Best CHEAP Cookware Brands (And 4 to Never Buy)

[@rickbear7249]

My dad was an engineer. He taught me to always buy the best, so you buy it once and it lasts you a lifetime. I bought an All-Clad 3D frying pan/skillet, and despite the high price, it's actually the cheapest option, as I'll never need to replace it.

[@H4KnSL4K]

I agree with that approach. At the same time, I found a budget 3-ply 12-inch amazon brand stainless fry pan that I'm really enjoying. An all-clad might be better long-term, but I don't want to pay 10 times as much at the moment...

[@PrudentReviews]

For materials that can last forever like stainless steel, cast iron, and carbon steel, spending more isn't a bad investment. Get what you like because you'll have it for a while.

[@rickbear7249]

@H4KnSL4K yup, it's that up front investment that hurts 😂. That said, I'd rather have 1 great pan than a set that won't last.

[@H4KnSL4K]

@@rickbear7249 Another factor for me, is if I buy a pan, I can no longer buy a better pan since the money spent on the first one is then wasted. And I need a really good reason why I would pay more for what might be a non essential upgrade

[@JasonON]

I bought Tramontina stainless from Costco and never had a problem that wasn't user-error. I like them so much, I bought more and a Tramontina cast iron.

[@JimJimmington-e8i]

This is a timely and good review. You have no idea how much your videos help. Your testing, presentation... all of it is great.

[@grant1863]

Based on your reviews bought an all clad pan(through your video) delivered today. Worth the money for the pan. Thanks for all the information.

[@brettscott7770]

A wealth of info thank you.

[@PrudentReviews]

Happy to help!

[@Elizabeth-d1n]

Great video, thanks. I continue to think the tri-ply stainless steel Tramontina line is the best value on the market. I'm really into their Utsava line, which includes a series of kadai pans (two-handled saucier/wok-like pans) with lids for the most incredible prices. Everyone in my family is getting one for Christmas,. ;-)

[@PrudentReviews]

The value is incredible. I havent heard of the Utsava line but I'll check that out.

[@r.awilliams9815]

Agreed, I love my Tramontina tri-ply cookware. I'm particularly fond of the 12.5" wok.

[@jackiek]

Have you ever used commercial cookware like winco or vollrath? Can you do a review on them? Thanks

[@Bethany415]

I bought the Cooks Standard multi ply pan off the jungle website, oh gosh, 10 years ago. It's still working great. A cheap place for Lodge that I've noticed is my local grocery store. They carry a few of the most popular pieces. Thanks for the reviews!

[@KetchPhraz]

I got a set of two Tramontina tri-ply pans at Costco (10in and 12in) for only $30 almost a year ago, and I've been very impressed. They're made in China instead of Brazil, but are still very well made. The 12in weighs 3lbs 3.3oz, and the 10in weighs 2lbs 6.6oz according to my cheap kitchen scale. Other than cosmetic scratches from metal utensils they've held up great with zero warping.

[@PrudentReviews]

I've been seeing Tramontina in Costco recently. That's usually a good sign because their buyers are very picky.

[@affliction6911]

Andrew my wife will definitely enjoy watching your video about the cookware. Thank you for the review 🙂👍🏻

[@PrudentReviews]

@@affliction6911 you’re welcome!

[@jeffandersen6233]

Glad you shoed a few non stich pans. I bought an OXO 10" last year after high recommendation from Americas Tedt Kitchen. It was worked well for me. Interesting that it was not mentioned.

[@mohammadhabibi8933]

Hi Andrew, great video. One question, how are Fissler stainless steel cookwares? Are they good to buy?

[@CageyLeigh]

My T-Fal pans from. Outcome are great for cooking, and are holding up well.

[@PlebiasFate1609]

3:58 THANK THE GODS CUISINART ART MULTICLAD PRO SERIES was mentioned i have the saute pan and my god i love the heft it has, not too heavy or light almost perfect and also you can make good pan seared chicken with pan sauce

[@SinnermanStudios]

What about Ikea SENSUELL stainless steal pan? Do you have any expieriance with it? I bought it about a month ago, and so far I have no complains. It cost someething about 50 euros in Latvia. Would be great if you did a review of Ikea cookware. Btw love your content (y)

[@PrudentReviews]

Thank you! I haven’t heard of that brand but I’ll look into it.

[@seechangenyc280]

Great review, as always. Curious, I need a 12” fry pan with a cover but (let’s use All Clad D3 as an example, which is what I have), the pan bottom is way wider than my gas stovetop burner. The 10” is cramped. Does that mean skip 12?

[@PrudentReviews]

Thank you! The advice I always give is the bottom of your pan shouldn't be more than an inch larger than the burner. If it's more than that, there's a good chance your pan will warp because the heat is so concentrated at the center. Do you have an unusually small stovetop? Usually at least one burner fits a 12-inch pan comfortably.

[@seechangenyc280]

@@PrudentReviews thank you so much for writing back. I just measured my burner.: 8 1/2" square...D3 12" is 20.8 x 12.5 x 3.7"...10" - 17.9 x 10.5 x 4.8" ... Is the 12" too big? 'I can't decide whether to go less expensive. All Clad is having another good sale. I also need to replace my Demeyere Industry saute pan. I love it but it's too heavy and the cooking surface is too small. I hope you do a review about saute pans (the All Clad d3 is also on sale)...in any case, I don't know what to look for regarding size to fit my burner. Many thanks, P.S. totally agree with you about Lodge. I love mine.

[@PrudentReviews]

@@seechangenyc280 Are you saying the burner has a diameter of 8.5 inches? What are the other measurements. Keep in mind that the diameter of the bottom of the pan is much smaller than the diameter rim to rim. Most 12-inch pans have a 10-inch diameter on the bottom.

[@seechangenyc280]

@@PrudentReviews the diameter is 8.5" on each of four sides. 4 burners. Does that make sense? Unless I'm wrong, the 12" measurements above seem to big for the burner????

[@JacksonWalter735]

The henkels sets are always a good deal. Even better when they’re on sale at Costco. I think the paradigm set was on sale 2 ads ago and the stainless steel set was on sale last ad

[@cobuck4007]

Great advice!

[@PrudentReviews]

Glad it was helpful!

[@MandiSmash]

what about oxo? I love those

[@WebGems]

In a previous video you talked about the ZWILLING Motion pans, are those still a good budget option?

[@PrudentReviews]

Yes, still a great option. I could have included that in this video but at $80 for the 12-inch pan, I think Ninja and Tramontina Professional are better options for non-stick pans.

[@donnagormannewell5225]

Costco currently has the Henkels Tri-ply (H3?)12 piece set on sale for $145 in warehouse and $155 on line through 11/25/24. An entire set for less than one D3. I like my cast iron, but this one has me tempted. I am curious if anyone has tried the Tramontina enameled cast iron dutch ovens that Costco has on sale for $40? They look to be Staub clones, but have white interiors, and you get two (4 quart and 6 quart) for a mere $40 in warehouse.

[@leoz6338]

Is there any performance difference between the enameled Lodge made in China vs. Usa ?

[@PrudentReviews]

Great question. I'm in the process of testing them head to head and plan to put out a video with results next week or the week after. Not seeing much of a difference so far.

[@WERC-lawyer]

​@@PrudentReviews its my understanding that the coated Lodge cookware is made in Asia, the regular cast iron is made in Tennessee. I have a coated, 4.5 qt dutch oven and their "double dutch". I use them often with excellent results.

[@PrudentReviews]

@ you’re right but Lodge recently came out with a new enameled collection called “USA Enamel”. So they have two enameled collections, the one I showed in this video is made in China. The other one is made in the US.

[@searchingfortruth619]

​@@PrudentReviews oh I didn't know about this new line from lodge. I think the main critiques were that the enamel was not as thick as le creuset, and some aspects of the lid design were inferior. But overall still a huge steal, lol. For the stainless, I'm def checking out the Cuisinart pro. Sealed rims at that price!? That's wild.

[@Lancers262]

I love my Misen cookware. Performs great but handle is “okay”. If my hands are wet or oily, it’s difficult to rotate the pan.

[@PrudentReviews]

@@Lancers262 yup that’s the one downside

[@beraa_]

Hmm, quite interested in the Cuisinart Multiclad pans. If you could make a video diving a little deeper into them I’d gladly watch it.

[@PrudentReviews]

I'll definitely be doing more of a deep dive into it. Not exactly sure when though. I'll keep you posted!

[@Elizabeth-d1n]

I own the Cuisinart pan shown in this video. I hate it. The rivets from the helper handle and the main handle are placed such that it is impossible to stir ingredients.

[@richardpetty9159]

We love ours. Rivets aren’t a problem and no warping. The only mistake we made buying our quality set is that we should have done it a long, long time ago. This would be true for other good brands, too. Life is too short to live with junk.

[@lars2894]

Duxtop is another good one!

[@WERC-lawyer]

I'm curious about Berghof.

[@PrudentReviews]

Haven’t tested it yet

[@mattf5207]

Any cookware that has a bottom that looks like Carote I avoid. Junk. As a cookware-aholic, I'm embarking on a ceramic journey with Caraway right now. Love the heft. Great on induction. But ask me in 6 months and I'll be trying something else. LOL.

[@DrGaryGreen]

Hexclad sticks and not worth owning. Silicone heats up and stays hot. Better to just use an oven mitt. Nice review. Thank you.

[@opfreakx]

Cuisinart - every pan I had warped. on a normal electric range

[@richardpetty9159]

We have their clad aluminum-steel set and have experienced no warping even though I’ve accidentally forgotten them empty on low gas burners several times.

[@spamviking8591]

No love for the Kirkland's Signature branded cookware.

[@MoTown2Go]

Please remember to include the country of origin for all the brands discussed.

[@PrudentReviews]

Henckels H3 Clad: China Henckels Paradigm: China Lodge Cast Iron Skillets: USA Lodge Enameled Dutch Ovens: China Tramontina Tri-Ply Clad: Brazil Tramontina Professional Non-Stick: Brazil Cuisinart MultiClad Pro: China Goldilocks: China Ninja NeverStick: China Carote: China and Vietnam Farberware Classic: Thailand Blue Diamond: China Circulon: Thailand and China Besides Lodge, it's hard to find low-cost but good quality cookware made in the US and Europe. If you're willing to spend more, I cover the best cookware not made in China here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/q5DNaH-eZbWUkKs

[@alansnipes3101]

The All Clar stainless steel 12-inch skillet is $129.00, not 200.00

[@PrudentReviews]

Depends on retailer and sales. It’s $199 on All-Clad’s website right now but I’m seeing it for less on Williams Sonoma. Either way Henckels, Tramontina, Cuisinart, and Goldilocks are all much less.

[@sadsismint]

hehehehe.... dutch oven :P

[@john.c]

You said you were gonna review the IKEA stainless steel skillet as an affordable option a while back. That was clearly bullshit. Unsubed.

[@squirrelcovers6340]

Lodge ENAMEL is MADE IN CHINA

[@PrudentReviews]

They make two enameled collections. Essential Enamel is made in China. USA Enamel is made in the US. The Dutch oven I showed in this video is from the Essential Enamel collection.

[@NeoDon1]

Non Stick is Poision how can that be a bargain if it risks my health ???

[@HH-le1vi]

This channel doesn't include health in its PERFORMANCE REVIEWS. Almost no channel based around testing cookware and small appliances will. If people don't like non stick then clearly you don't care about non stick reviews.

[@richardpetty9159]

Don’t eat it.

[@Bob_Adkins]

If you remove all the nonstick material from a frying pan and eat it, you won't die, or even get sick. If you stuff it into the stomach of a tiny mouse every day for the rest of it's short life, it may cause problems. Don't let California brainwash you.

[@pranai1998]

Thank you, been asking from over 6 months 🥲🫡

[@PrudentReviews]

You're welcome! So many topics and brands to cover. This one was overdue.