My first All-Clad pan! It's a historic day!For a long time, I wondered what the big fuss was all about expensive stainless steel pans. I even resisted registering for them when I got married, but after years and years of watching America's Test Kitchen, I started wanting one. That's right, Chris Kimball made me covet a pan. Now I have one thanks to an early birthday present from my mom! Thanks, Mom!
According to the Cook's Illustrated review of my All-Clad 12-inch Stainless Steel Fry Pan:
Testers praised this pan for having “everything you need in a skillet and nothing you don’t,” with enough cooking surface for sautéing eight chicken pieces without crowding; steady, controlled heat for excellent browning; and a good shape with low sides. The weight balance was outstanding; it was easy to manipulate and lift. In the durability test, it sustained the least damage, with barely visible dents.I didn't have anything big planned for my pan's debut. Thanks to the Patriots playing Monday Night Football today there was an insane amount of traffic on the way home, so I picked up some takeout. However, I had to open up the cardboard box waiting for me. I have to say that I was dazzled when I first opened the box. Some people might use words like "dazzling" and "stunning" to describe clothes; I use them to describe new pans. Look at how the light reflects off of it!
Anyway, I stirfried some sugar snap peas in garlic and oil for my pan's first run, but I can't wait to test it out for real. I'm already impressed with how much lighter they are than my anondized aluminum pans. Maybe I'll re-run some of the tests the Cook's Illustrated crew did including sauteing onions, searing steaks, and browning chicken. Hopefully my pan will continue to dazzle me with its even heat distribution!
You'll have to tell me how it works out. I've been hesitant to buy expensive pans that are not stick-resistent. I don't want to use a lot of oil to do my stir frying and I dont want to be stuck with guck on the bottom a pan that I need to put a lot of elbow grease into scrubbing. James is not fond of the price tag.
ReplyDeleteAs you know, Wing has 2 of these. Perhaps one is in my future, but I am pretty happy with my cast iron, so cheap too. No worries about scrubbing, all you have to do is boil off any stuck on gunk. (Otherwise known as fond! Fond=flavor, deglaze= boil off)
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