Every item on this page was hand-picked by a House Beautiful editor. “If the food is very stuck on then I would recommend soaking them while hot. Barkeepers friend and a scouring pad help bring the finish back to normal,” Gilson says. “Dishwashers often don’t do the trick and the drying cycle can actually bake on the stuck-on food.” Stainless steel is going to feel heavier than more inexpensive construction items like aluminum but according to experts, that’s the point.
Michael Sullivan has been a staff writer on the kitchen team at Wirecutter since 2016. Previously, he was an editor at the International Culinary Center in New York. He has worked in various facets of the food and restaurant industry for over a decade. We checked to see if the pots dripped while we poured sauce into quart containers. We compared chicken breasts sautéed in each skillet, evaluating how evenly the skin browned. From an everyday set to something for special occasions, these are the best dinnerware sets on the market.
You’ll also want to think about what specific pieces you need and how big of a set to buy. If you already own astockpotor small skillet you love, for example, you might want to look for a smaller set without those to save money. You’ll likely want a 10-inch frying pan, stockpot, saucepan and covered saute pan. The most common additions to these basic four are larger and smaller frying pans and saucepans. For less than $400, this Caraway set includes a 10.5-inch fry pan, 3-quart saucepan, 4.5-quart saute pan and 6.5-quart Dutch oven. It also comes with a smart magnetized storage rack and canvas lid for keeping your cookware organized.
Or perhaps you already own stainless steel cookware, but it’s dented, warped, or inclined to cook unevenly. In that case, we think upgrading to a stainless steel Cookware Sets set is worth doing because it will last a lot longer—maybe even a lifetime. You don’t need to get all of these pieces if you don’t think you’ll use them.
Like purchasing any cookware set, you’ll want to make sure that what is included in the set will fit into your lifestyle. Consider how much storage space you have, how often you cook, and what you like to cook when purchasing a set. Our advice has always been to skip sets and just buy the pans you need. But new brands offering practical cookware packages compelled us to take another look. There are a huge variety of pots in different shapes, often for specific uses, like crepe pans or grill pans. In general, wide, shallow pans are best for cooking foods where evaporation is desired.