Pots, pans, utensils - What do the pros use?

[red-beard]

I was looking at my Caphalon pot this morning as I hand washed it, carefully with only the sponge side, so not to damage the anodized coating. I have had to switch to all plastic utensils with these things or wooden utensils.

I know they look great, but what do the serious cooks use? I never seem to see the professional cooks using this kind of cookware or the copper stuff.

Anyone here a pro? What do you use? Steel/Cast Iron? Enamel coated? Carbon fiber? What?

[stealthn]

Not a pro, but I always choose pans that can go into the oven as well, when I can't BBQ a sear then bake s great for chicken and steak

[matt711]

You would be surprised what the kitchen area in a large resteraunt looks like. Pots, pans, and utensils are definitley not nice and shiny. Most tend to use aluminum stuff that is best described as "industrial". The cookware takes a real beating. Chefs do tend to be picky about knives though. Many prefer carbon steel because it can be sharpened to a razor edge but it does require maintenance and will discolor.

You will only see pristine copper and stainless cookware on TV shows. In my grandfathers resteraunt he used a lot of cast iron, Le Crusset stuff with an enamel coating. I have several of his old pans, some are probably over 50 years old by now and still look great.

[BRPORSCHE]

I went and bought tramontina...a walmart only brand. Here is a comparison with all-clad which is MUCH more expensive, but equals in quality with the Walmart brand.

Highly recommend.

Equipment: The All-Clad vs. Tramontina Skillet Showdown | Serious Eats

[KevinTodd]

Non-reactive aluminum mostly. Very durable and even-cooking with proper care. No coated saute pans in most commercial kitchens. Stock pots and braziers the same--milled aluminum, etc. We do utilize some cast iron for specific duties but it is very specialized.

We keep some stainless and copper cookware on hand only for the purpose of cooking demonstrations and trade/charity events--just for show in other words.

We have "house" cutlery that is sharpened by a professional weekly and each of our chefs and sous chefs carries his or her own roll of knives for personal use. These implements are tremendously expensive and they are treated like gold.

You can buy professional grade non-reactive aluminum from local restaurant supply cash and carry counters or online at such sites as CHEFS: The Best Kitchen Starts Here

[matt711]

Yep, the difference between a commercial kitchen and a show on the Food Network is pretty striking.

I use a combo of old Le Crusset enameled cast iron and mid priced stainless pots and pans. For cutlery I have a handfull of forged carbon steel knives that are as ugly as sin but darn sharp.

[red-beard]

Thanks Kevin. I'll take a look. I'm used to cast iron from my early days and babying this anodized aluminum is annoying. I don't plan to abuse the stuff, but I KNOW how to make "Steak au poivre" in cast iron and it doesn't create the same deglazed sauce in the aluminum.

[VincentVega]

Caphalon

Thankfully it was a warranty, I've had a few wear out. I think I'm done with it though, found a few much cheaper options that seem to work just as well. Thanks ATK.

[scottmandue]

I bought a set of heavy gauge SS Caphalon and never looked back... they were on the shelf next to All Clad and a few other $$$ brands I couldn't tell the difference.

The SS is a PITA to keep clean but will last forever... I threw out all my aluminum and non-stick.

Also have a cast iron griddle.

PS, I'm not a pro but I watch food network religiously.

YMMV

[Jim Bremner]

de Buyer Mineral "B" Country Fry Pan | Williams-Sonoma

I'm no pro. I'll pick up a few of these soon. I haven't used non-stick pans in 15 years. Cast Iron is left on the stove and is the go-to. After that I have a huge NSF rated alloy pan from smart & final. When I was feeding 4 kids plus the wife and I it was needed to fit all of the food in it. I've buffed it with steelwool to a high luster shine a few times but its dull inside right now. The only kid left at home likes to bang spoons inside and I gave up trying to keep it smooth as a babys butt so it cleans up easy.

sauce pots and pasta pot is allclad.

[javadog]

Mostly Al-Clad, various tinned copper pans, a couple non-sticks, some Le Creuset, a no-name carbon steel wok, etc.

JR

[fast_e_man]

Lots of personal taste in cookwear selection (just ask my wife about that). I buy stuff that makes my better half happy!! We installed an inductive cooktop a couple years ago, so our cookwear needs to have ferrous metal in the base to transfer energy directly from the mag field.

If you think an inductive cooktop is in you future, buy stuff that a magnet sticks to. We are using Circulon, and they have several prodcut lines that have ferrous slabs sandwiched in the base. Hardcoat anodized and dishwasher safe, although you still need to avoid metal untensils. Expensive, but worth the cost.

FWIW the inductive cook top is really really nice. Very efficient, water boils in ~ 2 minutes, energy not transfered via a red hot heating surface, so it won't burn fingers if youngins happen to touch the surface when the pot comes off. "Burners" have interlocks that turn off the mag field generator if ferrous material is not detected on the burner surface. Pretty cool technology.

[Tanick]

Not a pro, but check out Fissler Pro Collection. I (well, my wife;-)) got a set for our wedding present from someone who IS a pro. I will never need to buy another pan in my life.

[mossguy]

All-clad

[vash]

all clad is nice, but there is a better cheaper alt..

"pro" as in a pro kitchen? 90% of the pro kitchens i have seen use restaurant supply stuff..from a company called Wearever.

i've seen alot of carbon steel pans from DuBuyer and Paderno. no professional kitchen uses that blingy stuff we seek in our home kitchens.

[scottmandue]

Originally Posted by vash

all clad is nice, but there is a better cheaper alt..

"pro" as in a pro kitchen? 90% of the pro kitchens i have seen use restaurant supply stuff..from a company called Wearever.

i've seen alot of carbon steel pans from DuBuyer and Paderno. no professional kitchen uses that blingy stuff we seek in our home kitchens.

10-4 good buddy!

All Clad is made in China just like Caphalon, looks and feels exactly the same (IMHO) but cost twice as much.

+1 on cast iron... if I had only two or three pans in my life I could live with only that.

Most of the pro kitchens I have been in use very large very heavy aluminum pans... I chose not to use aluminum or non-stick for my personal preference.

[wdfifteen]

I have a mixture of brands and types in my kitchen that I've collected over the years based on my needs as they have evolved. I have an all-clad skillet, cast iron skillet, cast iron dutch oven, enamel coated cast iron dutch oven, heavy aluminum 2 gallon pot, some smaller Revere ware pots, and a couple of teflon coated aluminum skillets. Why teflon skillets? The amount of oil I had to use to keep my breakfast eggs from sticking to stainless steel was almost doubling the calories. By using teflon I can fry an egg with 0 calories of water in the pan vs about 120 calories worth of olive oil. They probably would not stand up to the kind of use a pro gives a pan, but it works for my purposes.

[Eric 951]

Originally Posted by scottmandue

10-4 good buddy!

All Clad is made in China just like Caphalon, looks and feels exactly the same (IMHO) but cost twice as much.

Most of the pro kitchens I have been in use very large very heavy aluminum pans... I chose not to use aluminum or non-stick for my personal preference.

Actually All-Clad is made right down the street from my office in PA, I drive past their factory every day.

I agree that it is expensive, but every year they have a "scratch and dent" sale which is the time to stock up, as prices are up to 60-70 percent off. That sale gets crowded.

[89911]

Originally Posted by scottmandue

10-4 good buddy!

All Clad is made in China just like Caphalon, looks and feels exactly the same (IMHO) but cost twice as much.

+1 on cast iron... if I had only two or three pans in my life I could live with only that.

Most of the pro kitchens I have been in use very large very heavy aluminum pans... I chose not to use aluminum or non-stick for my personal preference.

I didn't realize Western PA is now a part of China!

http://www.all-clad.com/Pages/About/History.aspx

[scottmandue]

Originally Posted by 89911

I didn't realize Western PA is now a part of China!

http://www.all-clad.com/Pages/About/History.aspx

That was what was stamped on the bottom of the pan I looked at.

YMMV