"pots" news and stories

There are a lot of different kinds of pots and pans out there, and everyone's singing the praises of one or the other. Ignoring makers, Harold McGee of The New York Times put the different metals to the test.

We know aluminum pans to be the cheapest and lightest. Stainless steel looks beautiful forever and functions well at very high heat. Cast iron holds heat longer and is safe for popping in the oven after you've done what you need to on the stove--and it's even rumored to add nutritional iron to foods! Copper, the usual cream of the crop; typically the most expensive and prettiest, conducts heat evenly and quickly. Most copper pots and pans are coated with stainless steel (older copper pans coated with tin or nickel may be harmful, check your pans).

According to McGee's home test, electrical or open flame on your stove doesn't make much of difference, but the pans definitely all behave differently. His conclusions? To each his own.

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When it comes to my pots and pans, I don't like to play favorites. I don't want my cast iron skillet to think that it is any less loved than my giant stock pot or the 8 inch non-stick saute pan that I always use for eggs (I realize this might sound a little nutty, but go with me here). However, there is one pot that I love above all others in my kitchen. That yellow Dansk pictured above is my very favorite vessel for small batches of soup, steaming bunches of broccoli and boiling up two servings of pasta (it also makes a mean batch of fondue). I also love the way it looks on my turquoise stove from 1966, cheery, bright and ever so vintage.

Do you have a favorite kitchen item? It doesn't have to be only a cooking vessel, it could also be a bowl, spoon, cutting board or knife (to name a few possibilities). Add your pictures of your favorite stuff to our Flickr pool so we can see your beloved objects.

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My parents have a pretty happy marriage. They've been together for more than 37 years now, without too many major controversies. However, there is one issue that continues to stick in both of their craws and it stems from the fact that my dad is a lover of cast iron cookware and my mother can't stand the stuff. You see, in the first couple years of their marriage, my mom gave away a cast iron pan that my dad had lovingly scrubbed and seasoned. She didn't think that cast iron was hygienic and so banished it from the kitchen. He still mourns the loss of that pan, even now.

I don't have a ton of cast iron in my own cookware collection, but the few pieces I do possess are rapidly becoming beloved. I adore the 7-quart Dutch Oven I acquired a couple of years ago, and my 13 inch skillet is finally starting to develop that shiny black finish that is prized by cast iron fans. If you happened to receive any cast iron pots or pans this holiday season and you're looking for tips on how to season your booty, look no further than this post from The Kitchn, which will guide you through the process, step by step (it even includes helpful pictures).

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Is the storage space in your kitchen so small that it gets filled when you buy a box of cereal and a couple of cans of soup? Or are you the kind of person who rarely cooks and so hasn't invested much time or energy in acquiring the needed pots and pans to do anything more complex than boil some water? Or maybe your just starting out in the world of cooking and want to get some useful cookware but you don't want to dedicate a huge amount of your life or budget to it.

If you are any of these types of people, then Jamie Oliver has something for you. It's called the Tefal Survival Kit and it is a set of cooking equipment that fits together into single, nice, neat stack. When taken apart it contains a wok, frying pan, sauce pan, two glass lids, and a universal handle so that you don't burn your fingers. Best of all it comes in a fun, blue camouflage pattern. Unfortunately, right now it looks like it is only available in the UK, but if you are dying to have in here in the States, you can order it through Amazon's UK store and pay international shipping.

[via the Kitchn]

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