Cuisinart Stainless Steel Cookware 12-Piece Set Gave Me More Than I Bargained

I was a fan of non-stick cookware for the simple reason that they do not give me the headache of having my cooked food stuck in my pots and pans. Previously, it was not my practice to use stainless steel cookware unless I was cooking soups or boiling some pasta. However, the virtues of cooking using stainless steel cookware caught my better judgment and it did not take me long to decide on the 12-piece Cuisinart stainless steel cookware set.

Prior to purchasing this line, I thought about the necessity of having the whole set. Eight years ago, I already bought a six-piece German-made WMF set at a Christmas sale and I thought that was a bargain.

These WMF pots have served me well but when my sister-in-law from Germany and her family of five started to “drop” by and bunk in my place once every year during their summer vacation, I thought somethings got to change. When they are around, I would be cooking for eight rather than the usual three. I ‘desperately’ needed a revamp on the array of my cooking utensils and ended up with the Cuisinart Multiclad Cookware 12-piece set – yep the whole set.

Why the Cuisinart Multiclad Cookware ?

Honestly, I was also eyeing the All-Clad 5000-9 Stainless 9-Piece Cookware Set range but found later that they would set me back by about $600. And frankly, I could not get my eyes off the polished and professional look of that particular set when I first set my eyes on them.

Then reality sets in. The All-Clad was definitely beyond my budget and I finally chose the Cuisinart stainless steel cookware 12-piece set, at less than half of All-Clad’s price.

If I were to state the benefits after using this set for about six months now, I would confidently proclaim the following three :

1. The appearance of the cookware has not been compromised even after those months of using them (especially some of them) on a daily basis. The set seem to hold its shine and if I may add, it looks similar to the more costly All-Clad to begin with.

2. Ease of cleaning – I know that some owners run their Cuisinart set through their dishwashers and they come out fine. But I treat my set like a priced possession and use cloth with dishwashing liquid soap to rid food and grime out of those pots.

Sometimes, I cook Asian that might leave stains caused by some spices such as turmeric. My cleaning regime takes care of this and the pots got back their shine.

3. The lids are air-tight although it can be tricky to lift these lids if you place them over a hot pot.

Why Stainless Steel Cooking With Cuisinart is a Notch Higher

Anyone who chooses to cook with stainless steel cookware would know that this is the most hygienic surfaces to prepare your food as it has no pores or cracks, implying the IMPOSSIBILITY of harboring dirt, grime or bacteria.

Apart from its durability, it does not react with acidic nor alkaline foods, meaning that there is no worry of the surface corroding during food preparation process. In addition, you retain the flavors of acidic foods, whatever you are preparing.

More on What You Should Know About Stainless Steel Cooking

There is however a downside to stainless steel cooking. You would take a longer time to prepare food as stainless steel, due to its nature, is a poor conductor and distributor of heat.

The cheaper range of stainless steel cookware does not address this ‘weakness’, causing them to be less durable and food cooked in them to burn easily. If the stainless steel cookware is more expensive, it is most likely that the ‘problem’ is tackled by encapsulating the cookware with an inner core of copper or aluminium. This enables the cookware to retain their durability and increase their heat conductivity.

While some stainless steel range comes with an inner core only at the base, the Cuisinart stainless steel cookware has added aluminium cores on its sides that extend all the way up. This way, heat is distributed round the pots and pans, speeding up your cooking.

For the benefits of stainless steel cooking, I might have gone for All-Clad. However, since I AM getting more than what I expected with Cuisinart, how can I complain?

- Lisa,
Kentucky, USA

If this is for you, take a look at Cuisinart Stainless Steel Cookware