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131 of 134 people found the following review helpful:
Two things make a kitchen...good knives and good pots/pans, October 24, 2001
This review is from: All-Clad 5000-9 Stainless 9-Piece Cookware Set (Kitchen)
For a good even heat, excellent quality of workmanship, and a dependable name, I can't think of anything better than All-Clad. For years, I used cheap cookware store non-stick skillets and hand-me-down pots and pans my mother used when she first got married. What a difference it makes.Most cookware is way too thin, which leaves you with hotspots. For years, I would make up for this by using a cast iron "defuser" to even out the heat and keep the direct flame off the bottom of the pan. I don't have to do this any more. With the triple-layering, you get even heating, regardless of whether it's the middle of the pan or the outer edge. Personally, I like the stainless. MC2 wasn't around when I bought mine, and I might have chosen that because of the low-maintanace exterior, but I'm not regretting it either. I don't have to be worrying about scratching through the coating with it and it cleans up easy enough with a little water and even less elbow grease. Cooking will always be a chore, even if you enjoy the act in itself, if you never invest in good cookware and good knives. This is the first step on at least one of those. You might also wish to add a double-boiler, the steamer insert and a 1 qt. saucier; and maybe a larger stock pot (12 qt. if you can afford it), but this really lets you hit the ground running.
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109 of 115 people found the following review helpful:
Just learn how to use it and you'll love it!, April 14, 2003
This review is from: All-Clad 5000-9 Stainless 9-Piece Cookware Set (Kitchen)
This is my second set of All Clad. When I installed a Viking gas cooktop a year ago, I discovered why all the pros use All Clad....my thick-bottomed, thin-walled cookware couldn't take the heat and food burned on the sides rather than the bottom. My darling husband gave me a full set of MC2 and from that point on I was hooked. I have added several pieces via Amazon's great buys, both MC2 and stainless which I love. Mind you, my previous cookware was all non-stick so this was a challenge but once I figured out the proper way to cook I've had no problem with anything sticking and I hardly ever use any fat besides cooking sprays. It's so simple: preheat the cookware! It only takes a minute on medium heat then you can spray the pan and add your food and nothing sticks. Cleanup is a breeze and the stuff is so gorgeous I bought a stainless rack to display it. If you are serious about cooking, buy this set. It's a fantastic deal and it will last a lifetime. I'm betting some of you will even go on to buy a pro-type cooktop or stove after you start using All Clad. It's really true that the right cookware makes all the difference and this is the right stuff!
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107 of 115 people found the following review helpful:
foolcontrol, April 23, 2004
By A Customer
This review is from: All-Clad 5000-9 Stainless 9-Piece Cookware Set (Kitchen)
I recommend All-Clad. I work at a cooking school and everything we use is either All-Clad or Le Creuset. I have cooked with Jeremiah Tower, James Peterson, Johnny Carabba, Damian Mandola, Guiliano Bugialli, Ann Willan, Stephan Pyles, Susanna Trilling, David Rosengarten, Crescent Dragonwagon, Peter Reinhart, Robert McGrath, Bill and Cheryl Jamison, Aaron Sanchez, Rosemary Barron, Stan Frankenthaler, Michael DeGrigrio, Natalie Dupree, Gordon Hammersley, John Demers, Kathleen Dalaemens, Mark Bittman, Rosemary Barron, Mary Cech, Diane Morgan, Jennifer Bushman, Molly Stevens and a whole lot of other chefs. All comments about All-Clad have always been positive.When it came time to upgrade from the Calphalon Commercial Nonstick set that I have at home, I considered All-Clad, Mauviel Professional and Demeyere Sirocco. I chose All-Clad because it is a good and inexpensive compared to other cookware in its class. I have this set along with a 12" Nonstick frypan. I also have 9 pieces of Le Creuset. All-Clad skillets and saucepans are awesome. If you are making an omlette, use an All-Clad nonstick frypan. All-Clad does heat up very fast; however, it cooks very evenly. Buy All-Clad and you will never have to upgrade. Almost every chef on TV uses All-Clad and Le Creuset. BTW: Zojirushi makes the best bread machines and rice cookers. Kitchen Aid and Cuisinart make the best of the other appliances. Wüsthof, Henckels, Global, Boker and Kyocera make really good knives. Use Ateco for piping bags and tips. Use Wilton for baking pans. I would also recommend two Silpats or Exopats and two half sheet pans if you like to make cookies.
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55 of 58 people found the following review helpful:
Change your cookware, Change your cooking, June 7, 2005
This review is from: All-Clad 5000-9 Stainless 9-Piece Cookware Set (Kitchen)
A chef who works the line in one of New York's best restaurants may tell you that your cookware won't really change the way you cook. That chef, however, may just be jealous you just bought one of the best investments you could ever make. Consider this. The computer you're reading this on probably cost more than 500 dollars. It will last you, generously, 4 years. The set of All-Clad you just bought also cost more than 500 dollars. It will last you, conservatively, the rest of your life if you take care of it properly.
You can get the pro's and con's from a lot of other reviews and reading material, but I want to share one bit of advice that made the final choice for me. I did hours of online and print research before finally making a choice. I tried matching up individual pieces, compared sets v. non-sets, looked at what I really needed in closer detail, and, lastly, "agonized" between Calphalon and All-Clad.
Why did All-Clad stainless win? I love technology, especially stuff that makes our lives easier (like cleaning). So I was leaning pretty heavily toward Calphalon One for a while (it's even slightly cheaper). But then I came to a quick conclusion one night while eating at a Florentine's house: tried and true, stainless steel can make some incredibly good food. If you're in the market now, as you most likely are considering you're reading this (hopefully), then maybe, like me, you'll think to yourself, maybe I should wait a while for this "One" concept to see how well it lasts. All-Clad will last me my life. Proof positive. And I won't have to be sending any of it in the mail (hopefully).
It wasn't an easy choice, but after just about 5 meals I've cooked in them, my friends are already smiling (and my roommates are incredibly happy). The cleanup (which is what really racked my conscience for a while. I am a college kid at heart who hates to do dishes) is, in all honesty, not AS easy as non-stick, but after a little soaking in soapy water and with the magic of Bar Keeper's Friend, well, done done and doner.
While this may be a once-in-a-lifetime purchase for you, beware, the pans are infectious.
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38 of 39 people found the following review helpful:
indulgent spluge that makes for much cooking pleasure, December 13, 2003
By A Customer
This review is from: All-Clad 5000-9 Stainless 9-Piece Cookware Set (Kitchen)
After much dreaming (and saving) my husband bought me my set for my birthday. I know its very, very expensive, but these pots cook like nothing else I've ever used. The heat is so even that simmering liquids barely crack a bubble (I initially thought I didn't have the heat high enough, but I did). I have some Calphalon tri-ply stainless, and a few pieces of the Calphalon Commercial non-stick, and while I love these pans a lot (they're excellent value for the money, and also heat quite quickly and evenly), my All-Clad pans outperform them. They preheat very quickly, there are absolutely no hot spots, and I haven't had a problem with food sticking (I preheat for a couple of minutes and use a little olive or canola oil when cooking). For eggs I would definitely choose a nonstick skillet, but for everything else these are the pots I reach for. Because of the really even heat, the pots are very forgiving if you forget to stir for a while, and it seems really hard to burn anything in them. I forgot a stew on the stove for over an hour, and expected to be soaking off burned stuff for days, but to my surprise it was fine...cooked right down and in need of a bit of water, but not a single burnt spot. Amazing! (try that in a cheap pot!). For anyone considering buying this set (or even a single piece), I'd really recommend purchasing Bar Keeper's Friend. It's a cleaner that All-Clad recommends, is safe for both the inside and outside surfaces, costs about $2.50 for a large container, and it seems to dissolve away everything with little effort. I think it would be hard to clean the pots without it - it not only takes off any oil splatters or food residue, but it also erases heat stains. Makes the pots look brand new, even when you're wondering if the stuck on stuff will ever come off. I'd be so sad to buy such expensive pots and not be able to have them stay looking new, and this stuff really works. Of course, stainless steel is never going to rinse clean like a nonstick pan, but it is more durable, and browns better than nonstick. What you choose will probably depend on whether or not you're willing to do a bit more washing up for the sake of flavor. If not, the calphalon commercial nonstick line is amazing. If so, this is definitely the way to go. Happy cooking!
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37 of 38 people found the following review helpful:
You get what you pay for, February 15, 2006
This review is from: All-Clad 5000-9 Stainless 9-Piece Cookware Set (Kitchen)
I was reluctant to part with the money for All-Clad, but I wanted made in USA cookware, and I needed flat bottoms for a ceramic cook top. Started with the LTD set and soon found that the cookware heated faster at lower settings, with no hot spots (like the old copper bottom Revereware clones) and it cleans up with little effort. The handles are heavy duty and riveted on, not attached with flimsy little spot welds. Polished stainless lids fit perfectly and clean easily, and the sauce pan lid fits the fry pan - keeping any spatter inside, so unless you need both pans at the same time one lid works. The stainless interiors clean easily with Barkeeper's Friend just as the instructions recommend. I was so impressed with the quality and performance that I ordered two All-Clad non-stick fry pans. Nothing works for eggs and fish like non-stick, and just because it's non-stick doesn't mean I can't toss butter, olive oil, minced garlic and onion in with the coated halibut! All-Clad non-stick is nothing like the other stuff - believe me. This stuff cooks perfectly, at low heat (you gotta keep the heat low as the thermal transfer of this stuff is incredible), doesn't burn, discolor or scratch. It cleans up with a drop of dishsoap and a swish of a dish rag, rinse and its done. Folks it's worth the money, and will last a life time.
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43 of 45 people found the following review helpful:
The Best Pans, November 7, 2004
This review is from: All-Clad 5000-9 Stainless 9-Piece Cookware Set (Kitchen)
You will not regret buying these pans. That is if you buy them at a store that will let you swap out pieces. The 3qt saute is too small, go for the 4qt. Or just get whatever suits you best.
Food tastes different when cooked in these pans. Seriously, if you grow your own vegetables, you will notice a difference in taste. Things taste fresher and cleaner when cooked in All-Clad stainless.
You will notice that if you are cooking with gas, that it is hard to get a very low heat with these pans--of course depending on your stove. The pans require a lot less heat which is good in most cases, but not all.
Cleanup is easy if you know the trick. The trick is that once you finish cooking, put the pan back on the stove with the heat on and pour in a small amount of water. Use a silicon spatula to stir it around. Everything lifts instantly off the bottom. Do not use too much water otherwise it may warp the pan. A TBSP will do, add more if it evaporates. Then I just turn the heat off and clean the pan out with a yellow/green scrubber sponge after I am finished eating. (I try not to use the green side on the outside, but works great on the inside)
The Bar helper stuff that everyone talks about sounds like a lot of work. I have never used it. We don't have a microwave, so we use our pans everyday. They look like we use them, but they do not look unpresentable. We have had the set for 3 years.
You will also notice how beautifully these pans brown items. It is incredible. You will think a chef cooked your food on a Hibachi grill. Get a good metal spatula with a sharp flat edge--don't cringe that's the beauty of non-nonstick--you can use real metal utensils once again.
And not to forget, the handles. They pretty much eat raw beans. Not good at all. But you won't find a nice handle attached to a pan as good as these. My favorite handles are those new roundish Caphalon ones. Very nice. What I don't like about the all-clad handles is that if you have a 4qt saute full of food, the handle is not adequate to distribute the weight in your hand, you have to use two hands.
Maybe the handles are All-clad's plan to get you to upgrade something in five years(when they come out with a new handle) when you won't need to buy new pans ever again. Serious. They are built like miniature tanks.
Lastly, get a non-stick for eggs. Cooking eggs is the only thing that is quite difficult with these pans. It can be done, but you must know your stove quite well and all the planets must be aligned correctly.
Lastly again, if you normally use non-stick pans... don't worry if a little bit of stuff sticks. It's ok and perfectly normal. The sticking is what browns the food. Almost everything I cook sticks a little. Just learn to ignore it.
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30 of 30 people found the following review helpful:
Just smile and hand over the plastic., February 12, 2006
This review is from: All-Clad 5000-9 Stainless 9-Piece Cookware Set (Kitchen)
It took my wife and I a long time to finally decide to purchase All-Clad stainless cookware. Thanks to Amazon for their frequent specials, we picked up 2 of the 1qt. stainless saucepans for a very low price on Amazon and those pans conviced us to buy nothing else after that. A couple of months ago one of our local department stores had their All-Clad open stock severely marked down so we started buying a few pieces each couple of weeks, by the time we were done we had expanded our collection to 20 pieces (not counting lids).
This cookware is just flat-out amazing. Others have already said this but I will say it again, food cooked in All-Clad actually tastes better. Whether it is the heat control, the quality of the stainless, or whatever. Saute a steak or cook up a pot of oatmeal, it taste amazing.
The only complaint we had was cleaning. After a couple of years the 2 original saucepans had gotten dull on the inside, the outside still had its original gleam. When our new pans started to look the same, we went looking for a solution. By the way, even though the stainless is dishwasher safe, we always hand-wash our cookware. Anyway, imagine our surprise when the $2.00 solution recommended by All-Clad, namely the Barkeeper's Friend cleaning powder, really really worked wonderfully to clean all our pans. Even the old originals cleaned up to look as good as the new.
Anyway, in summary, don't let the price scare you off. If you like to cook, consider it a well-deserved tool that you will use for the rest of your life. Buy the All-clad, clean it with Barkeepers Friend, and enjoy!
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31 of 32 people found the following review helpful:
Zowie!, April 2, 2004
This review is from: All-Clad 5000-9 Stainless 9-Piece Cookware Set (Kitchen)
I had to smile at one of the earlier reviews for this set. The reviewer seemed angry that the cookware was non-stick! Admittedly, this is NOT the set for the casual, indifferent chef. I won't let anyone else in my house use these. The first time I myself used the saute pan, I was shocked and awed by just how quickly the pan heated, and before I knew it, my butter had burned.
That's ok, though. If you're a first-time user, simply realize the pans conduct heat very differently than any other cookware you've probably used. Heat the pans before adding anything, and keep an eye on the temperature, and you'll be happy.
These pans are so beautiful, it's hard to toss them around like your old Target pots & pans. They ARE dishwasher safe, but (and this is sick, I know) you will get a singular, satisfying pleasure from washing and drying the gleaming fry pan by hand, and the saucepan will blow you kisses from under hot soapy bubbles.
Although I am moving on to cast-iron now, I cannot recommend these enough to the cooking enthusiast.
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25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
Great stuff!, August 19, 2003
This review is from: All-Clad 5000-9 Stainless 9-Piece Cookware Set (Kitchen)
We recently got a ten-piece set of the stainless and love it. The only problem was the 10-inch frypan...it had a rounded bottom and wouldn't stay put on the ceramic stove top. We returned it two days after purchase and got an immediate no-questions-asked replacement!Clean-up is easy (most of the time)...if you do have food stuck to the pan, put some hot water and soap in right away andlet it soak while you're eating. The pan will clean up right away then, after the meal. I personally believe that food tastes better from a stainless steel pan or cast-iron skillet than it does from a non-stick pan. Omelets and scrambled eggs are good examples...they get too "fluffy" in nonstick for my taste (but other people may love them that way.) The heating, as others have said, is exceptionally even. We have a Calphalon Commercial frypan that simply is slower to heat than the same sized AllClad stainless pan. I can't explain why, unless the "three layers of aluminum" that AllClad uses between the stainless steel inner and outer layers somehow conducts heat more efficiently than the single, thicker layer used by Calphalon. (I'm not bashing Calphalon here...I think their products are excellent, too.) The price of AllClad is the largest deterrent to purchasing a set. I finally reconciled to the cost...viewing it as a once-in-a-lifetime purchase. I also admit to liking to cook...and it is reassuring to know that I can make great food, time after time, with these pots and pans. We found that the cleaner used on the ceramic topped stove works well to remove surface films on our stainless cookware. It's nice to have one product to do two chores. If you're thinking of going this route, and the cost is within reach, you should be happy with this set. If you've always used nonstick cookware, or if you have little patience in cleaning, then you might want to think twice...or at least buy a "try me" piece to get a better feel for the product. Good luck!
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