Cuisinart Copper

D.Currie said:

Tuesday Morning has a sale on the Cuisinart pots with the copper exteriors.
Anybody got any experience with them? They have some good reviews, but my
hesitation is the copper exterior coating. I use my pots, I don't hang them
up as decorations, and I don't want to spend more time cleaning the copper
than I do cooking with the pots.

I don't know the Cuisinart brand line of pots, but I have a
copper-bottomed stainless steel frypan that I use all the time, second
only to the wok. The great advantage of copper is its responsiveness
to changes in heat, up or down. It's a delight once you get used to
its speed. That responsiveness is probably not as needed or desirable
in a pot the way it is for a frypan. I've heard there are people who
polish/shine the copper bottoms of pans but I've never done it. I just
clean it the same as any other pan. After at least fifteen years it's
still working fine. -aem

"aem" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

D.Currie said:

Tuesday Morning has a sale on the Cuisinart pots with the copper
exteriors.
Anybody got any experience with them? They have some good reviews, but my
hesitation is the copper exterior coating. I use my pots, I don't hang
them
up as decorations, and I don't want to spend more time cleaning the
copper
than I do cooking with the pots.

I don't know the Cuisinart brand line of pots, but I have a
copper-bottomed stainless steel frypan that I use all the time, second
only to the wok. The great advantage of copper is its responsiveness
to changes in heat, up or down. It's a delight once you get used to
its speed. That responsiveness is probably not as needed or desirable
in a pot the way it is for a frypan. I've heard there are people who
polish/shine the copper bottoms of pans but I've never done it. I just
clean it the same as any other pan. After at least fifteen years it's
still working fine. -aem

The copper on these covers the whole exterior with an aluminum core and
stainless inside.

This is one of them:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00004YNXP/ref=pd_ecc_rvi_4/102-0076495-1745778?%5Fencoding=UTF8&v=glance&n=284507

Thanks for the opinion!

Donna

D.Currie said:

Tuesday Morning has a sale on the Cuisinart pots with the copper
exteriors. Anybody got any experience with them? They have some good
reviews, but my hesitation is the copper exterior coating. I use my pots,
I don't hang them up as decorations, and I don't want to spend more time
cleaning the copper than I do cooking with the pots.

Funny, but if you go to the Cuisinart web site (http://www.cuisinart.com/),
they currently don't list any such product. Perhaps they have discontinued
it.

My guess without seeing it first hand is the copper contributes very little
to the responsiveness of the pan, and is only there for looks. The aluminum
core is what provides the conductivity. I suspect if you look closely at the
edge of the pan, you will see a very thin copper layer over a thick aluminum
core, with another thin (good in this case) stainless layer on the inside.

This cookware seems similar to All Clad's "Cop-R-Chef" line, where the outer
copper layer is essentially for decoration. All Clad did eventually come out
with a line with a true thick copper core, called "Copper Core", which is
the most expensive line they sell.

It would seem you would get very little performance benefit from the copper
layer this cookware, and you're making a tradeoff in higher maintenance for
the look, especially if you chose to keep it polished. I have a fair amount
of solid copper cookware, but I like the multicolored look copper gets from
age and heat. I don't clean (as in polish) it that often. I also have even
more fully clad aluminum core cookware.

--
( #wff_ng_7# at #verizon# period #net# )

"wff_ng_7" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:osDlf.7878$567.1157@trnddc01...

Quoted message said:

D.Currie said:

Tuesday Morning has a sale on the Cuisinart pots with the copper
exteriors. Anybody got any experience with them? They have some good
reviews, but my hesitation is the copper exterior coating. I use my pots,
I don't hang them up as decorations, and I don't want to spend more time
cleaning the copper than I do cooking with the pots.

Funny, but if you go to the Cuisinart web site
(http://www.cuisinart.com/), they currently don't list any such product.
Perhaps they have discontinued it.

That's the kind of store Tuesday Morning is. They sell closeouts from stores
and manufacturers, and sometimes the sales are pretty good. If you're the
type who has to have the latest and greatest, it's not for you, but for many
things, I don't need next year's model, last yeat's is fine.

Quoted message said:

My guess without seeing it first hand is the copper contributes very
little to the responsiveness of the pan, and is only there for looks. The
aluminum core is what provides the conductivity. I suspect if you look
closely at the edge of the pan, you will see a very thin copper layer over
a thick aluminum core, with another thin (good in this case) stainless
layer on the inside.

Well, my other choice would be a stainless pan with an aluminum core, so the
responsiveness of the copper isn't such an issue. If it performs as well as
that, I'm fine.

Quoted message said:

This cookware seems similar to All Clad's "Cop-R-Chef" line, where the
outer copper layer is essentially for decoration. All Clad did eventually
come out with a line with a true thick copper core, called "Copper Core",
which is the most expensive line they sell.

Yep.

Quoted message said:

It would seem you would get very little performance benefit from the
copper layer this cookware, and you're making a tradeoff in higher
maintenance for the look, especially if you chose to keep it polished. I
have a fair amount of solid copper cookware, but I like the multicolored
look copper gets from age and heat. I don't clean (as in polish) it that
often. I also have even more fully clad aluminum core cookware.

--
( #wff_ng_7# at #verizon# period #net# )

I doubt I'll polish it; i don't mind if it darkens. I use my cooking
equipment, I don't put it on display.

But with the sale, it's cheaper than similar stainless/aluminum models, so
it's sounding like it's a good deal. They had a couple left yesterday. I'm
going to stop by today and see if they'll let me take one out of the box to
see if I like the feel of it. That's just as important as the cleaning
issue, or maybe more so.

Thanks for the input.

Donna

D.Currie said:

That's the kind of store Tuesday Morning is. They sell closeouts from
stores and manufacturers, and sometimes the sales are pretty good. If
you're the type who has to have the latest and greatest, it's not for you,
but for many things, I don't need next year's model, last yeat's is fine.

The main reason I mentioned it is if you wanted to get some matching pieces
at some future point in time. If that's not a concern, I agree... last
year's model (or even a 50 year old model!) is fine.

Quoted message said:

But with the sale, it's cheaper than similar stainless/aluminum models, so
it's sounding like it's a good deal. They had a couple left yesterday. I'm
going to stop by today and see if they'll let me take one out of the box
to see if I like the feel of it. That's just as important as the cleaning
issue, or maybe more so.

If it's cheaper, sounds like a good deal if you don't mind the cleaning. The
performance should be the same. The feel of it, and other small details are
very important. I used one of my sister's old Farberware disk bottom pots
this weekend for boiled potatoes and ran into an issue with those. The lids
are somewhat domed with a rounded rim that traps water when trying to drain
the pot. A small but very annoying detail. Most of my pots have flat lids,
so I haven't run into that issue in a long time.

--
( #wff_ng_7# at #verizon# period #net# )

D.Currie said:

That's the kind of store Tuesday Morning is. They sell closeouts from
stores and manufacturers, and sometimes the sales are pretty good. If
you're the type who has to have the latest and greatest, it's not for you,
but for many things, I don't need next year's model, last yeat's is fine.

The main reason I mentioned it is if you wanted to get some matching pieces
at some future point in time. If that's not a concern, I agree... last
year's model (or even a 50 year old model!) is fine.

Quoted message said:

But with the sale, it's cheaper than similar stainless/aluminum models, so
it's sounding like it's a good deal. They had a couple left yesterday. I'm
going to stop by today and see if they'll let me take one out of the box
to see if I like the feel of it. That's just as important as the cleaning
issue, or maybe more so.

If it's cheaper, sounds like a good deal if you don't mind the cleaning. The
performance should be the same. The feel of it, and other small details are
very important. I used one of my sister's old Farberware disk bottom pots
this weekend for boiled potatoes and ran into an issue with those. The lids
are somewhat domed with a rounded rim that traps water when trying to drain
the pot. A small but very annoying detail. Most of my pots have flat lids,
so I haven't run into that issue in a long time.

--
( #wff_ng_7# at #verizon# period #net# )

D.Currie said:

I doubt I'll polish it; i don't mind if it darkens. I use my cooking
equipment, I don't put it on display.

Just a quick note on cleaning. Once in a while when the copper gets a little
too messy for my tastes, I use that cheap old cleaning agent for copper: a
mixture of vinegar and salt. I keep an old dishwashing liquid bottle full of
it under the kitchen sink. I don't remember the proportions off hand, but
really doesn't matter that much. I tend use it when the outside of the pot
gets a "clean streak" down the side from dripping contents, as many food
items will "clean" the copper just as well as the vinegar/salt mixture. I
also use it to clean out my zabaglione pan before use since it is unlined.

D.Currie said:

I doubt I'll polish it; i don't mind if it darkens. I use my cooking
equipment, I don't put it on display.

Just a quick note on cleaning. Once in a while when the copper gets a little
too messy for my tastes, I use that cheap old cleaning agent for copper: a
mixture of vinegar and salt. I keep an old dishwashing liquid bottle full of
it under the kitchen sink. I don't remember the proportions off hand, but
really doesn't matter that much. I tend use it when the outside of the pot
gets a "clean streak" down the side from dripping contents, as many food
items will "clean" the copper just as well as the vinegar/salt mixture. I
also use it to clean out my zabaglione pan before use since it is unlined.

"D.Currie" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Tuesday Morning has a sale on the Cuisinart pots with the copper exteriors.
Anybody got any experience with them? They have some good reviews, but my
hesitation is the copper exterior coating. I use my pots, I don't hang them up
as decorations, and I don't want to spend more time cleaning the copper than I
do cooking with the pots.

--
Donna

Always keep in mind the reason that it's at Tuesday Morning is that it did not
sell at the regular retail price. The best buy in the store may be the Le
Creuset 16 Qt. Stock Pot (steel not cast iron) for $70.00 (OK 69.99). That is a
good value it's normally about 110.00.

Dimitri

"Dimitri" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"D.Currie" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Tuesday Morning has a sale on the Cuisinart pots with the copper
exteriors. Anybody got any experience with them? They have some good
reviews, but my hesitation is the copper exterior coating. I use my pots,
I don't hang them up as decorations, and I don't want to spend more time
cleaning the copper than I do cooking with the pots.

--
Donna

Always keep in mind the reason that it's at Tuesday Morning is that it did
not sell at the regular retail price. The best buy in the store may be the
Le Creuset 16 Qt. Stock Pot (steel not cast iron) for $70.00 (OK 69.99).
That is a good value it's normally about 110.00.

Dimitri

My usual Tuesday Morning shopping for anything vaguely expensive is to see
what they've got, then get online and compare prices, check some reviews if
I'm not sure, and then go back and buy if it looks good. The store is less
than a mile from my house, so it's not like it's a road trip. And there have
been times when I've seen the same items at retailers at the same time
they're at TM. Sometimes it's just that a store/chain is phasing out a
particular brand of something and they dump the excess stock, even though
other stores are still selling the item. Or, of course, when a newer
model/color/packaging is replacing an older one. Which doesn't matter a
whole lot to me unless there are newer functions that I want. I haven't gone
wrong yet.

Thanks for the info on the stockpots. I looked at some of the Le Creusets,
but I wasn't even tempted. Mostly they had the round and oval Dutch ovens,
and I don't need one. I didn't see any larger stockpots, but I don't need
any of those just now either.

Donna

"wff_ng_7" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:lTElf.6263$Jg5.479@trnddc07...

Quoted message said:

D.Currie said:

That's the kind of store Tuesday Morning is. They sell closeouts from
stores and manufacturers, and sometimes the sales are pretty good. If
you're the type who has to have the latest and greatest, it's not for
you, but for many things, I don't need next year's model, last yeat's is
fine.

The main reason I mentioned it is if you wanted to get some matching
pieces at some future point in time. If that's not a concern, I agree...
last year's model (or even a 50 year old model!) is fine.

Quoted message said:

But with the sale, it's cheaper than similar stainless/aluminum models,
so it's sounding like it's a good deal. They had a couple left yesterday.
I'm going to stop by today and see if they'll let me take one out of the
box to see if I like the feel of it. That's just as important as the
cleaning issue, or maybe more so.

If it's cheaper, sounds like a good deal if you don't mind the cleaning.
The performance should be the same. The feel of it, and other small
details are very important. I used one of my sister's old Farberware disk
bottom pots this weekend for boiled potatoes and ran into an issue with
those. The lids are somewhat domed with a rounded rim that traps water
when trying to drain the pot. A small but very annoying detail. Most of my
pots have flat lids, so I haven't run into that issue in a long time.

--
( #wff_ng_7# at #verizon# period #net# )

Heh. If I wanted matching anything, I'd have to start by burning down my
house. I tend to get individual things rather than sets. Taking it to the
extreme, I was considering tossing out most of my dishes, and then going out
to buy individual, non-matching place settings. Each person would have a
matching set, but no two settings would be alike.

It sounded like a fun idea until I thought about storage. Non-matching
settings wouldn't nest real well. I'll have to ponder that for a while.

Thanks for the cleaning info. The product information actually recommends
the vinegar/salt method. It's nice to know that it works.

I remember those Farberware pots. My mother had them, and I've still got one
of the frying pans from the set. Even better though, I've got most of a set
of miniature pots that were sold as toys but were really just miniatures. I
don't know if they were Revere or Farberware, but they've got the copper
bottoms and the lids you described. We used to use the saucepan for melting
butter for popcorn when I was a kid. The frying pan would be about right for
one egg.

Donna