The Best of The Best in Pots & Pans
In other words, cookware brands that are widely renowned in the home cooking and restaurant industry. We have tirelessly quality-tested (ahem, cooked delicious food in) each item to confirm they are genuinely the best.
Casseroles, Cocottes & Stock Pots
A necessary tool for soups, curries, fried chicken (or other good deep-fried things), and big batches of pasta sauce, you can also use the oven-safe varieties to bake bread in. If you’re having people over for dinner, or feeding a family on a regular basis, then these are indispensable—and they can go right from oven or stove to table (just make sure you put it on a trivet).
Cookware Sets
Perhaps you’re moving, or ready for a total kitchenware overhaul in which you say tata to the battered-up plastic cutting boards or blunt-beyond-saving knives you’ve accrued over the years. That’s where our Cookware Sets can help. We’ve got bundles that cover the basics, roasting, and the whole enchilada.
Frying Pans, Skillets & Griddles
This is the category of pans you’ll reach for so often that it’s best you keep a few different sizes handy, and if you love to cook, have it in more than one material. Nonstick is great for sliding omelettes onto a plate or upturning tahdig rice, and cast-iron gives beef or Brussels sprouts a char whether you throw it on a barbecue, in the oven or not. Give it a shake and toss its contents in the air, that’s amore.
Roasting Pans
These are the pans that fall firmly into the domain of your oven. Whether you choose oval or rectangular (both are handy), stainless steel or copper, these dishes are best for all things baked (like gratins and lasagna) and, well, *roasted*. Meats, especially ones that release a lot of juice, like turkey or lamb feel at home here, as do potatoes, squash, and other veggies that need gentle heat to crisp up.
Saucepans
Like frying pans, saucepans are one of the most essential pieces a kitchen can have. This is, after all, the most essential tool for boiling pasta (and making...sauce). It tends to be more of an accessory in cooking than the dish you bring out to the table, so function (multiple sizes, comfortable handles, the metal core that’s compatible with your kitchen) is key.
Saute Pans
With the wideness of skillets and the height of saucepans, saute pans are great for searing meat and making a pan sauce; sauteing onions and garlic before adding a bulk of carbs, be it rice or pasta; braising anything. If a food is equal parts solid and liquid, the saute pan is its best friend, especially if it has a lid.
Top Brands For Pots & Pans
We tested hundreds of brands before deciding that these eight companies meet our core values of function, durability, and quality—in other words, you can rely on them.
All-Clad
USA-based company that specialises in combining different metals for superior results, originally conceived for professional chefs.
Mauviel
French heritage brand specialising in premium copper, stainless steel, and aluminium pots and pans. Our founders’ personal favourite.
De Buyer
Handcrafted cook- and bakeware made in France, specialising in carbon and stainless steels as well as copper.
Staub
French-made cast iron products with black enamel coating (for easy clean-up) and patented self-basting lids.
Finex
American cast iron forgery with a unique, multi-spout design for easy pouring and curved handles for easy lifting.
Gastrolux
Danish family business specialising in non-toxic, long-lasting non-stick pans made from recycled raw materials.
Lodge
Simply designed, reliable, and virtually indestructible pre-seasoned cast iron cookware, made in Tennessee since 1896.