The Best Stainless Steel Pans for Everyday Use 2023, Tested and Reviewed

The handles on the stainless steel lids were big enough to grab onto, even when we used a side towel or pot holders. We also found that the stick handles were comfortable to hold and the appropriate length, unlike the Anolon Tri-Ply Clad Stainless Steel 12-Piece Cookware Set’s handles, which were too short. In addition to your main set, you can always purchase tramontina cookware set other essential pieces, such as a Dutch oven, a cast-iron skillet, and a nonstick pan. Most of the pots and pans in those larger sets are just filler. Ultimately, those pieces won’t see much use and will only clutter up your kitchen. Our experts agreed that you’re better off getting a set with fewer, better-quality pieces that you’ll reach for again and again.

This Tri-Ply base set is excellent quality in terms of both durability and cooking performance; most home cooks will be happy with it. Enameled cast iron, on the other hand, doesn’t need so much work. It has many of the advantages of cast iron in terms of heating, but the enamel coating means you don’t need to worry about seasoning. If you want one with a single size, that’s fine too, and those are available. Tramontina’s is excellent, but you can read the full Tramontina cookware reviews later.

As a senior staff writer at Wirecutter, I have written reviews for all kinds of kitchen equipment and gadgets, including skillets, knife sets, and cutting boards. And prior to joining Wirecutter in 2016, I spent over 10 years working in various facets of the food and restaurant industry. The handles on these pots and pans are ergonomically designed, and easy to hold when you’re transferring hot foods around the kitchen.

tramontina pans

I started this blog because someone told me I couldn’t and before I knew it, I was doing it purely out of my love for food. We do recommend that if you are going to make the investment, you look at all of the details and go ahead and spring for the premium investment over the base set. Stainless steel is composed of mostly or exclusively stainless steel, which is the primary difference between the two. Yes, they are both stainless steel, but they are different overall. These sets come in different sizes and some even have different color options. Let’s have a quick overview of the cookware items that Tramontina has available.

The pan looks as professional as it feels, but while simple, the design isn’t all nuts and bolts. The removable red silicone grip softens the feel of the stiff handle, adds a nice pop of color, and eliminates the need for a pot holder. Other than the grip and a subtle stamping on the bottom, tramontina cookware the pan is free of branding and looks clean, and the satiny nonstick coating still sparkles even after we used the pan repeatedly. In our test kitchen, we long-term tested an older (now-discontinued) version of this set for two years, and all of the pots and pans distributed heat evenly.

We then test each for its nonstick capabilities by frying three eggs in a row with no grease, followed by two scrambled eggs with no grease, to see how well they all release. Finally, we assess how well the pan cleans up by hand and take note of how easy it is to handle, how balanced it sits on our stovetop and how it compares to others we’ve tested. The Goldilocks pot lid handles, and those on the sides of the stockpot, are wide with a slight dimple (similar to All-Clad’s handles); this makes them easier to grasp and more comfortable to hold. The stick handles on the Goldilocks set are strikingly similar to those on the Cuisinart 77-7 Chef’s Classic Stainless 7-Piece Cookware Set (our former budget pick).

In our experience, they take up too much space or have a shallow design that doesn’t allow enough circulation for pasta when boiling. This well-constructed, affordable, fully clad tri-ply set distributes heat evenly, and it’s durable enough to take some abuse in a busy household. It is equipped with a small pouring spout on one side which can be helpful for removing liquid.