Everything you need to know about registering for cookware, appliances, gadgets and gizmos for a thoroughly efficient and enviably stylish kitchen.
Cookware Shapes
Purchase a starter set of cookware to begin with; buying pots and pans individually can cost a lot more. Then, over time, add specialty items that you feel you’ll use.
Butter warmer: A very small (usually 1/2-quart) saucepan, often with a pouring spout, that quickly melts butter and heats small amounts of sauces or other foods.
Casserole/Dutch oven: This large (usually 4-quart), heavy, practical pot can be used for cooking both on the stove top and in the oven. It usually has two handles, and when covered easily simmers, stews or bakes.
Skillet: A wide pan with sloped 2-inch sides, it fries and sautés rapidly. It’s helpful to have at least three different sizes of skillets or omelet pans (from 8 to 14 inches in diameter), some with nonstick coating.
Saucepan: These deep and wide pans heat liquids, such as sauces and stocks, and foods like hot cereal, rice and frozen veggies. Start your kitchen with 1-, 2- and 3-quart covered saucepans to cook up various dishes.
Sauté pan: Similar in function to the skillet, this nifty cooker has short sides and a high handle that’s easier to work with.
Stockpot: The largest pot (8- or 12-quart) in the kitchen, it’s ideal for cooking up big batches of chili, soups or stews and boiling the water for pasta—register for one with an insert for quick draining.
Wok or stir-fry pan: A deep, round pan that allows you to push quickly cooked ingredients, such as delicate vegetables, to its cooler sides, while cooking other foods, like meat, in its super-hot center.
