Cookware

[Ed Cheung]

You look like the kind of guy to be reading cooking magazines, John.

I'm not going for the set. I know I want a 12" frying pan and lid for sure. But I have not decided on what else. Tami wants a Wok, so I'm looking at them, too.

Question: I've got a "glass top" stove. Will cast iron fuck it up?

Is your stove similar to the pics attached?

If so, it should be fine, those glass are pretty tough. But a wok never work well on this kind of stove, only the bottom( contact point) of the wok can have the heat and the side never reach the right temp.
Open flame stove is better for wok.

 

[Mike_Rupp]

Stainless steel is actually a very poor conductor of heat compared to aluminum and copper. Almost all stainless pans made today have some type of aluminum layer on the bottom and then have a cooking surface of stainless steel.

Dan, ditch the glass cooktop. They are for people that don't cook. Unless the bottom of the pan is flat they suck ass. Forget about using a real rounded bottom wok on the glass top. You'll need a flattened bottom wok, which kind of defeats benefits of the wok.

 

[Ed Cheung]

Mike is right about the glass top, there are limitation. And if you decided to stick with the glass top, and get the flat bottom wok, pick a good one. After a while of usage, the wok may warp and you will never have a flat bottom and it will never sit properly on the stove. It is pretty easy for those wok to warp on stove as the heat distribution is poor.
I got 2 warped wok already.

 

[D Chapman]

I can't say I "hate" the glass top, but compared to gas, it sucks. When I spec'ed my home, I could not get gas. Hell, I could not even get an oven vent that vented to the outside. I guess it's somewhere in the County code about gas in a condo.....I don't know.

I'd love to have gas, though. I really miss gas. But I'm not dropping coin on a gas stove for this place as it will be a rental one day......

I didn't think Wok would work well on a glass top. I'd be afraid of scratching or breaking the glass. But I do have a few outside propane burners, and a Camp Chef. I use these when canning veggies as the glass top would never get hot enough. So, cooking in the Wok would be done on the back porch.

I like to fry outside, too. Frying stuff stinks up the house. So during the warmer months, we cook a lot outside, and using the Wok outside is not a problem.

Getting ready to pull the trigger on a 12" frying pan with lid, and a 4-quart sauce pan with lid. Once I get them and use them, and if I like them, I'll see what else I want to add. This will get me started........

 

[Ed Cheung]

glass stove is like ... in slow motion when compare to open flame. When you want to change the heat control, it just takes forever.

The only good part is easy cleaning and the handle of the pan never gets hot.

 

[flyfisher11]

I've been cooking profesionally for seventeen years and am a C.I.A. graduate. AllClad is the best pan that I have found but they ain't cheap. The best conductor of heat is copper fallowed by alluminiun and then stainless. I've had Callphallon for years and its been good but if I could get some nice French copper I'd be lovin life.....it is a bitch to clean however!

When did you graduate from C.I.A.? My mother in law had a second career after returning to school there after witch she worked for Catherine Graham (the post) in the '90s.

 

[SLATZ]

Have Callphallon.... If I could do it again I would do AllCLad.....

 

[Roverlady]

We have a few All Clad pans that I love...would like to get more.

Did you find a good deal Dan?

 

[gmookher]

Dan, you know how to cook?

 

[garrett]

Dan takes pictures of his food now. And yes he cooks too. He turned over a new leaf last year. Check the EE BBS for his latest creations! What's next for Dan? Vehicle dependent expeditions? Gourmet cheeses?

 

[JohnK]

Dan takes pictures of his food now. And yes he cooks too. He turned over a new leaf last year. Check the EE BBS for his latest creations! What's next for Dan? Vehicle dependent expeditions? Gourmet cheeses?

Luxury timepieces.

 

[jwest]

My favorite camping pan is the "every day pan" in the Emeril line of All Clad. It's basically a pot but also a saute with a nice turned lip great for pooring. It lives in the camping kitchen bin to use on the Coleman. I've had it for almost 10 yrs, using it camping for 5 and it still is perfect.

I think sets are often a great price point but of course only if you want all items in the set. The best items are not in sets though like the largest sauce pan or wok thing.

 

[garrett]

Luxury timepieces.

He already jumped on that bandwagon.

 

[D Chapman]

What's next for Dan? Vehicle dependent expeditions?

Says the guy who's leaving for one of these trips next week......

 

[garrett]

Says the guy who's leaving for one of these trips next week......

I hope it ain't next week!! May 2nd to Iceland. I think these trips are great and have nothing against most of them. Iceland will be twice a year and we're going to be adding Mongolia again and hopefully South America in the future. Newfoundland/Nova Scotia will likely be added too once I get the route situated.

Our trip to Iceland won't be too "dependent" on our trucks anyhow. I mean in certain areas they will, but I'll be more dependent on expensive cheese, dip and glow sticks at most locations.

 

[JohnK]

He already jumped on that bandwagon.

Oh, man. Did Dan buy a 50th Anniversary Submariner? He has changed. I remember when he listened to Rob Zombie and drove his Rover like John Force on acid spraying rooster tails of mud or snow everywhere. Now he listens to that pussy John Mayer, blocks illegal trails and plants seedlings. What the fuck happened? Have you seen that movie Invasion of the Body Snatchers? Its like Dan has been replaced by a pod person. What next? He'll become a vegan and join PeTA? We'll see him riding the streets of Grottoes on a Segway?

 

[Blueboy]

and hopefully South America in the future

if you are thinking about Brasil, Chile, and Argentina let me know and I might be able to help.


Jaime

 

[garrett]

if you are thinking about Brasil, Chile, and Argentina let me know and I might be able to help.


Jaime

Will do. Originally we had some connections with Costa Rica, but with the economy taking a dump, things have slowed down with that venture. The international "expedition" trips are labor intensive and don't yeild a big return, so we're going to be expanding them slowly. Iceland twice a year, Mongolia once a year and a relatively new route from Maine, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland will be added soon. Potentially adding Labrador if time/costs permit.

 

[benlittle]

We got this set as a wedding gift 5 years ago. It's decent but I think when we buy again, we'll take Mike's advice and buy one piece at a time for purpose.

 

[GregH]

X2 with Mike on the All Clad and Le Creuset.

During Xmas and other Holidays you can find sets of All-Clad on sale at Macy's and other places pretty cheap. I disagree with Mike on buying individually though. I think I paid ~$400 for a 7-piece set and then my wife just added a few individual pieces over the years that she found at a decent price. We stayed with the more popular polished stainless.

Le Creuset has great cast iron cookware but don't use it as often so we just purchased a few individual pieces.