The Types Of Pots And Pans for ANY Cooking Situation

Even if you are an infrequent cook, you still need a basic set of cookware. If your cooking repertoire extends beyond the fundamentals, you’ll want to have some specialized pieces to cater to your specific style and favorite foods. For the most basic pieces, buying a cookware set is usually the least expensive way to go. You can then add on other items to suit your specific cooking needs.

Most cookware is metal, with aluminum, cast iron or stainless steel being the most common. Aluminum has the advantage of lower cost, but many cooks prefer cast iron or stainless steel for durability. Nonstick coatings make it easy to clean your cookware after use, but again, personal preference comes into play here, with some cooks preferring to avoid nonstick pans due to health concerns about the coating. You can see this article on stainless steel vs nonstick pots and pans.

Start off with the basic cookware, and add on as you require. Cookware is worth splurging on, as good quality pots and pans will stand up to the rigors of cooking for decades, while cheap items will scratch, dent or lose their handles or knobs.

Types Of Pots And Pans

While there are many types of pots and pans available, you can easily get by with a basic set. Many pieces are very similar, and some manufacturers interchange names of common cookware items. The following pieces form a good basic set of cookware that will cover most basic kitchen needs.

• Skillet Definition: Also called a frying pan, a skillet is a kitchen workhorse. Skillets have gently sloping, shallow sides, a wide bottom, a long handle and no lid. Measured by the size across the top of the pan, an 8-inch and a 12-inch frying pan will cover just about anything you want to fry or sauté.
• Saucepan Definition: The pot you will reach for over and over, a saucepan is round, with straight sides, a long handle and a fitted lid. A saucepan is perfect for heating and cooking soups, stews, rice, sauces, or vegetables. Saucepans are measured in quarts; a 2-quart and a 4-quart saucepan will cover your needs nicely.

• Stockpot Definition: A tall, round pot with a fitted lid, stockpots are perfect for large batches of soups or stews, rice or pasta. Also check out our list of the best rice cookers. Stockpots are measured in quarts; an 8-quart pot is large enough to handle most people’s needs.
• Baking Dish Definition: A glass pan, usually rectangular, used for baking cakes, egg or potato dishes, and casseroles. Baking dishes are measured in inches; it is useful to have two: one that is 13 x 9, and one that is 11 x 7.
• Cookie Sheet Definition: A flat metal pan with either no sides or a very shallow lip, a cookie sheet is useful for baking cookies, breads, or other baked goods. Measured in inches, an 11 x 17 inch sheet will be sufficient for a batch of cookies.

Specialty Types Of Pots And Pans

Once you have your basic cookware in place, round out your collection with any of the following items that fit into your cooking needs.

• Dutch Oven Definition: These are deep, oval pots with a heavy lid. There are usually short handles on each end. A Dutch oven recreates oven conditions on the stovetop, and is great for roasting meat, stews, soups, sauces or casseroles. Capacity is measured in quarts, 6 to 8 quarts is a good size for most needs. If you like to cook meats frequently, but don’t always want to use the oven, or will need it for other foods, then a Dutch oven is the perfect solution.
• Griddle Definition: Perfect for making pancakes, a griddle is a flat, usually square pan with a very shallow lip or no rim at all. These often have nonstick coatings.
• Roasting Pan Definition: Heavy metal roasting pans are useful for cooking large pieces of meat, such as a turkey, ham or large roast. Many include a metal rack to elevate the food during cooking, allowing airflow on all sides. Roasting pans are large, but have relatively shallow sides. Heavy loop handles make it easier to lift the pan. Some include a lid. A 16 to 18 inch roasting pan is big enough for most turkeys or roasts. This is essential for anyone who cooks Thanksgiving turkeys or Easter hams.
• Double Boiler Definition: Consisting of a smaller pan fitted into a slightly larger pan, double boilers are usually used to steam vegetables, fish or meat, or for melting candy or chocolate. The most common size is 2 quarts. These are easily distinguished by their tall silhouette.
• Sauté Pan Definition: A sauté pan is similar to a skillet, and the terms are sometimes used interchangeably. A sauté pan has straight sides (skillets have gently sloped sides), a long handle, and sometimes a smaller loop handle on the other side for ease in lifting the pan. Used for sautéing and braising. A 5-quart sauté pan is the most useful size.
• Wok Definition: Also called a stir-fry, a wok has a flat, round bottom and high, sloping sides. Many woks come with a metal ring stand to hold them slightly suspended above the gas flame. Woks are an essential element in Asian cooking, perfect for stir frying meats and vegetables, and can be used for deep-frying, stews and steaming. Look for a 14-inch wok to fit most needs.
• Braiser Definition: Very similar to a stockpot, a braiser has lower sides, and may or may not have a lid. Handles on each side make it easy to lift. Braisers are good for slow cooking meat and allowing it to soak in flavor. A 3 to 5 quart braiser is a good size.
• Casserole Pan Definition: A casserole pan is very similar to a Dutch oven, but often made of glass or ceramic, and used inside the oven rather than on the stove. A casserole pan between 2 and 4 quarts is most useful.
• Grill Pan Definition: Used for grilling food on the stovetop, a grill pan is similar to a griddle, but has deep ridges for collecting fat and oil, and giving food the distinctive, lined grill marks.

Cooking is more enjoyable, and gives better results, when you have the proper tools to use. A good selection of cookware will serve you well, and last for many years. Think about the main five to 10 dishes you cook most frequently, and which types of pots and pans they would benefit the most from. These will form your basic cookware set.

Over time, pick up spare pots and pans to fill any needs you come across. Again, it’s better to spend money on one or two quality pieces, as they will last for years if not decades.

See Which of these Blenders is the Best Value

When buying a blender for the kitchen, most of us will just run to the nearest mega-store, grab a box, plug it in and call it a day. While this is a pretty easy approach, it may also mean you spend more for fewer features and lower quality.

By taking your time and checking out a few reviews, whether you order online or go down to the store, may save you a lot of hassle in the long run. Check out this shortlist of great value that we have prepared to save you time. We have a Kitchenaid Acrylic blender, and now the multi jar Cusinart CPB 300 when we realized for morning fruit shakes, it is nice to save some in the fridge and it is easier to do portions than the larger Kitchenaid unit.

If you can get a better blender, with more features and that will last longer, why throw your hard earned cash away? Enjoy the selection.

Best blender under $200 to buy

These are the very best quality blenders for under $200. You will find each is well reviewed by consumers, and as this is a popular budget when people want a higher quality appliance, these are well worth taking a look at.

Tips when buying a new blending appliance

When buying a blender, it’s best to decide which you need the most: low cost, a variety of features, or durability. Generally speaking, you can find any two of these in a good piece of blending equipment, but rarely all three.

Think about what you’ll be doing with your blender – if you plan on crushing ice on a daily basis, you’ll probably want a more powerful motor than if you only make fruit smoothies once a week. With that in mind, here are some of the best blenders on the market today.

Oster BVCB07-Z 6-Cup Glass Jar 7-Speed Blender

The best-selling blender in Amazon’s “Countertop Blenders” category, the Oster Counter forms blender features a 600-watt motor, seven speed settings, and a roomy glass jar that won’t retain food odors.

The best part about the jar is that it’s thermal-shock tested, which means it can go from very hot to very cold without suffering the cracks that ruin cheaper glass jars. Great for frozen dairy foods!

The downside to this model is its price. While it will last a long time and can hold up to heavy-duty use, it’s also on the pricey side for a countertop blender. Still, it is probably the best blender for the money you can find.

Hamilton Beach Single-Serve Blender with 2 Jars and 2 Lids

This blender is a good alternative for light mixing use: Do you only plan on making smoothies? This is ideal!

After mixing, you can pop one of the included lids on the jar and take your drink with you – the lids have straw holes for maximum portability, and the jars are roughly the size of regular coffee travel mugs.

Needless to say, this particular model isn’t for complex food-processing tasks. It’s a compact blender specifically designed for just making a quick drink, and it’s quite good at it, especially considering its super-low price.

Best single-serve and Travel blenders

If you like to blend the shake in the morning to set you up for the day, these little travel blenders are ideal. Just use the blending vessel as a travel cup and take it straight to work with you. Quite a few of these have multiple travel cups, which is great if both of you want a smoothie to go.

Oster 6706 6-Cup Plastic Jar 10-Speed Blender

All things considered, this is probably the best blender for the money available right now. A good balance between price and features, the Oster 6706 boasts 10 speed settings, a standard-sized six-cup jar made of plastic, and a reliable 450-watt motor.

While it’s not quite as strong as the BVCB07’s motor, it can still handle daily use without breaking down. The six-cup, BPA-free jar is spacious enough for most blending jobs and will never break or crack, although going from mixing pesto or other dried foods to milkshakes might result in a little odor retention.

Still, at less than half the cost of the aforementioned BVCB07, you’ll be getting a solid blender that should stand up to years of regular use.

BlendTec TB-621-20 Total Blender

This can only be described as the Cadillac of blenders. It’s got a commercial-quality 1,560-watt, three-horsepower motor that can blend not only an avocado, but the pit as well!

A digital display replaces the usual array of buttons and knobs, and included is an eight-cup jar that’s squared off at the corners, so getting every last bit of your drink or food out of the jar is effortless.

If you’re worried that after laying out four hundred dollars on a blender it will break the next day, the BlendTec features a three-year warranty on the motor, a one-year warranty on the jar, and lifetime warranties on the coupling and blades.

The real question is: Do you need it? For most of us, this might be the best blender you can buy, but unless you’re blending every meal you make, it’s probably hard to justify paying so much for a blender. If it’s the best blender on the market, it might not be the best blender for the money.

Best blender under $100

This is the most popular budget for people that want a decent quality blender for their home. A hundred dollars will actually get you a pretty decent machine, a most of these are capable of crushing ice for smoothies, margaritas and daiquiris.

Ninja NJ600 Pro Blender

There are a number of good blenders out there at a variety of price points. What you need – and what you want to spend – should guide you in your search for the perfect blender for your kitchen.

These are some of the most popular blenders available, and each in its own way can be seen as the best blender for the money.

It is great many of them are the best blenders under $100 and even $50!

Here is another nice one, under $100, the Ninja NJ600 Pro Blender.