How it started for me ..
I have been actively cooking for the past 15 years now since I left my hometown to start my work life way back in 2006.
Back then and even now most Indian household kitchen has these 5 basic cooking vessels :
- The Kadhai with a lid (similar to The Wok) great for braising, deep frying, stir frying and making gravies.
- The Frying pan - Useful for making fried eggs, omelette, making parathas, pancakes or even for shallow frying.
- The Sauce pan for boiling milk, making tea, coffee, boiling eggs, pasta, noodles and also for preparing soups and sauces.
- The Pressure Cooker - A Time saver and energy efficient tool in terms of boiling anything and everything that calls for it.
Just with these essentials not only should you be able to cook delicious dishes typical of any South Asian cuisine but also touch base with other styles of cooking as well.
Most of these vessels used were typically made of aluminium because of their high heat conductivity. With the introduction to non-stick cookware which is nothing but aluminum coated with a non-stick layer, some vessels like the frying pan and kadhai made a shift in most kitchens. Non-Stick cookware typically are of light weight and super easy to clean hence convenient for most.
Pressure Cookers
When I moved out of the comfort of my home and home cooked flavor-some, palatable food in 2006, Mom packed me a small pressure cooker (a 3 L) along with some other essential supplies to ensure I don't sleep hungry. Not to mention I have used it quite extensively since then and it works great.
My then boyfriend now husband in a similar setting got the 5L pressure cooker and when we got married in 2009 so did these two. And they continue to stay with us through our journey till now from India to USA. 😁
My Instant Pot Story
Cut to 2018 Thanksgiving, almost a decade after the introduction of the multi-function Electric Pressure Cooker also known by its famous brand The Instant Pot, I got mine after too many thoughts. Why do I need it anyway ? I remember standing in that section of the store and see people picking up their own and sometimes even 2 !!! Is it really THAT something of a value? What can it do that my pressure cookers can’t ? Do I have space in my kitchen to accommodate this newbie ?
Settling those thoughts I picked up mine and never opened it for 2 whole months with 70% of my mind in returning it. Seriously, I do take a lot of time to accept any change in my life including as unimportant thing as a cookware (or so I thought).
Then one fine day I took it out and cooked Dal in it and it turned out delicious and then something else and then another....and since then it has completely changed my thoughts of how I see cooking!
It is a complete charm to work with, a kitchen workhorse, mess free with zero monitoring and easy cleanup and the list goes on.
My Pressure cookers have been stored away and happily forgotten!
From "Do I need it?" to "I can't live without it" - The IP story of many kitchens.
I own the Instant Pot 6qt DUO. From sautéing to pressure cooking.
From fermenting to steaming it does most of the daily kitchen tasks with easy and in less time.
Since I am talking about my IP, I would like to talk about the accessories which might be a good investment to elevate your cooking. I have bought the Egg Rack Steamer to boil eggs and the Two Tier Steamer Insert for my Pot-In-Pot cooking.
I also own the 7" Round Cake Pan and the IP Spring Form Pan which goes in my IP as well as in my oven for baking.
The Instant Zest Rice & Grain Cooker
Even before I had my IP, I had my rice cooker so I cannot do away with it. I use it to cook rice and steam veggies.
I used to own the Aroma 20 cup Rice cooker but the non-stick pot lining got scratched and I got rid of it since I did not want any harmful leaching of metal into the food.
Now I own this cutie from the same IP family - Instant Zest Rice and Grain Cooker This is a 8cup Rice cooker and is great for our small family. This model also comes with multi-function buttons to cook white as well as brown rice, quinoa, oatmeal and grains. It's been only a couple of weeks since I got this so I don't know how long it will last but I am happy that the lining of the pot is a non-stick ceramic coated one so its PTFE and PFOA free. It comes with the steamer basket, measuring cup and spoon. It is dishwasher safe but so far I have hand washed it as it’s easy that way for me.
My Kitchen Aid Story
Having married a North-Indian and having made chapatis ever since, I had my fair share of struggles.
Let me tell you, many of you already know this, the art of roti making is not easy. It's a tasking job in any Indian kitchen so much so people who can grow the taste prefer to buy chapatis from stores rather than taking this everyday pain. YES IT IS A PAIN ! Especially in India where you start sweating the moment you start rolling and puffing the first one on your burner, unless you have the luxury of a home with central air-conditioning which is very rare. I did not have it either.
Let me tell you, many of you already know this, the art of roti making is not easy. It's a tasking job in any Indian kitchen so much so people who can grow the taste prefer to buy chapatis from stores rather than taking this everyday pain. YES IT IS A PAIN ! Especially in India where you start sweating the moment you start rolling and puffing the first one on your burner, unless you have the luxury of a home with central air-conditioning which is very rare. I did not have it either.
Oh how I used to hate making Roti. But yes, something good happened, I learned the art of perfect roti making in the process as I had no other option but to make it. Its was the staple to go with our Dals and curries other than rice.
Ever since I moved here in USA, the sweating part has forgone thanks to the wonderful weather and the fortune to have a home with central temperature control like all others. I was partly ok but still had my brain starting to itch from the thought of kneading the dough each time which always resulted in messy kitchen counter no matter how hard I used to try. And no none of us liked the taste of store bought rotis to the home made ones. Especially because the things you can add to the dough is limitless to make it healthier and more fresh.
Sometime around last year (2019) I finally got hold of a stand mixer with just the dough hook on sale for $20 and I grabbed the deal. It was a painless job kneading the dough which saved me the ordeal.
Finally I found this Kitchen Aid from a second hand sale within a month or so and sold the other one. This is Kitchen Aid Classic 4.5 qt Stand Mixer which comes with the much needed and used Dough Hook, the whisker and the beater attachments.
I not only do my dough almost everyday but also make cookie dough and cake batters in it and this works like a charm every time.
These are pricey even if you buy them during Sales Event. The basic model like mine comes to $250 normally or around $199 on sale. It is not worth an investment if you are neither into baking nor making dough of any form on a regular basis. A simple hand mixer with the same kind of attachments or a food processor might do the job for you ofcourse unless you find a good second hand model of at least half the price like I found mine. This works for me since I do not have either the hand mixer or a food processor.
Tortilla Press and Chakki Belan
Since we are talking about making dough, I was too happy when I bought this Tortilla Press to roll rotis but realized that part of my plight will not be over. So I continue using my Chakki Belan which is an acceptable compromise as 50% of the ordeal is already over (Kneeding the messy dough).
However, I do use the Tortilla Press to flatten Puris as its mess free and presses puri faster than I could roll with the belan. So this is a good buy if you are not a pro in that zone like me.
Before I move on to the other pieces of cookware I own, I would like to spend some time in the material type I prefer for them and why.
Stainless or Non-Stick
I believe all pots should be lined with Stainless Steel. There is absolutely no need to buy anodized aluminum, teflon or any other type of pots. Trust me ! I learned this the hard way!I had been using non stick Kadhai, Sauce pans which gives away the coating very soon with regular usage and you need to buy them again as they are cheap and Cheap ones don't last ! There are limitations on how you can handle them, they are delicate and get scratched with metal utensils and the non-stick coatings don't last long. One needs to store them with a paper towel or paper plates in between each. To me that's extra work and very inconvenient.
However, if you still want to continue using them, replace them after every few months. Even I have a couple of them still left from my last stash which I use very rarely and take care as much as I can so as not to scratch them.
The Best bang for the buck would be stainless steel. There are mostly 2 types of stainless steel pots and pans available in the market :
1. The Cladded Bottom or Disc-Bottom Pans
This means vessel made out of thin stainless steel (Typically less than 1mm). To this thin cooking vessel a thick plate of conductive material is bonded to the bottom of the vessel. Most of the time manufacturers use a copper or aluminium layer sandwiched between 2 layers of stainless steel (Hence this is also called the Tri-Ply Base because of the 3 layers). The aluminium is used again for the same reason of high-heat conductivity and the stainless steel to cover the alumunium exposure and to give the cookware a magnetic base for compatibility with induction cooktops.
Saucepans*, Stock Pots don't really need a conductive sidewall because you don't really cook on the sides. For stock pots thin liquid like water will move heat around via convection hence a thin stainless steel wall would work just fine without causing any burn !
2. Fully Clad or Multi-Clad or Cladded Sidewalls
For a fully clad pan the sandwiched base travels all the way up to the edge of the pan. So if it’s a Tri-Ply Fully clad it’s the 3 layers - Aluminum sandwiched between 2 layers of stainless steel. It also comes with 5-ply and 7 ply with the same type of construction. For copper core pans there will be a layer of copper instead of aluminum for a tri-ply and both copper and aluminum for a 5 and 7 ply.
The more layers the more effective cooking experience and
I personally would recommend buying Fully Clad Stainless instead of Disc Bottom pans whether its a frying pan or a sauce pan. Sufficiently thick clad are more energy efficient compared to disc bottom pans. They dissipate the heat well and don't get burnt just in case you would like to cook gravies in them as well.
* If you prepare sauces in your saucepans often there will be a temperature discontinuity where the disc ends and the thin side walls begin whether you use electric, induction or gas burners. The hot gas incase of a gas burner will flow up beyond the disc overheating the sidewalls with no aluminium to absorb the heat. This will result in scorching the oil and the food (scorched oil is particularly bad because of the carcinogens overheated oils emit). Even if you turn down the burner food will stick and it would take on a few muscles to scrape those out every time you do so. Again my experience !
So a Fully Clad piece is highly recommended 👍
Kadhai or Wok
That brings us to another versatile tool of any Asian kitchen for braising spices to making gravies, from stir frying to deep frying - The Kadhai. One can even boil noodles and pasta and prepare sauces in the same.
The one I have is a 11" Wok Pan with a 4 qt capacity. Comes with a lid. This is a Tri Ply Stainless Steel hybrid pan so it does not stick too much like stainless would and easy to clean. This is my goto pan as I love it especially because it does not have any rivets inside. Rivets tend to attract food over and around it and you need a thorough cleaning to get rid of those.
The one I have is a 11" Wok Pan with a 4 qt capacity. Comes with a lid. This is a Tri Ply Stainless Steel hybrid pan so it does not stick too much like stainless would and easy to clean. This is my goto pan as I love it especially because it does not have any rivets inside. Rivets tend to attract food over and around it and you need a thorough cleaning to get rid of those.
I have a small aluminium one to fry puris or do a small batch of fritters.
I also have a cast iron 9" wok which I will talk about little later in the Cast Iron Section
Most sought after materials are enameled cast iron Dutch Oven just because they are Cast Iron which heats well and keep food warm for a long time. The enamel coating keeps the the Pot non-stick and non-reactive to acidic ingredients in food unlike the Cast Iron An ovenproof deep saute pan or oven-proof soup pot can work if you do not have a Dutch oven.
Initially I did not want to buy Cast iron or the enameled one considering my not so strong wrists and thus thought to settle for a lighter soup pot instead.
I also have a cast iron 9" wok which I will talk about little later in the Cast Iron Section
The Saucepan
Even though the Kadhai does most of the stuffs, you might also needs a small to medium size saucepan for boiling eggs, noodles, pasta, preparing and reducing sauces or just for making tea or coffee.
I have 2 sizes : 1QT Sauce Pan and another 3QT. I have a cheaper spare which really helps as the other one
Since I rarely do have to use it so it is still in great condition.
I have my Instant Pot and Rice Cooker, I don't make rice in these but that's another great use for this type of vessel because of its depth.
I do not have any bigger saucepan as I don’t feel the need of those in my kitchen. I have a 3QT and a 5QT Triply Stainless steel sauce pots which I use for making soups and wet sauce based gravies based on the quantity.
With flared rims a skillet provides a wide, open view and convenient access to stir, move or flip ingredients around. The smooth curved sides will help quickly slide a finished dish from pan to plate.
I have Skillets in different materials including a 8" hard anodized non-stick that I use to scramble eggs and fry delicate fishes and veggies like eggplants.
The Skillet or Frying Pan
A must have in any kitchen. It is not only good for eggs but also due to its light weight great for sauteing and stir frying.With flared rims a skillet provides a wide, open view and convenient access to stir, move or flip ingredients around. The smooth curved sides will help quickly slide a finished dish from pan to plate.
I have Skillets in different materials including a 8" hard anodized non-stick that I use to scramble eggs and fry delicate fishes and veggies like eggplants.
My most favourite is the 7.5" All Clad D3. I have a larger 10” as well from the same Brand.
I also have a large 11" Triply Stainless Steel Hybrid pan which is for a larger batch of eggs, pancakes, veggies and meat. I bought this size on purpose so that I can interchange the lid with my Wok which is also an 11".
The Saute Pan
Ideally in Asian Style cooking you might not feel the need to own a Saute Pan as most dishes would need you to stir fry, braise spices, or make the curry for which the Wok is perfect. For all others you have your skillet and saucepan.
However, Saute Pan can be a very useful addition to your kitchen just for its sheer versatility.
Unlike the skillet, the saute pan has straight , vertical sides for both dry and wet heat cooking. This gives you a bigger surface area to cook on.
A Saute Pan can be used for making sauces in addition to braising, poaching, shallow-frying, searing and pan frying (if the ingredients does not need to be flipped often).
With a sizeable bottom they are heavier compared to a skillet, hence are not best for shaking and flipping food around. They are built for larger batch of cooking. So if your dish needs a good amount of liquid and not much stirring, a saute pan is perfect for the job.
I have Tri-Ply Stainless Calphalon 3 qt Saute Pan which I use for dry dishes and searing. I don't have the lid but my old stash of lids from my non-stick collection comes handy. Since I do not put this for oven cooking it works fine for me.
However, Saute Pan can be a very useful addition to your kitchen just for its sheer versatility.
Unlike the skillet, the saute pan has straight , vertical sides for both dry and wet heat cooking. This gives you a bigger surface area to cook on.
A Saute Pan can be used for making sauces in addition to braising, poaching, shallow-frying, searing and pan frying (if the ingredients does not need to be flipped often).
With a sizeable bottom they are heavier compared to a skillet, hence are not best for shaking and flipping food around. They are built for larger batch of cooking. So if your dish needs a good amount of liquid and not much stirring, a saute pan is perfect for the job.
I have Tri-Ply Stainless Calphalon 3 qt Saute Pan which I use for dry dishes and searing. I don't have the lid but my old stash of lids from my non-stick collection comes handy. Since I do not put this for oven cooking it works fine for me.
My Cast Iron Collection
I guess the most incredible workhorses in the kitchen are cast iron cookware that will last forever, generations down. With little care and over time they become nearly non-stick and you can easily replace your non-stick skillets with a cast iron one. It is so versatile that it can be used with pretty much any heat source - open flame to induction and from stove to oven.
They are the most forgiving type of cookware and you do not need to thick twice for using metal utensils because you cannot scratch iron with steel.. LOL 😛
Cast iron is a poor conductor of heat which is a huge advantage. Once it gets hot, it stays hot making it better at cooking. If you preheat your pan for 10 mins before plopping the eggs or meat, the pan will not be cooled down by the addition of the food and thus ends up cooking that food more evenly.
I have 4 to my booty:
They are the most forgiving type of cookware and you do not need to thick twice for using metal utensils because you cannot scratch iron with steel.. LOL 😛
Cast iron is a poor conductor of heat which is a huge advantage. Once it gets hot, it stays hot making it better at cooking. If you preheat your pan for 10 mins before plopping the eggs or meat, the pan will not be cooled down by the addition of the food and thus ends up cooking that food more evenly.
I have 4 to my booty:
- Lodge Pre-Seasoned Cast Iron Griddle 10.5 Inch
- Lodge 9 Inch Cast Iron Mini Wok
- Lodge Pre-Seasoned Cast Iron Skillet 10.25"
- Dutch Oven - This one is an enameled cast iron (explained in detail below)
The Dutch Oven
A dutch oven is neither Dutch nor an oven. It is a deep covered pot with a lid that can be used on the stove or in the oven. It is a kitchen essential even if you own the Instant Pot. It can perform almost any kitchen task including braising, making casseroles, soups, stews and curries which needs slow simmering over the stove and dishes that needs finishing in the oven. It is great for baking bread and more.Most sought after materials are enameled cast iron Dutch Oven just because they are Cast Iron which heats well and keep food warm for a long time. The enamel coating keeps the the Pot non-stick and non-reactive to acidic ingredients in food unlike the Cast Iron An ovenproof deep saute pan or oven-proof soup pot can work if you do not have a Dutch oven.
Initially I did not want to buy Cast iron or the enameled one considering my not so strong wrists and thus thought to settle for a lighter soup pot instead.
I have the tri ply steel 5 qt pot which works fine for most of the dishes I cook. However I gave in to the need of few dishes I regularly cook which needs slow cooking and then broiling it in the oven like that Mutton Curry or Biriyani.
Currently the best price I found on Amazon is the Tramontina Enameled Cast Iron Covered Round Dutch Oven, 5.5-QT.
It’s little over 11pounds and I handled it once to give it its first wash and then bake in oven to get it ready. It seems fine and I don’t have to pick it up too much once it’s cooking on the stove except for moving it for storing.
My take away !
What I understood after all these nick nacking is that the cookware you chose depends on your cooking habits. So what works for me might not be the best for you .
Sometimes just a 10” frying pan and a 2qt saucepan would work for you just fine, while sometimes you might think of better investing in a set of non-coated cookware, so you will never ever have to replace it again. Or you might find it would be cheaper to buy pieces separately, rather than buying a complete set that has a bunch of pots and pans that you will never use.
So I shared my journey into choosing each and every pot I own and their story behind.
Happy shopping and happy cooking everyone !
