ON THE PLUS SIDE: With good weight and excellent balance, this chef's skillet is a fine piece of cookware that works well on gas, electric and ceramic cooktops. Its sturdy polished stainless steel lid fits nicely, and the high arc of the lid's handle allows the lid to be slipped over the handle of the chef's pan and hung (using just one hook) from a pot rack; the lid is always handy. The chef's pan's rolled edge minimizes dripping. The non-stick works reasonably well--but not well enough to rate five stars, in my experience. FYI, this chef's pan is sold by Williams-Sonoma as a "grains pan"--and in this role, it excels! If you frequently cook whole grain cereals, brown or wild rice, etc. you will especially appreciate the extremely reliable performance of this pan. In my opinion, it's worth buying on that basis alone. If you're looking to do stir-fry for one person, or perhaps for two light eaters, this chef's pan will work in that capacity, too. But if you expect to do stir-fry for more people, consider the Asian techniques set or the wok in this (or another)line. Finally, the chef's pan works well as a modified Windsor pan; the diameter of the top is wider than the surface exposed to the heat source, making it easier to reduce the volume of sauces.
ON THE MINUS SIDE: The non-stick used with Calphalon One isn't fully nonstick, even when you follow the directions scrupulously--bringing meat to near-room temperature--and it stains faintly. (These can easily be removed, however; this is discussed later.) More importantly, maintaining the finish requires special care. The directions specify that commonly used cleaners such as baking soda should NOT be used with this line of cookware, nor should this ever be put into the dishwasher. If you or anyone in your household might do so, you may want to consider another line. Those ghost-like "stains" that often remain after normal soaking and washing in hot water are easily removed with Barkeeper's Friend, a relatively inexpensive powdered cleaner ($3. or so) with a mild oxalic acid base. Try a hardware store if you can't find it elsewhere.
COMMON SENSE: Any type of utensil can be used with Calphalon One, from wood to metal. However, it makes no sense to abuse it by using a knife to cut meat in this pan. Wisely, the DVD states that such abuse is not covered by the guarantee.
SUMMARY: Worth every one of the four stars awarded. This is a versatile pan that works hard and well. If it's the right size for you, you'll probably use it often.
Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>
After reading some of negative reviews, I wasn't sure what to expect. We bought this pan and the first thing we cooked was eggs. Following the instructions to use a small amount of fat, we added about a teaspoon of butter to the pan. Cracked an egg into the skillet and flipped it. Nothing stuck to the pan. Cleaned up great. Next I seared some meat. I used about 2 teaspoons of oil. The meat released with no problems. Afterwards there was a little outline of the meat on the pan, so I used a little of the Barkeeper's Friend included with the pan and the itlooked like it was brand new without much effort (we're talking a minute of "scrubbling"). So far, nothing we've cooked in this pan has stuck. We don't treat them like non-stick pans, meaning I'd never toss an egg into this pan with no fat. The key seems to be to cook things at the right temp and amount of fat. We were more impressed than we thought we'd be and are planning on buying the full set.Best Deals for Reviews of Download Calphalon One Infused Anodized 9-Inch Chef's
I *adore* this pan for many reasons. its' ease of use and great results.AESTHETICS and ERGONOMICS
Form and function have been brilliantly married in these new pans and are a big improvement over Calphalon's previous line of professional cookware that featured awkwardly angled handles that got hot on the stove top (hopefully it is obvious that even the new handles will get hot in the oven, though for this particular pan, I have no idea why you would put it in the oven).
The new handle design is not only aesthetically pleasing (at least to my eye, I am a designer by profession for what it's worth) with its' arc shape, but the handle is also designed to minimize heat transfer from the body of the pan while still being riveted to it in a rock-solid manner. Unlike some smaller pans I've used before, this pan is not "handle heavy" and is well balanced (won't tip towards its' handle when empty and preheating for a few moments prior to cooking, even on a gas stove). The old handles were not taking human factors into account--this pan is just easy to hold on to and move. YES, I am harping on this, but I have a repetitive strain injury in both of my hands/wrist/elbows, so good ergonomics in a pan has become a major factor for me.
Plus, this is a pretty pan and it looks good on my stove, on my pot rack, etc.
EASY RELEASE AND CLEAN UP
Easier than the previous incarnation of Calphalon anodized (of which I owned only a few pieces as I never really loved them). The One line releases food more easily and clean up more easily while still offering the benefits (searing/browning/creating a fond and deglazing) that the regular Calphalon line of yesteryear had offered. So far I have never encountered a truly non-stick pan that can accomplish these tasks. Even with my repetitive stress injury, I'm unwilling to sacrifice the superior cooking ability of this type of pan just to get something that is 100% non-stick and therefore a bit easier to clean and a little less work for my hands. Generally it only takes a swish or two with my dish brush with warm sudsy water and this pan is clean. Bar Keepers Friend works great if I've got a stain--a little scrub and the pan looks great again.
CONFUSED COOKS and BAD REVIEWS
One (regular) was launched months *before* the One Non-stick, and was being touted as a non-stick panacea (pun intended) by salespeople who didn't know that the Non-stick one would be hitting the stores soon (or who didn't care as they would say anything to make a sale) despite the fact that this line does NOT claim to be 100% non-stick. With the Nonstick line now on the shelves, there is less chance of over-hyping the nons-stick aiblities of the regular One line.
Two previous reviewers below hated this pan because it didn't cook eggs well.
*The name of this pan (chef's skillet, or grain pan at Williams-Sonoma) contains the word "skillet" and this may have mislead the two reviewers into thinking it was a skillet (i.e. meant for cooking eggs). This pan is NOT the same shape as what is usually referred to as a "skillets" or "fry pan" in most cookware lines. Despite this, one look and even a casual home cook should see that it is NOT a skillet and that cooking eggs in it would not be appropriate.
*This pan functions fabulously for what its shape indicates--as a SAUCIER (making and reducing sauces) and as a GRAIN PAN (risotto, rice, etc). I also use it for small (one person) stir fry meals. I happen to like saucier-type pans more than regular sauce pans, and I find it more versatile for many tasks (cooking eggs not being one of them).
*If you want a 100% nonstick finish for easy cleaning and eggs that slide right off--you would not be happy with this pan. Buy an el-cheapo teflon pan for that as they excel in that area. This pan is for SAUCES, RISOTTO's etc, and doesn't need to be non-stick.
SUMMARY
This is a TERRIFIC pan. If you dismiss this pan based on the two aforementioned reviewers, you might miss out on a one fine piece of cooking equipment that is also well-priced and a pleasure to use. While this is unfortunate for them, their mismatching of cooking technique/ingredient to the pan has NO BEARING on the pans ability to cook like a dream. I use it all the time and it is one of the first pans I reach for on a fairly regular basis.
Honest reviews on Reviews of Download Calphalon One Infused Anodized 9-Inch Chef's
Calphalon One is an excellent line and seeing the deep discount that Amazon offered, I put this on my wish list. However, I did notice that Amazon displayed two more online stores with the same price so I started checking around. At both online and actual department stores it is selling for full price at $49.99! I have found no site or store advertising this with a retail price of $125. I have shopped Amazon for years and I really like the site, but I think the pricing here is mis-leading and a bit unfair.Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Reviews of Download Calphalon One Infused Anodized 9-Inch Chef's
I am surprised by the number of negative reviews that complain about this pan not being non-stick. It is not supposed to be! Calphalon One Nonstick is a different line than the Calphalon One Infused Anodized. It is well documented in the item's description on their website. Think of Infused Anodized as part-stick; you get the better browning and taste of stick pans while when used properly foods only stick slightly.This is the first "nice" pot I purchased and I was amazed by the difference from years of using cheap nonstick cookware. Food tastes noticeably better, and also cooks much quicker and can use a lower heat setting. The pot is much more durable both in construction and in surface, with no coatings to scratch off. Cleaning is easy and after a year I have yet to get any staining or need to use barkeeper's friend as is mentioned in the instructions; the scrubby side of a sponge has been enough.
The pot is smaller than any of my other skillets but still just large enough to cook the frozen skillet meals that I use it for most ofthen. I'm very impressed with the quality and better cooking and plan to buy more from this line now that I've seen the wonders of quality STICK pans.
No comments:
Post a Comment