All-Clad Kitchen: All-Clad LTD 1-Quart Saucepan

Average Rating:

Recently I purchased this pot because I couldn't resist the price...and I am returning it as I have all the other recent LTD All-Clad purchases I have made.

All six LTD All-Clad pots I have purchased recently are made in China (my old pans were made in USA). Three of the pots I returned immediately because of flaws in manufacturing. Of the remaining three, I have used two, both of which I cannot get clean (after much effort) and both of which after only one use look much older then LTD pans I have used daily for many years (and those pans still clean effortlessly!).

Do not buy this product if you are an All-Clad customer! I have not used another product for many years so I can't say how these sub-standard pans perform compared to other companies products, but I would look there before spending the money on these cheap nock-offs.

What a bummer!

This is All-Clad, so just plain gushing won't quite do, here. We all know it's a superior saucepan. So if I'm going to write a review that is useful, I have to go into detail.

Like the handle: comfortable, pretty, but absolutely cool enough to use a bare hand on at all times -- quite an engineering feat.

Like the fat rivets that attach the handle. For anyone who needs to keep a screwdriver in the kitchen to constantly tighten the screws on their mass-market handles, this will be a welcome revelation.

The stainless steel/aluminium sandwich construction that conducts and spreads the heat everywhere is no longer unique: I have an awesome KitchenAid 2 1/2 quart saucier that I still take to bed with me sometimes when I'm feeling lonely, because its bottom is so beautifully rounded, but let's stick to talking about 1 quart saucepans, shall we?

Why do you need a 1 quart saucepan? If you cook for more than two people, its only use is to make sauces. I've recently started cooking for four: sauces and vegetable side dishes are the only thing I use it for, but I hang it on the wall the rest of the time, and smile in admiration every time I pass it.

All-Clad sells three different finishes on (I think) all of their pots, touting them as being equivalent, but nonetheless charging a hefty premium on their LTD line. I strongly disagree with their assessment. Anybody who was awake during their high school physics classes knows that black absorbs heat better than anything else. I ran several tests using this pan and the much cheaper (and uglier) Chefs Choice version, heating exactly 1 pint of water, and the LTD won by 35 seconds. (The preceding is just a way for you to justify buying the prettiest one.)

Cooking hint: This pan is sturdy enough to sauté anything on the cooktop, and can also live in a hot oven quite happily. A perfect combination for small slow-cooked dishes that improve by sautéing.

So, do not use detergent on it, or even expose it to detergent. Even a stainless interior will pick up a coat of cooking oils firmly attached to the stainless steel. Adding detergents just attaches detergent molecules to the firmly-attached oil molecules, and the result is a very sticky pan.

So, wash only with hot water, and scrub with a brush that has never seen detergent. It's almost like running a kosher household, but very much worth the trouble.

If you are just thinking of dipping your toes into the whole idea of high-quality cookware for the first time, then you shouldn't be looking at this specialty pan. If you are feeling cheap, then get yourself an All-Clad 8-inch nonstick frypan, and you will be in omelet heaven forever.

If you are just a little more serious, then the All-Clad 10-Inch frying pan will handle 95% of your frying needs for the rest of your life. This 1 Qt pan is not exactly essential, but I use mine at least once per week, and love having it handy.