Opinions on Paderno Cookware, is it considered high end?
markbr
18 years ago
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calvin1g
18 years agolast modified: 9 years agobluebloom
18 years agolast modified: 9 years agoRelated Discussions
Emerilware vs Cuisinart stainless cookware - opinions please
Comments (2)I wouldn't buy either brand. Frankly, both Cusinart and Mr. Lagasse have recently allowed their names to be used on some very shoddy products, sad to say. Check out the consumer complaints about Emerilware here: http://www.consumeraffairs.com/homeowners/emeril.html I recently threw away a 10 inch Emerilware fry pan. The handle got hotter than blue-blazes, and was so narrow and slippery that, when I grabbed it with a hot pot holder, I couldn't keep it frmo turning and dumping the food. This never happens even with my heavy Lodge cast iron fry pan. Worse, the bottom of the pot is a flat sandwich of stainless with some heat conducting metal inside. There is a copper band to around the outside to make you think that the filler is copper, but it is actually aluminum. It's a fake--just like Emeril Lagasse (a successful restranteur and TV personality whose talents are more along the lines of Ron Popeil than of Jacques Pepin.) The layers of the sandwich are stuck together with some kind of solder. Inevitably, the become loose. Then one day the aluminum melts and comes squirting out: "Pleased to me you, I'm molten aluminum--may I burn your shoes?" This happens even if the pot is full of water at the time--the air gets between the layers and the heat can't get to the water. Surprise! Even before the pan melted down, it was a bad pan. The stainless is a bad alloy (chromium and nickle are expensive, ya'know) which discolors easily and is impossible to clean. Shame on Allclad for building this half-clad junk and shame on Emeril for selling it. If my name was on this cookware, I'd move to Bulgaria or try to buy back every peice that was ever sold. But Emeril Inc. is all about the bucks. I've owned a few cuisinart pans: some were good and some weren't. It depends on who made them for Cuisinart and when. Instead of buying a matched set of pans, all made of the same materials, why not buy the best type of pan for each cooking task? For example, frying and searing meats, you can't beat cast iron. I have a Lodge 10-inch fry pan that beats the hell out of any fancy stainless. The trick with cast iron is to season it first in a HOT oven: coat it with vegetabl oil then place in a 500 F oven for an hour (not 350 F which the manufacturers tell you for liability reasons). Even if it says it's pre-seasoned, season it. What type and size of pan you need depends on the task and how many people you cook for. An exception is a stock pot and roasting pan, which both must accomodate a whole turkey or large fish. here are some suggestions: Frying or searing meat: cast iron Frying or stir-frying vegetables: large, non-stick coated pan with reasonably thick, rounded bottom. Boiling, blanching, etc : cheap single-layer stainless--as long the handle is oven-proof doesn't fall off * One 4-qt pan with lid * Two 2-qt pans with lids * Two 1-qt pans with lids Braising: 12-inc Covered Roasting: oval roasting pan with cover: enamelware is fine unless you plan to use it a lot. (These days, many home cooks use disposable aluminum roasters, which work fine.) Open roasing: heavy gauge stainless roasing pan or disposable aluminum roaster Melting chocolate or heating milk: double boiler Pancakes and scrambled eggs: aluminum griddle with non-stick coating Omlettes and crepes: cast aluminum, flat-bottom pan with non-stick coating (I actually use cast iron, just to enjoy the looks on the faces of people accustomed to doing everything in non-stick pans). Depending on what you cook, you might want to add a pressure cooker, deep frier, or automatic rice maker. For non-stick pans, Silverstone or the newer triple-coated is better than the older single-coat Teflon. But any pan with a non-stick coating should be considered disposable, to be replaced when the coating wears off. I'd stay away from Calphalon or any aluminum pot that claims to be "hard anodized": such aluminum oxide coatings are very thin and easily scractched off, and cannot be restored. You rarely see Calphalon in commerical kitchens. Titanium is a great metal, but ridiculously expensive: I only use it for backpack trips. An expensive pan really only pays for itself when you are sauteing something that tends to burn, making thick sauces or custards, or doing some task that is probably better done in a double boiler. For things really requiring even heat, I'd buy a 10-inch, straight sided, flat-bottomed saute pan that either has real copper on the bottom or aluminum that is completely enclosed in stainless steel. Spend what you save on the other pots on this one. I've been very happy with cheap Culinary Essentials stainless that I bought ten years ago at Costco. They are stainless with an aluminum wafer completely surrounded by a stainless bottom. But if I had to do it over, I wouldn't buy a set of matched pans: I'd buy the best-of-kind for each task as recommended above. That's what I use today: my stainless fry pan gathers dust while I use the inexpensive cast iron one. Hope this info helps you make up your mind. Bill Here is a link that might be useful: ConsumerAffairs.com...See MoreHigh end- Middle end - Low end upholstery; the truth
Comments (6)I work in an industry that routinely employed "piece rate" as the wage base. Working by the piece does NOT elicit sloppy workmanship. On the contrary, when you work "in the line" you must perform the operation(s) quickly, efficiently, and CORRECTLY or you screw up the next person "in the line", and the one after that, and the one after that... . Management does not tolerate mistakes like that for much more than a day. Moreover, you are required to correct the mistake. Remember, you are paid by the piece... you get "x" cents for an operation... if it's not right you get NO cents to rip it out and correct it. Not only have you lost the piece rate, but you also lost TIME. and you can't make up lost time. You get paid when the needle is going up and down in the RIGHT PLACE; you make more money when you learn to perform the operation to greater efficiency. Most people don't understand that "working for rate" is actually a game of "beat the clock" for minimally, an 8 hr. shift. And that any mistake you make is quickly identified by the next person in the line. Sure, there are "tolerances", but they're small, precise, and you can't exceed them by very much or the product can't be assembled. It's that "simple". You punch in. A bell rings. You sit at your machine. They flip the switch and every machine in your area comes on. You sew. A bell rings, you finish the work, all the machines shut down. You get a break. A bell rings you return to your machine. Machine comes on. You sew. Same thing at lunch and afternoon break. And then you go home. It's hard work! I am capable of operating (minimally) 12 different types of sewing machines "at rate". I was smart enough to understand that attention to detail and "time and motion" were the keys to success "in the line". I made great money, too! Most of those jobs have been "outsourced" to offshore locations. And many of the very skilled workers who taught ME so much of what I know are now cashiers at Wally World for roughly 2/3rds what they earned "in the line". Nor do they have any benefits. Piece rate is GOOD, but only for those who are willing to pay attention to detail and suffer the learning curve. Americans have developed a loathing of the skilled trades over the years. How many people do you know who say, "Yeah! I want my kid to become a plumber/electrician/seamstress/automotive mechanic!"? Americans have been told repeatedly that a college degree is the "where it's at" and the only way to get ahead. They have forgotten to appreciate the time, patience, and SKILL required to deliver a product to a customer. Most people now think that the fruits of a skilled trade should be produced at Wally World prices. It doesn't work that way. I have to pay bills, too. And property taxes. And save for retirement. Cracks me up that the college degree jobs are now being "outsourced"... I was fortunate, I had a really good education and I was a quick study. I "sucked it up" and did the crappy work, paying attention to how the really "gravy" operations were performed. I can tailor your clothes, make a wedding gown, I can stitch to rate "in the line" (on pretty nearly any machine out there, I can even do more than routine maintenance on the machinery). I can make your draperies/slipcovers/pillows, I can even upholster. But I can't do it for the wages of people doing the same thing in southeast Asia, Latin America, India, Pakistan, etc.. I paid attention to what was being offered me. I was quick to understand that the most basic skills were easily transferrable to other, RELATED trades. And I was also well aware that moving into the "custom" niche was the way to go. Seems simple, but if you have deficient language skills or are barely literate it's NOT that simple. And many skilled people are left unemployed or underemployed. Piece rate is a wonderful incentive and a great way to reward skilled, intelligent, and loyal employees. It doens't translate well to all facets of manufacture, but where it does, it works well. Those who produce poorly/eratically are quickly culled. Trust me on this. I've "been there and done that"....See MoreX-Post on Appliances Need new not high-end cookware for induction
Comments (12)Among your options, I would far prefer to cook with the Tramontina tri-ply, and their 10-piece set contains no extraneous pieces. What you are paying for in cookware is a vessel that distributes heat evenly whether on a cooktop or in an oven. In order for heat to be distributed evenly, you need thick layers of metal. Pick up the Tramintina - it is much heavier than the other two options. It is also going to provide the most even heat distribution. It's a good pan. You're also going to need a cast iron skillett and a non-stick omelette pan that you can replace regularly as it fails. You could buy a Circulon pan for that, but note that the Circulon set you're considering is all non-stick. You'll be replacing them all in a year, two at the most. FYI for cast iron you would look to Lodge. My honest opinion is that having spent a fair amount of money on the cooktop, there is little logic in skimping on the cookware that makes it work so well. Why not buy the All-Clad at this point? The 10-piece Tri-ply Stainless set is on sale now and will cost you $400 more that the ones you're looking at (vs. $800 normally), and you will have them and love them for a lifetime. I guarantee that if you buy a set of anything else and a single AC sautee pan, you'll reach for the AC every time....See MoreCookware opinions/suggestions please
Comments (14)You might want to consider providing her with a cast iron, enamel clad Dutch oven. There have been quite a few to choose from and they have come down in price over the last year or so. Your daughter could both braise and cook in one, without having to turn the oven on in hot weather. The covers are so heavy that heat is retained quite well, and things can be cooked on medium or lower heat on stovetop more quickly than in other cookpots. The main thing to avoid is abrupt temperature changes, which can crack the enamel coating.They can also be used in the oven, as long as the handles and cover knob are metal, so can double as casserole dishes. I also prefer the copper clad, stainless steel Revere Ware; lasts forever and no worry about nonstick finishes wearing out or toxicity. In a shared cooking situation, others might not be as careful to use the appropriate utensils with the nonstick surfaces. The crockpot idea imentioned above could be quite convenient, if she wants to start a dish and then dash off to class. A Dutch oven can also be turned quite low on a stovetop, but depending on the stove that might not be as safe....See Morebluebloom
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