Calphalon or Pampered Chef Cookware?

[samanthacatangel]

I have Calphalon and I do like their quality, as well as how they back up their warranty. I had a problem with the coating on the non-stick pan (which, I believe was one step below the professional line...I do know it cost about $160). I never used metal on it, and only hand washed it. I sent it back and it was replaced within 10 days.

I have many other pieces, and this was the only one that had any sort of problem. I LOVE Calphalon...but if I had more disposable income, I would have an All-Clad and Le Creuset (sp?) kitchen.

I also have some Circulon. This was recommended by the Chef at the Disney Institute when I took some cooking classes in 2000. All of the pots used in their kitchens were Circulon. When I asked whether he recommended Circulon or Calphalon, he said they were simliar, but he liked Circulon. I have to say, it was the only advice he had given me that was off base. I do not feel the Circulon is anywhere near the quality of the Calphalon, and definitely does not hold up as well under heavy use (I use my pots A LOT)

HTH
Samantha

 

[java]

Well I have Calphalon from 16 years ago-my shower. I got the professional set and still LOVE it! I like to be able to go from stove into the oven- and these pans do that perfectly!
I don't have their non-stick. I don't really like non-stick for dinner cooking- but I did need it for eggs ect... so I bought a cheapo set on QVC (it was the today special- had 3 pieces cooks essentials- it was a 12 inch flat griddle type pan, a 10 inch fry pan and a grill pan- all for under $30 so I wasn't expecting much but MAN these are GREAT non-stick pans. And you CAN use metal on them I do it all the time. They clean up great.
I think if your choice is PC or Calphalon (and I am assuming you are not talking about the line at Target) I would go Calphalon hands down(sorry PC person I love my PC stuff but their cookware reminded me more of Farberware quality- not bad just not great)
Now I got a double burner griddle/grill pan from WilliamsSonoma and I love it. My Mom however hates hers- says it never lays flat on her stove and she is buying an electric one.

 

[Alice's Mom]

I work in a kitchen store and I would go with a high end of calphalon, but if you can swing the $99.95 I would go for the All Clad.

I have had my All Clad griddle for almost 10 years now and still as good as new.

Calphalon comes back a lot, they change their style often. All Clad has stayed the same for almost a century and they have a lifetime guarantee.

 

[mickeyluv'r]

I was going to post to this a while back, but I guess I never put it through. I have mostly All-Clad. I LOVE it! Here's what I know about pans:

I find the disadvantage of Faberware is that you can't put them in the oven. The All-Clad pans do double duty, because I'm able to use them as bakeware. Even the lids can go in the oven. It's also great if you need to keep a dish warm for a few minutes -like when you have guests over. Plus the handles are 'stay-cool.' They do get hot if you put the pan in the oven at 400 degrees, but they don't get hot on the stove. Some of the lesser metal handled cookware aren't as good. Cast iron pan handles get really hot.

Another reason to get higher end cookware has to do with the heating time and eveness. With All-Clad (and Calphalon), the heat is distributed very evenly. That means that you can use lower settings (lower utility bills) to cook, and have more even cooking (less scorching, easier to clean). If I'm careful not to scrub my pans too heavily, they almost act like non-stick pans for many dishes. I'm not going to say they work as well as non-stick, but I can make scrambled eggs without getting egg stuck to the bottom of the pan or very little egg. My mom's Faberware always has a hard coating of egg afterwards, that's hard to clean.

My Faberware pot worked fine until the handle broke. I suspect I'll be able to will my All-Clad pans to my grandkids some day. Composition can also have some potential long term effects too.. For example, using cast iron pans actually adds a minute amount of iron to your diet. From what I've read, there's some debate as to whether or not your body actually utilizes this iron. We don't yet know the long term effects of exposing ourselves to non-stick coating. Most non-stick coatings eventually crack. Some of the newer ones are pretty durable though.

As for Calphalon, I didn't find the dark stuff to be worth the money. It has many of the benefits of the All-Clad (cook time), but they also get scorched pretty easily, and then you have to replace them. They supposedly have a warrenty though.

Having said that, I did recently buy a Calphalon pot (shiny) that has been very nice so far. I really like the glass lid. I know it won't last forever (the lid), but it makes cooking easier, since you can see water boiling without removing the lid. You can also look at the contents to see if they are almost done. This might not matter to many cooks, but it's just a little thing that makes life easier, especially when you are making a complicated dinner.

 

[LisaInNc]

I have Calphalon and have used them for about 15 years. I get new pans form time and time and Amazon.com has some AMAZING sales. Usually I need bigger pans as my family grew!

My Mom has also used Calphalon and some of her pans are around 20 years old and still are sill as good as they were when she got them.

I wouldn't use any other pan.

I recently got to take a cooking class Johnson and Wales, a top culinary school. They used Calphalon pans in their kitchen just like I had a home!

 

[Paxtrist]

I love my Pampered Chef pans!!!

 

[kelleigh1]

I see that someone mentioned that they like the fact that they can use their Claphalon in the oven also. Just as an FYI, you can also use the Pampered Chef cookware in the oven.

 

[adamandallie]

I also sell Pampered Chef. I own both Calphalon Professional line and Pampered Chef (a few pieces from each of their lines) cookware. I actually prefer the Pampered Chef over the Calphalon and not because I sell them. The Calphalon pans that I own and use the most are starting to lose their "non-stickness". I've actually just bought another griddle to replace the Calphalon one that I bought about 10 years ago because everything sticks to the pan. I replaced it with the new Executive line double burner griddle that just came out this spring. I love the Pampered Chef pans because you can just wipe them off and they come clean easily. They also have a lifetime warranty which is nice to have. If you host a Pampered Chef show you could get a piece for free or discounted (using host benefits) to try.