Decent pots and pans?

[kiki02]

where do you buy decent pots and pans that are not expensive? thanks all

 

[North of Mouse]

where do you buy decent pots and pans that are not expensive? thanks all

My favorites are T Fal 'Ultimates'. Make sure that's what they are as all other T Fal is not worth much. Buy them at Kohls on sale with a 30% coupon they send out.

They have a sale (also $20 rebate) going on now for a 12 pc. set of T Fal Ultimates for $129 plus your % off. They have 'scratch offs' for 15 -30% off if you do not receive one at home.

I really love mine - nothing sticks, and they clean up so easily!

 

[SandyinMonterey]

Check out QVC. They sell many different brands....Cook Essentials (I hear good things about) and Rachael Ray are a few. I think prices are pretty good and when it's on easy pay, it's a plus.

 

[Lisa71]

I like my Rachel Ray pans. I have has more expensive and cheaper ones..but these are good for the price.

 

[aubriee]

I had to buy a new oven a few months ago and got a flat top. I love it, but unfortunately it ruined several of my cheap T Fal pans. I had to go buy all new cookware and went with Caphalon. I love them. I bought a set at Costco, plus two extra skillets and have since picked up some more individual pans with lids at TJ Maxx and Ross, to match the set.

 

[Janet Hill]

My favorite is NoricWare and I can get it at my local Wal-Mart.

It's not very expensive, holds up nicely and the best part - It's made in USA!

 

[Southernmiss]

I like my hard anodized cooks essentials and Rachael Ray pots and pans.

 

[okeydokey]

Homegoods. You may not get a huge matching set, but they have very good quality pans at a good price. I just bought a couple of very heavy duty cuisinart baking sheets for not much more than the cheapie ones at Walmart.

 

[Maddle]

Costco (branded Kirkland) - I have both the triple steel and the anodized non-stick - love them all. Great price for the sets.

Maddle

 

[NotUrsula]

Homegoods, Marshalls, TJMaxx; all the same company, really. They have a lot of discontinued items at very good prices. Your stuff won't match, but unless you like to hang your cookware as decor when you are not using it, that shouldn't really be important. Personally, one of the features that I find important is hollow steel handles; they stay cool enough to handle easily, but are still very durable. (Solid steel handles, while the most durable, tend to get blazing hot, hot enough to burn through a potholder at times.) Tuesday Morning also often has good deals on discontinued and/or overstock pieces.

Anodized aluminum is what I prefer for most uses, but in stock pots I prefer heavy stainless for anything water-based. For true frying (not sauteeing), or for making gumbo, nothing beats well-seasoned cast iron. For stir-frying I have a traditional carbon-steel wok that is also well-seasoned.

 

[cluvsdisney]

I have been using my classic series Farberware set since the late 90s and have been more than satisfied. Except for a loose handle here or there, they are in good condition and they weren't really expensive.

 

[trinchick]

I don't have a specific set to recommend, but my money-saving suggestion is to think about what kind of cook you are before purchasing a set. There's no need to invest in All Clad if you're just going to heat up a jar of Ragu and whip up an occasional omelet!

I'm always tempted by the fancy brands and allure of higher quality, when in reality a lower-level purchase will often meet my needs just as well.

 

[msmama]

I second Kirkland brand from Target. Same quality as the more expensive sets but much cheaper!

 

[JanaDee]

I just bought three Lodge cast iron pieces for less than what one non-stick pan would have cost.

Lodge is made in the US, too.

http://www.lodgemfg.com/

 

[SalandJeff]

Farberware or Revereware stainless cannot be beat for everyday use. Mine are 30 years old and my Mom's are 50 years old.

 

[JandJ]

A few years ago all of my non-stick coated pans started to lose their black non-stick a week before Thanksgiving! DH is always hunting a bargain - good quality at a cheap price - and through a ton of on-line research we decided on the Kirkland brand stainless pots and pans from Costco. I LOVE them! I never thought I could get used to pans that weren't non-stick but it's actually worked out great. I can use metal utensils and they work on our induction burner, too.

I also have one Le Creuset pan that DH sort of inherited. It's awesome, but doesn't work well on the induction burner and is VERY heavy. I couldn't justify spending the money to get a full Le Creuset set, but I prefer my Costco set anyway!

 

[Jack&Ryan'smom]

Check out QVC today.the Today's Special Value is a Rachel Ray cookware set. It looks like a great set!

 

[aprilchem]

This is a more expensive option, but I would highly recommend Le Creuset. We bought most of ours from the outlet, so they were about 30% less than buying new. Our justification is that Le Creuset pans last for 100 years or more, and so I would only need to buy one set in my lifetime (and I can pass it down to one of my children if they want it, if not they can sell it). I've had my set for 12 years and in the same amount of time my mother has purchased 3 cheap ($100 or so) sets of cooking pans which eventually ended up in the landfill when they warped or the coatings came off. Le Creuset also has a guarantee where they will replace any pan that gets damaged (the guarantee does not apply to factory seconds, so you have to be careful when you buy them). You can also get them used on eBay fairly frequently.

They are heavy, but after you use them for a while you don't notice it any more. And they're a dream to cook with - my MIL made fun of me for the first 10 years I had them (how can you cook with those HEAVY pans???) but I noticed she'd bought 3 pans the last time I went there

Anyway, I know they're not an option for everyone but I highly recommend them.

 

[ChiCat]

I also like my Le Creusets. I recently found them at Marshalls! Although you have yo be careful and look at the label, the really cheap ones are made in China but they have the good ones made in France too they just aren't as cheap.

 

[tar heel]

I'm a big fan of stainless steel. I bought my Revere Ware the first Thanksgiving that we lived in our second house. After 26 years, they are still fantastic as are my mother-in-law's which are older. My mother had some Regal Ware stainless and I have a couple pieces that were hers, which I also really like.

I just bought my son and his soon-to-be-bride some of the coated stuff as a shower gift because that was what they had on their registry. I'm not sure they are a good choice, though. They came from Bed, Bath and Beyond with a 20% off coupon.

When I was shopping for that cookware, I noticed that a lot of them have glass lids. My mother had some of those, and I don't like them at all as they are extremely hard to clean.