I had purchased individually, but the pans in this set just don't measure up.

The first thing I noticed is that these pans are lighter weight. The 3 qt. saucepan from this set is much lighter than the 2 qt. saucepan I already had. This would be okay, except that food tends to stick more easily to the 3 qt. I think the botton of the pans in this set must be thinner than my other Chef's Classic. Also, these pan do spot more- I use Barkeepers Friend for all my Cuisinart, but I find the pans in this set discolor every time I use them, which is annoying.

My biggest beef is with the pasta insert. I chose this particular set because it included the pasta insert, but the pan is not just useless - it is a menace. The holes are way to small, and the water drains out very slowly. The first time I used it, boiling water flooded over the top and splashed over the stove and onto the floor when I lifted the insert out of the pot. I've tried using less water, lifting the pasta insert slowly, etc. and it still splashes whenever I use it. Today I purchased a Faberware 8 qt. pasta insert- it has much larger holes and when I tried it tonight I couldn't make it splash even when I practically jerked it out of the pot.

Compared to other cookware the quality of this set is decent, but my other Chef's Classic is so much better quality that this set mostly sits in the cabinet. If you want to buy a set, go with the 10 or 12 piece set. You'll save some money and you can use it to buy a pasta pot you can actually use.

I want to add a dose of realism to the many positive reviews here. We've had this cookware set for about 5 months. It comes packaged very nicely, seems well made and looks very good. And there's the rub. Unlike a lot of stainless cookware, these are very shiny. If you like that, you'll be satisfied, but you should bear in mind that the finish is fragile. It's easy to scratch and easy to discolor. We use the steamer every day and on one occasion I accidentally boiled it dry. I took the pot off the heat very quickly, but the result was a faint gold tint on the outside that cannot be removed. I don't really mind the color change, but it worries me.

I've used the frying pan a couple of times to make eggs and here again the shine isn't necessarily a good thing. Butter actually beads up on the surface as it melts and you have to use an awful lot if you want it to cover the bottom of the pan.

The instructions warn you many times not to use steel wool for cleaning. So far, we've been okay with a plastic scrubber pad, and, especially after a soaking, things clean up easily. But the fact that I've been warned not to use the most obvious cleaning method is worrisome.

Pot handles do indeed stay cool. The lids, however, can get very hot. Also, the edges of the lids face up and out. This is common now, but my older pans had lids that that were turned into the pan. The outward-facing design guarantees that condensation will form on the underside of the lids, and will drip pretty badly when you first remove them from a boiling pot. One good feature of the lid handles is that you can hang them on a pot rack.

Finally, the steamer has several extra ridges around the bottom and vegetables inevitably stick to those areas. Again, a soaking is necessary to get them clean.

All in all, a useful, sturdy set, well made, and a good value -- but with the caveat that the shine might not be what you want.

I am no chef but I do love to cook, and I purchased this set for myself after moving cross-country and giving away an old set of Farberware stainless. I have been using these for the last month and a half and I couldn't be more pleased. I absolutely love them!

They heat evenly and the handles do, indeed, stay cool. The pots clean up beautifully. There has been some minor discoloration on the frying pans but that's to be expected, I think, given their purpose. But the saucepans and stockpot come out of the dishwasher looking as pristine as when I took them out of the box! They are SO pretty... Lastly, these pots and pans are not too heavy, which was sa concern for me. I'd tried out other pots and pans (like the Emerilware) at department stores and found them extremely heavy to lift; the Cuisinart Chef's Classic are the perfect weight for me.

You do have to be careful about keeping the heat lower, though, or things do burn. The other thing I've found is that, while the handles on the pots and pans stay cool, the handles on the lids do not...just be careful when lifting the lids!

Although I think it'd be nice if the 14-piece set included a 2-quart saucepan too, but otherwise it comes with everything you need to cook a big or small meal. There are smaller sets, though, for those who aren't ready to take the plunge.

I heartily recommend this set.

Love the cookware,the only problem i had was not reading the fine print which caused me to ruin the inside bottom (discoloration)of my stock pot,thank goodness it is the only pot i store in my cabinet,my others are displayed on my pot rack.I was cooking fresh collards from a friend and i always add a dash of baking soda to them in case they are bitter! After cooking them i washed the pot and the bottom was purple,pink and gray! I used the barkeepers and that did not work i was out done.I took the manual out and read it and found that it stated not to use lemon dishwasing detergent but nothing about baking soda i don't remember where i read it if it was on the box or the cuisinart web site but it says never to use baking soda in these pots.I have never owned stainless steel cookware before and figure that perhaps this review will help new users!Other than my own stupidity I give these pots 5 stars.

For a logn time I looked at different cookware at the local stores and was less then impressed. I read numerous glowing reviews on Amazon with a grain of salt. I finally tkok the plunge and ordered. Wow, this set is high quality. My wife balked at the idea of stainless steel but this set is wonderful. No rust and food doesn't stick much at all. We have an electric cooktop and that may make the difference. The other thing is that with our previous aluminum/Teflon set the cooktop would have to be turned up to 7 to have the water boil. With this set it boils at 3.

I'm not a professional chef but I cook extravagant meals nearly every night. I've been cooking for about 12 years and was a bit hesitant at first to buy a set of pans that weren't non-stick. However, I did want to get away from teflon pans. As soon as I did I noticed a distinct difference in taste/quality. As EVERYONE says you don't need a lot of heat. I use an older natural gas stove and it was difficult for me to get it down low enough. Cuisinart suggests a flame/heat diffuser for those situations. After cooking for a while I did notice that using a pan on HIGH heat does cause a slight bit of discoloration on the bottom. I do however believe it will come out quite easily. As long as I have a small amount of oil in the pan I have had absolutely no issues with food sticking or burning and it's easier to use than any of my non-stick stuff and requires less heat/gas. Goes great with a nice set of Chicago Cutlery knives (awesome for the price)

Other sets considered: Analon, Calphalon(strongly considered), Emerilware, All-Clad, Circulon

I purchased this set of cookware a few months ago and I love it!
I am a student majoring in Hotel/Restaurant Management, and hoping to become a chef someday.
I think this is a wonderful start-up set for me since I can't afford an All-Clad set.
If you are not a hardcore cook, this set would be just fine too.

I researched for a cookware set a lot. I wanted to get the most for my money since I was on a budget. I came across this set after reading a lot of reviews that for the most part were very helpful. I decided to buy this set based upon what I have read about them. I have had this set for a month now.If you are looking to buy an expensive set don't even bother. This set is great. I cook every night with this set and haven't found anything to complain about. They cook very evenly, durable, clean up is very easy and they look great. I have had no problems with this set at all and if you are familiar with cooking with stainless steel I believe you will enjoy this set as much as I do and for the money you can't go wrong. Amazon was good as always.

The set is not stamped and is considerably thinner than existing Cuisinart cookware that I have. The description clearly states 18/10, but the quality difference and lack of stamping make me think otherwise. The oven safe temperature on the description also differs from the oven safe temperature of "550" that comes in the packaging, which makes me question what set is being advertised. This set isn't cheap because it's a deal, it's cheap because it is cheaply made.

I bought this set based on the ratings etc, and how they looked online. They looked great out of the box, but the pieces are a bit light in weight or they lack heft. The handles are comfortable and not hollow like some other brands, but the steel on the pots is thin; except for the bottom of course which has the encapsulated aluminum. According to Cuisinart, these pots are basically the same as their tri-ply sets. The first time using 10" pan was great. The food didn't stick (even though it's not non-stick), and it cleaned up nicely. You have to clean them right away or put soapy water in them if you don't want to leave spots on the inside bottom. And the inside bottoms do scratch very easily. I made the mistake of using a wisk one day, and now my small pot has swirl marks. It doesn't change the cooking properties, it's just an eye sore. Also, be careful cooking pasta and rice. You have to constantly stir the pot or else you will spots all over the bottom or perfect little rice outlines. The company says that you can use vinegar to get spots out which I have yet to try. Another bad thing is the pasta insert for the stock pot. It's basically useless. The 14-piece set come with a 9 quart pot, but the insert is made for the 8 quart one. They only produce the 9 quart for the 14-piece set, so I assume they didn't want to take the time to make an insert for it. When trying to use it, the water boils over the side where the insert and pot meet. And I don't use the high heat setting with anything. I had a smooth top electric oven and I don't boil anything above the 7 setting. When using the insert, I couldn't even keep the water boiling without it boiling out. But on a plus side, they do heat evenly, but not as fast as they claim. There was no difference from my old calphlon to these. I do like that you can pour liquids out like grease without it running down the side; no matter how slow you pour. Also, they can go in the dishwasher.
It is an ok set, but I've seen better quality set's at Wal-Mart for the same, if not lower, price; especially recently. I was hoping to get a nice replacement set for my old set of cookware that would be comparable to other names like Analon just as others have stated they are, but this cookware came up a bit short. I could have gotten a Wearever set that is half the price and twice the weight at Wal-Mart. Not that I would have, I'm just making a point. It's not the greatest set, but much better than many others out there. If you do decide you want to buy a set of cookware and you don't want to spend more than $120, do check out two sets at Wal-Mart. There is a new set by, I believe, Tramonita that is tr-ply and NSF approved. There is one other new set as well. I'm sure it sound's like I am plugging Wal-Mart but that is not the case. It's just that if they had the cookware they have now, I would have gone with those instead of the Cuisinart set. I am not one to write reviews unless I am really impressed or really upset. I'm sure you can tell by this review that I am not impressed.