OUCHHHHH That hurt, no I don't work for them. I'm excided because my old wood GH (worn out now) cost me $1200.00 and was only half the size of the new one. And yes I'm excided because I found a way to build a new greenhouse for less. If you want to talk about people getting excided or working for greenhouse companys check out all the forums on Harbor Freight greenhouses now there is reason to supect. And regardles of where you get your greenhouse please read the greenhouse kit nightmare story published in the Wall Street Journal, (link posted below) this is a must read . You bet I'm excided about my greenhouse. BEE Here is a link that might be useful: The Wall Street Journal Online

I can't speak to enameled cast iron Dutch oven versus clad stainless steel Dutch oven. As for cast iron skillet versus clad stainless skillet, they would be ideal for different tasks. Cast iron is a poor conductor of heat, but will hold (store) a lot of heat. When you put a cast iron pan on the burner, it will take a significant time to heat up and may have hot spots while it is heating. After a while (on my burner, 2-3 minutes), it will be evenly hot. When meat is placed in the pan, the pan will stay hot because it has so much stored heat. This makes cast iron great for searing and browning. After the cast iron pan gets seasoned with oil, it is also practically non-stick, if you wash it properly (no soap). However . . . cast iron pans do not change temperature quickly. If you cook something more delicate than a ribeye and it starts to scorch, turning down the heat won't quickly cool down the pan. Rapidly getting to a particular temperature is a bit tricky. They are heavy, so flipping and tossing is hard. Clad stainless steel is almost the opposite. The aluminum inside is an excellent conductor of heat, but does not hold much heat. So the pan will heat up quickly on the burner, and cool quickly when you lower the flame, it is responsive. You can get the desired temperature - say, a medium-low heat - right away, and the pan will have an even temperature without bad hot spots. But when you put the cold meat on the pan, the pan cools down quickly, until the burner brings the heat back up. So it is not as good for heavy searing. Stainless steel is sticky, protein (meat, fish, egg) sticks immediately and stays stuck until it gets browned and releases. Even then, bits of crusty food are left on the pan. That is a good thing - it is ''fond'', the foundation of a pan sauce - but if you weren't planning to make a pan sauce it can be a pain. You can avoid stickage by using plenty of oil, of course. If you get a stainless pan really hot, food and oil will scorch onto it, making for a cleaning job. Basically, you should have both, and use each for what it is best at. I use my cast iron pan at full-hot, for searing meat mostly. I use my clad stainless for more medium and low heat cooking, or at high heat if I want fond. If I could only have one, I'd get the clad stainless.

In Kitchen Confidential Anthony Bourdain said basically that there are a few applications where nonstick is best and one of them is for a delicate fish fillet. I absolutely agree if the pan is heavy. If you don't want to use nonstick then first bring the fish to room temperature, then pre-heat a heavy pan until it's hot, then add the oil and pre-heat it. Coating the fish with oil can't hurt but the main points are bringing the fish to room temperature and pre-heating both the pan and then the oil. If the pan is really clean the fish won't stick. If it does stick you will have to wait until it releases and by that time the fish may be overcooked.

Here's what you need to know about stainless steel. The second number in a grade of stainless refers to the nickel content. So 18/10 stainless means the steel contains 10% nickel (sometimes called 304 or 304T stainless) The first number always refers to the Chromium content, which is almost always 18% in consumer steel applications. If you remove the nickel during the manufacturing process, it becomes a magnetic stainless called 18/0 stainless steel (sometimes called 430 or 433 grade stainless steel) The major differences between 18/10 and 18/0 are as follows: 18/0 stainless works on induction cooktops. That's why the staff at Macys carries one. If the magnet sticks to the pan exterior, it's induction safe. If the magent does not stick (Aluminum, Cast Iron exteriors) then the pan will not work on induction. The other major difference is 304 or 18/10 stainless resists corrosion much better than 430 or 18/0 stainless. That's what the nickel is there for. Nickel increases the corrosion resistance and tensile stength. In closing, 18/0 or magnetic stainless is perfectly acceptable as an exterior surface. DO NOT BUY any cookware with an 18/0 interior. It will corrode and pit much faster than 304 or 18/10 stainless steel.