Registry Cookware question

Stainless Steel or Non Stick pots and pans??

Which ones do you want/have?
Which are better???

TIA girls!!!!

Both, plus an enameled cast iron dutch oven.

Having both is ideal because they serve different purposes. If you want to brown a piece of meat, stainless is better. But if you want to make something that you want to slide from the pan easily (like pancakes or an omelet) or you want to use less oil/butter, non stick is better.

Calphalon contemporary is the brand to get, I think. It's a little more expensive, but not ridiculously so, but is really good.

As for enameled cast iron, Le Cruset is hard to beat (though it's definitely more expensive then it should be).

Thanks!!!! You know your stuff !!

What about for everyday cooking, like chicken cutlets or pasta? Which is better for those types of things?

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Posted by jettahot

Thanks!!!! You know your stuff !!

What about for everyday cooking, like chicken cutlets or pasta? Which is better for those types of things?

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No problem. I love to cook so I spent a long time looking into this stuff. I have Calphalon now, they discontinued the line that I have now but the Contemporary is the line they replaced mine with.

I would say get one of each of a 12' skillet, and some smaller ones too. They have a good griddle pan. For chicken cutlets, I would say it would depend on whether or not it is breaded. If breaded, I think nonstick would work better. If not breaded, stainless will give you a better sear on the outside.

For pasta, you should get a big stock pot (which will also often come with a matching pasta strainer that is made for it) because it is also useful for making soups. I have a nonstick one because it is easier to clean. You should also get a couple smaller saucepans. I have 3 sizes in addition to the stock pot, it is nice to have different sizes because depending on how much you are cooking you don't have to lug the entire giant thing out. I have a mix of stainless and nonstick but I don't know if it matters a huge amount.

One thing that I have that I LOVE is a Calphalon wok pan. It is great for sautes and stirfries.

I agree its great to have both but if you choose one I would say the nonstick is much more functional. My MOH has both and says the stainless are very hard to clean. The only stainless i have is the huge pasta pot FMIL got us for xmas 09. I love it, perfect for soups and sauces!

However, we registered for calphalon contemporary. We love to cook and do it often. I actually broke down this week and bought the huge dutch oven that was from that set on our registry. I had to return some things to BBB and instead of buying stupid little crap that we don't need I went big for the pot and have used it 3 times already this week and I am now obsessed with it!

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Posted by lbs418

I agree its great to have both but if you choose one I would say the nonstick is much more functional. My MOH has both and says the stainless are very hard to clean. The only stainless i have is the huge pasta pot FMIL got us for xmas 09. I love it, perfect for soups and sauces!

However, we registered for calphalon contemporary. We love to cook and do it often. I actually broke down this week and bought the huge dutch oven that was from that set on our registry. I had to return some things to BBB and instead of buying stupid little crap that we don't need I went big for the pot and have used it 3 times already this week and I am now obsessed with it!

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I don't find stainless that difficult to clean... it might just need to be soaked for a little.

Did you get the nonstick 8.5 qt? I've been eyeing that and trying to decide whether or not we need it.

another good brand is circulon infinite nonstick cookware. I registered for the set and my boss has had it for a few years and loves it. I did research (consumer reports etc) and this one is supposed to last the longest and be the most scratch proof.

I also do have calphalon contemporary frying pans that I use now and love them. so i think both brands would be good.

Both! We already had a nice set of stainless, so we registered for a nice set of non stick.
ETA: We have the emirlware stainless, which I actually got free with my credit card points. It's not hard to clean. I once found this scouring powder that makes it look like new again! Works on the stainless and the copper parts.
Registered for circulon, I think infinite? FH did the research and found it was best. I thought calphalon would have been better, but the reviews were better for circulon.
Oh, and even if it says dishwasher safe, it's still not recommended to put them in the dishwasher. They will last longer if you don't.

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Posted by KN2011

I had to register for stainless bc we have a ceramic flat top stove.

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I'm pretty sure you can use nonstick on a flat top stove... that's what my mom has and she uses nonstick. Though I'm not sure if hers is ceramic or glass. Why couldn't you use nonstick?

I say non stick

A friend said she has to use special cleaner for her stainless steel pans which is a pain

Thank you so much girls!!!! This info is all so helpful!!!!

I really appreciate it!! YOU GIRLS ROCK!!!!

xoxo Randi

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Posted by legalchef

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Posted by KN2011

I had to register for stainless bc we have a ceramic flat top stove.

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I'm pretty sure you can use nonstick on a flat top stove... that's what my mom has and she uses nonstick. Though I'm not sure if hers is ceramic or glass. Why couldn't you use nonstick?

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well you cant use anything with any kind of coaing on the outside of the pan.. you can use non stick if the outside is stainless or aluminum with no outside coating. The stovetop gets too hot and the enamel will melt to the glass top

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Posted by KN2011

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Posted by legalchef

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Posted by KN2011

I had to register for stainless bc we have a ceramic flat top stove.

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I'm pretty sure you can use nonstick on a flat top stove... that's what my mom has and she uses nonstick. Though I'm not sure if hers is ceramic or glass. Why couldn't you use nonstick?

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well you cant use anything with any kind of coaing on the outside of the pan.. you can use non stick if the outside is stainless or aluminum with no outside coating. The stovetop gets too hot and the enamel will melt to the glass top

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OOOOOOOH that I knew. I thought you were saying that there was a problem with the nonstick coating on the *inside* of the pan!