"Leonard Lehew" > wrote in message
...
> On Wed, 23 Mar 2005 19:35:20 -0500, "Dee Randall"
> <deedoveyatshenteldotnet> wrote:
>>Thanks.
>>I'm speaking here below only of pans that are NOT non-stick:
>>Is there any reason one would purchase a hard-anodized pot; i.e. 4 qt.
>>pot/pan , vs. a heavy stainless steel 4 qt. pot/pan like the Cuisinart or
>>Kirkland heavy-duty pans/pots.
>>I use mostly non-stick now, so I'm interested in the virtues of
>>hard-anodized vs. the heavy-duty stainless.
>>Thanks so much.
>>Dee
>>
> They have somewhat different cooking characteristics. Aluminum is a
> much better conductor of heat than stainless steel. That is why
> premium stainless cookware uses a layered construction. I must admit
> that I use my Calphalon mostly for stuff like boiling water for pasta.
> A bare aluminum pot would work just as well, and it is much less
> expensive.
>
> No cookware is "best" for everything. A good compromise for most
> purposes is aluminum cookware with a thin stainless lining like All
> Clad Master Chef. The All Clad Limited line has a hard anodized
> coating on the outside. It cost a lot more than Master Chef. The
> anodized coating on the outside is strictly for appearance. All Clad
> Stainless is a sandwich constuction with stainless on the outside and
> inside. The stainless on the outside is for appearance and actually
> reduces cooking performance a bit.
>
> There are many good brands other than All Clad, of course, but the
> construction tends to follow the same patterns.
>
> I do prefer stainless cookware (again, like All Clad) that has a layer
> of aluminum around the entire vessel. Cuisinart, for example is
> stainless with a copper sandwich on the bottom only. These pots tend
> to have a thicker layer of stainless (hence generally poorer
> conductivity), and I have observed more of a tendency for things to
> burn near the edges of the conductive sandwich underneath.
>
> I have accumulate a lot of cookware over the years of almost every
> type you can imagine. I haven't found anything that is ideal for
> everything.
>

I second this heartily. I probably have one or two of every kind of pan
known to man ranging from expensive French copper to cheapo aluminum
restaurant ware (yes I am a kitchen equipment junkie!) and I use them all at
one time or another.


--
Peter Aitken

Remove the crap from my email address before using.