The Next Great Cookware for Your Kitchen Can Be Found on Curated

Cookware encompasses more than just regular pots and pans, and with a myriad of choices to select from, it is an essential part of any kitchen. Most people can easily distinguish a pan from a pot, but each pot has a specific name, and so does each pan. Along with different names, each has its own advantages and attributes that make them best suited for specific cooking techniques. In this broad cookware bracket, there is still space left to include skillets, as well as those other items that fall into the specialty cookware category. You don’t have to be an expert at any of this though because Curated has Kitchen Experts waiting to help you pick the perfect personalized pieces!

When shopping for cookware, it can be easy to be swayed by bargain options, however, this is probably the one part of your kitchen where it is most important to invest well. You don’t have to buy the most expensive cookware, but you should buy decent equipment that you will be able to rely on year after year. Inexpensive cookware can often be inferior cookware, meaning it could warp, chip, fall apart, or even catch on fire if you aren’t careful. Let’s take a brief look at what’s to come from shopping on Curated and speaking to our Kitchen Experts.

Cookware Sets

One of the most common ways of shopping for cookware is by buying a set. Cookware sets come in different sizes and run from simple two-piece combinations involving two separate cooking vessels, all the way to a large set with several pots, pans, and lids of varying sizes. These sets may even include a roasting pan.

If you are starting from scratch, buying a set will be more beneficial because it provides more options when cooking. With several pieces of cookware, you can boil water for pasta and sauté some vegetables while a roast is in the oven—all at the same time. Find out what set suits your cooking needs best on Curated!

Pots, Pans, & Skillets

When breaking down the differences between pots, pans, and skillets, pots are probably the easiest to identify. These are taller cooking vessels that come in a variety of sizes. You want to stock your kitchen with a couple of smaller ones and at least one large pot.

A large pot will be used for big batches of soups or sauces (like tomato sauce) as well as boiling water for cooking pasta. The smaller ones will allow you to cook cereals and grains in smaller quantities and reheat smaller portions of your favorite liquid foods. It also goes without saying that lids are a must for all pots at home. Lids allow for better retention of temperature within a pot and are also great at avoiding splashes during a rapid boil. Most importantly, they keep you burn-free when moving pots of hot liquids from stove to counter.

With pans and skillets, there is (understandably) some confusion because both of these cookware items are shallow cooking vessels. Pans are more lightweight because they are made of lighter materials like stainless steel, aluminum, and copper. Thanks to their light weight, a single long handle is all that’s needed to transport cooked ingredients to the counter or, for a fancier approach to cooking, do a single-handed toss of ingredients like a pro.

Skillets are heavier pans with thicker bottoms and slanted sides. The heavier construction allows for better retention and distribution of heat. These pans often have a short handle of the same material as the rest of the pan with a second handle on the opposite side. This is to make transferring the pan from heat to the countertop more approachable. The most well-known type of skillet is a cast-iron skillet.

Specialty Cookware

This is a bit of a tricky category to master because there tends to be some crossover between pots, pans, and skillets. What makes these part of the specialty cookware category is their affinity for induction burners. Induction burners operate by heating a metal coil with electricity. For safety measures, there are certain induction burners that do not turn on unless the correct pot or pan is set upon it. Pieces of specialty cookware also include roasting pans, griddles, pizza stones, tea kettles, egg pans, and even crepe pans.

Talk With an Expert

Curated’s Kitchen Experts do not have a brand bias when it comes to cookware items; our only interest is in listening to your needs and suggesting options from there. Our personal preferences may not match yours so we want to be as informed as possible to guide you to the best pots and pans at a price that matches your budget. And with our price-match philosophy, we are all set to cook up a happy shopping experience just for you.