Side by Side Comparison of: Cuisinart vs Chef Craft vs HomeHero vs Tote-N-Stor

I love this little pot. I was afraid after reading the reviews that it would be bad but goes to show that everyone has different experiences. While I can see how this might have balance problems on ovens with large burners, I have had no issues with balance or tipping over. I guess my burners are normal sized? Helps if you position the handle in line with the metal on the burners rather than between them if that makes sense. It's physics, really.Anyway, I haven't had any timing issues and I use it so much more than I expected, almost every day for one thing or another. Can't really beat a well made, useful kitchen pot for $15.

I love this little pan. It's practical and attractive and useful. I make a warm beverage every morning for my breakfast and this pan was purchased primarily for that purpose. It is attractive and it pours nicely. I use it for other small jobs, too. My only negative (and this would depend on your stove) is that the pan bottom is quite a bit smaller than any of my burners, so I feel like I'm wasting some of the heat that isn't getting directed into the pan.I read the reviews before I bought it, and I was hesitant about the handle tipping thing, but that has not been an issue in my kitchen. Even when empty, it seems stable and balanced to me.

How did I live without this pan? I do use it just about everyday because I cook for 3 and cutlets and chops usually fit so they can all cook at once. No more cooking individual portions and keeping them warm in the oven because all 3 don't fit in the pan. I do not miss the non-stick coating because long ago I learned to how to clean even the most burned on mess in my stainless pans by deglazing with water and dish liquid, A few scrapes with a silicone spatula on the most stubborn bits while it boils and it's ready for the sink without elbow grease and harsh scrubbing pads. I use silicone utensils on all my pots and pans, stainless or non-stick; now the sound of a metal utensil scraping a stainless pain is a thing of the past, so 20th century! Having the domed lid is a bonus, the pan alone is worth the price & I recommend it to all my friends. If they ever make a 14 inch version Cuisinart should know that I want one because that is the only improvement I can think of to make this pan even better! (I have the 14" Open Skillet but that long handle is just not as versatile as the 2 helper handles of this Everyday Pan)

I love the pan as I love all of my Cuisinart set. This pan is not quite as thick as my set, but it is still a good pan. A few heavy-thickness pans are better many thin ones. You can do so much more with them. The only problem is that I can't use the lid when I'm boiling water. Two times now it has gotten stuck fast due to the vacuum created while cooking. Somewhere I read that might happen, so I was prepared. I tried many tips to get it loose that I found on the Internet and even called Cuisinart. The hard part is the more you move the lid, the tighter the suction gets. Finally my son was able to pry it off without damaging the top. After going through this twice, I only use it as an open sauce pan now and choose another if I want a lid. Yes, it got a couple black spots, but they don't affect the performance and I don't need showroom perfect pans. The bigger issue for me is that they clean the easiest of ANY pan I've ever owned by simply following the directions (just add water after cooking and let it set a bit.) The food comes right off, and I've never had to use anything but a soft scrubby on them. Don't use HIGH heat, just medium-high at the most per the directions. They heat very quickly. I've burnt them BADLY (not on high heat, just by letting them go too long) and they still clean like a dream. It's as simple as adding baking soda and water, then boiling about 10 min. or so til the water has gone down. Then use your soft scrubby on the empty pan. The burnt-on thick black food flakes off and cleans up like a champ. And if you forget to add water and the food dries on, just add the water, put the lid on, and leave it for a few hours. When you come back, they clean up easy peasy. I'd buy this pan again if I needed to.

I think that this pan is terrific and the price makes it even better. Some complaints about this product was that the sides feel flimsy. The sides are unquestionably thinner as they are purely stainless steel whereas the bottom is a stainless steel, aluminum, stainless steel sandwich. That being said the sides are still thick enough to not be concerned about. I work with metal routinely and you would have to do some pretty bad stuff to this pan to worry about it warping. All around it is quite handsome and has been fantastic to cook with. My one complaint is that I wish I could have bought this pan in a slightly smaller size but at the same great price and with a lid. For one person this pan is comically large but for a couple or a family this would be perfect.

To preface, I cook asian meals everyday and stir-fry at least two dishes a day. I've been through 3 woks the past 3 years. Carbon steel which rusted if you soaked it or didnt dry it immediately. I could not season it well at all with a flat top electric range. Tossed that out and decided to go with non-stick. Non-stick worked well until stuff stuck or burned to it. Then it was goodbye. Bought a second of the same kind trying to be more careful but the same thing happened. I decided to go with stainless steel because no matter how much it sticks, you can always get it out with Bar Keepers Friend, soaking or as a last resort; steel wool.Read all the reviews before getting it and noticed a lot say it does not heat up well enough, it sticks, it doesn't clean well, the lid is too heavy and the wok is too light, and to only use it on medium low heat to avoid burned or stuck food. I tried it on medium low heat and it had so little heat that I could touch the sides of the pan and it wast even warm to the touch. Stir-fry meals came out soggy. I finally decided to use it on high heat, which is how stir-fry is supposed to be cooked at and everything worked great. Nothing stuck.Keep in mind, with stir-fry, you are supposed to be cooking at blazing hot temperatures in very little time. Often a dish is cooked less than 5 minutes. From my experience with this wok/stir-fry pan, those that mention burnt food are not cooking stir-fry at the speed it should be done and are not stirring as often as they should. A stir-fry should never be left alone and always tossed around until it is done cooking.Whatever leftover food stains on the wok can be worked out with some soaking and Bar Keepers Friend. BKF also removes the rainbow stains and hard water stains. I do not use the lid. It is way too heavy and you don't need it with stir-fry. As for the wok being too light, that's generally how it should be as the method used during stir-fry is to lift the wok up with one hand and dish/scrape the food onto a place with the other. If it was too heavy, you wouldn't be able to do this.In summary, when using this wok:1. Use it on high heat2. Add oil, wait for it to heat up3. Add food. Usually it goes onions/garlic/ginger first, then meat/vegetables, then sauces5. Babysit the dish with constant tossing. If you must simmer, lower the heat. If you want a thicker sauce, add corn starch and water mixture. Babysit, babysit, babysit.6. Dish out onto plate7. Soak wok in water, immerse fully8. If there's still food stains, use Bar Keepers FriendI'm happy with this purchase. It is definitely a good investment as are most stainless steel cookware.

This is a great stainless steel pan at this price point. It's not super high end, one piece construction, but it works well for it's intended purposes. We use it for everyday cooking and love it. The pan is a thin sheet of stainless steel with an extra aluminum bonded core at the bottom.Pros:- Very light weight- Deep pan with nice dome lid, great for cooking skillet meals- Nice and large size- Heats quickly- Food doesn't stick if you heat the pan with oil first, though very dry foods will stick unless you loosen it up with some water/chicken stock- Bottom heats evenly- Looks fantastic- Dishwasher and oven safe- All metal constructionCons:- Not 1 piece construction- Thin stainless steel on the sides means the sides sometimes heat up faster than the bottom if you're not careful or you have a really powerful stove- Short handles sometimes get hot on the stovetop

After using countless nonstick woks that end up peeling, I had to try something else. So I ended up buying this Cuisinart from Macy's. And so far, I really like it. The only problem is that food does end up getting stuck and burnt if your not use to using it. But after months of use, you learn that high heat is not required since the wok is thin and it maintains it's heat. And you just need to make sure there's enough oil coating the bottom. Other than that, it works great. My mom had the same issue with her woks peeling so she wanted a Cuisinart for herself. So I purchased hers on Amazon at a cheaper price. And the only thing she doesn't like about this wok, is how heavy the lid is. So she just ends up using her old lids.

My wife and I really like the pan itself, but after a little more than a month of use (never using more than medium heat as per the manufacturer's directions), the glass lid simply shattered. We were cooking Spanish rice on the stove at medium-low heat and suddenly we heard a loud pop and saw the glass lid was no longer clear. It maintained its shape until we tried to lift the lid, at which point the handle simply came up right out of the shattered glass, dropping bits of glass into our meal.I am going to contact Cuisinart about this, and will hopefully remember to update this review to let everyone know what happens. As far as we know we were using the pan and lid exactly as we are supposed to.EDIT Apr 19, 2015: I emailed Cuisinart on April 11, and received a response on April 13 apologizing for our issue with the lid, and stating that they ordered another one for us free of charge. They didn't even ask to see a picture or anything. We haven't actually used the new lid yet because we're paranoid, but at least Cuisinart was relatively quick and easy to work with. I bumped my review up to 4 stars (I like it) because I really do like the pan.

I was almost scared off by some of the reviews here, but I took a chance and was not disappointed.You will see a quite the gamut among the negative reviews:Hard to cleanDoesn't heat wellBurns the foodStarts firesetcIf you have never owned any stainless steel or clad cookware then I encourage you to research it further before buying this. This isn't a good choice for a starter into the stainless realm. Stainless does take some extra care to clean, but when used correctly will produce excellent results. For starters this is a pan designed for stir frying. That is a cooking technique that uses very high temperatures and very short cooking times. You MUST use the proper type of oil when cooking at these temperatures. Research the smoke point of your oil before tossing it into a hot stir fry pan. If you use Olive Oil in a stir fry on high heat you will likely cause the oil to flash over and start a fire, like some of the reviews here have stated. If you use the wrong oil and set your pan on fire is it really the fault of the pan? No it's the fault of the owner for not knowing what the heck they were doing. Pam, butter, lard and EVOO are not suitable for the higher heat of stir frying. Traditionally soybean or peanut oil is used in Asia for stir frying and has a fairly high smoke point. Safflower oil is also another good choice and is easier to find in the grocery store. Use the right oil and you will have great results without burning the pan, food or yourself.For cleaning I like to use stainless steel scrub pads (not steel wool) like these: http://www.amazon.com/3M-Scotch-Brite-Stainless-Steel-Scouring/dp/B002CQTXBC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1426816966&sr=8-1&keywords=stainless+steel+padsAnother good choice is a product called Barkeeper's Friend - http://www.amazon.com/Bar-Keepers-Friend%C2%AE-Cleanser-Polish/dp/B000V72992/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1426817040&sr=8-1&keywords=barkeeper%27s+friendLastly learn about stir frying if you've never done it before as the technique differs greatly from traditional western cooking. You aren't going to be able to saute in this pan, or braise. This is also not a suitable pan for any kind of deep frying. The heat is concentrated in the flat bottom of the pan, NOT on the sides of the pan.Another common complaint about this pan is the lid. Personally I never use it. Stir frying is not a technique that ever requires a lid, so I am not sure why Cuisinart even decided to pair one with this pan. I suspect that the sheer size of the lid is the reason that some users have reported shattering. The glass is not thick and the lid is so large that it just seems brittle to me. I won't need it, so it is not a concern. But, if you plan on using the lid on this pan a lot you might want to look for a smaller stir fry pan. If the pan was say 12 inches instead of the 14 at its widest point the lid would be significantly stronger. If you are concerned about splattering without the lid a 14" splatter guard would be a better and safer choice than the lid in my opinion.This pan is a great value for the price and performs well on plain old American electric cook top. Don't buy it for induction, and I wouldn't really recommend it for gas either. A plain old hammered steel wok would be a better choice for a gas stove. And "woking" on an induction stove is going to be hard no matter what pan you have. You can do a lot better than this pan, but not in this price range.

This Cuisinart roasting pan is, frankly, good for what it is. I haven't used it too much yet, but it's put up with a few rounds through the oven roasting poultry and stuffing, along with the washing that came after, and it's still looking good.The metal of the pan is thinner than what you might think from the picture, but that's not a big deal honestly. There have been some reports of warping in these reviews, but mine has been holding up. Most of the reviews seem to have pre-heated pans and then put frozen birds into them, which is a strict no-no. Pre-heat your oven, put the food into a non-pre-heated pan, and throw it into the oven, and it should be perfectly fine.Overall, I'm quite happy with this purchase; the disposable roasting pans at the grocery store were $5 a pop, and I never trust a turkey in just one - so for $30 or so dollars, I'm really happy to have a basic roasting pan that'll keep serving me long after the holiday leftovers have been doled out.(And for those who may be wondering, I was able to make turkey drippings gravy in this pan on the stovetop post-roasting with zero problems. For the price, it really is a great roaster.)

I was a bit nervous about giving up my nonstick pans, and as soon as I ordered this I read a lot of blogs about how to cook w/ stainless steel. So far it's worked well for me. Something I'm confused about is that much of the advice I read says to preheat the pan, but the instructions say not to heat the pan up w/ nothing in it. Indeed, it makes a sound like it's buckling when it gets hot (It doesn't look like it's buckling though). This is at medium heat or slightly lower, and I have a gas stove. I've been using that sound as my cue that it's preheated and I the fat to the pan at that point, food shortly after. So far I've used this pan to carmelize onions, sear turkey cutlets, scramble eggs, and make fried rice, and there's been a little sticking but nothing a short soak doesn't take care of. I didn't have $$$$ for a more expensive pan and figured it was better to have a cheaper pan to learn on anyway in case I ruined it. I've been happy with my choice.Updates:I have since made pancakes and quesadillas in this pan and it has definite hot spots, those things did not cook evenly. (Maybe that is normal for this type of cookware, I don't know.)I also wanted to add that I make eggs in the pan all the time -from a dozen scrambled to a single fried - and never have any sticking as long as I follow the routine: start from a clean pan, preheat, cooking spray, then add the eggs. Much better than my nonstick pans ever were.Because this pan is so huge, I've been using it for chili and taco filling I would previously have done in my dutch oven.I've also noticed that the buckling sound I mentioned in my previous review doesn't happen anymore, and the pan is still in perfect shape. Still happy with my purchase!

I just got this. If you don't have a cuisinart line of products, this only fit my 3 quart pot. This DID NOT fit my 2 quart pot AT ALL. This is a really DUMB designed pot. Why did they make this with a round bottom and you're dealing mostly with HOT LIQUID items? It doesn't even stand up on its own when you sit it down on a flat surface it just falls over and you can burn yourself fooling with this. But yet... they say it's oven safe up to 500 degrees. But you can't put this pot in the oven like this! Now I see what others are complaining about. I hope they fix this design flaw. I would gladly buy one with a flat bottom and toss this in the garbage. But for now I'm stuck with this because I can't find another decent double boiler pot. I hope when you cook in this your food doesn't stick. I'll update this when I use it. I hope it's not a clean up nightmare.Update: 11 September 2017- I upgraded this pot to 3 stars so far. We're moving up the ladder slowly. I upgraded it because I used it tonight to melt some butter. Even though I couldn't stand the pot on its own, it worked out ok inside of my 3 qt pot. The handle and lid didn't get hot. It was safe to touch. So that's nice! I'm going to wait to upgrade this again to maybe 4 stars after I use it to make hot chocolate. I want to see if the milk sticks or not. I hope not. The butter did fine. No clean up nightmare so far. Everything washed really well with ease tonight. But that was butter. Oh.. and nothing burned in the pot. So that was good too. So far, highly recommend this pot.

Love this size roasting pan and it looks beautiful. BUT... it became warped after my first use, so now I can spin it if it is sitting on my granite counter top. A wee bit upsetting... still useable but am disappointed. Cuisinart is such a reputable company and I expected better things from them.

It is hard to rate this pan because it does what is supposed to and yet fails miserably with others. First, the lid is useless. Please see the other reviews and photos and realize that this lid is a meal killer. If you hit a temp that is slightly too high for the lid (but supposedly fine by the item description) the lid will shatter. I didn't take the other reviewers seriously enough about the lid. IT WILL SHATTER. Basically, the lid is garbage. I should have realized this based on other's experiences. So if you have an important meal to cook with this that includes the lid, be prepared for it to shatter and rain glass shards all over your carefully prepared food. I often wonder, why does a company provide a lid for a pan that will shatter at temperatures that will barely boil water?

I didn't see the reviews about the glass lid shattering until after I purchased this item. I own another Cuisinart pot that has a glass lid and I love that pot and have had no issues with the lid on it so it didn't occur to me to be concerned about the glass lid on this frying pan. However, the second I took this lid out of the package I knew something wasn't right. The glass does not feel the same as my other Cuisinart glass lid. It does not sound the same or look the same either. The 'good' glass lid has "Cuisinart" imprinted onto the glass in white lettering. This lid has no lettering and the word Cuisinart is only imprinted on the handle. On my 'good' lid, the handle does not have the branding imprinted. Both items are supposedly from the same stainless steel Cuisinart line of products. I'm left to conclude that the glass lid on this particular pan is simply bunk. It's also rather large and bulky. I have zero confidence in utilizing it. The pan itself is fine & a quick heater. I have the same skillet in the 9" size (had for years) and it's still a perfect performer. For the price, these pans stay looking (and working) excellent for years. Easy to clean too. Cloudiness to the finish on the inside of the pan can be taken care of with Bon Ami or BarKeepers Friend. I tend to reach for these pans more frequently than I do my AllClad simply because they are lighter and more pleasant to work with from that perspective.

If you are looking for a pan and cover that will go in the oven, then you have selected the correct pan. If you are looking for a pan with an easy to clean lid, then keep looking. Cuisinart has made a peculiar lid. The glass inserts into the metal edging making cleaning a chore. My advice is to soak immediately after the lid cools to remove any juices or food that has splashed into the edging during cooking. The pan itself gets 4 stars. I have never had this problem with the lid to my electric Cuisinart pan.

Pros: the size and shape are great for cooking a standard 2-3lb chopped up chicken or a curry. The domed lid is tight fitting and created a good steam, which makes it self-basting in a wayCons: the biggest one is that this is not 18/10 stainless steel (nowhere on the pot does it say this) as was falsely advertised, and it's really obvious. Every single time I use this pan it becomes discolored and darkens more, and I end up having to scrub hard to get it clean. It doesn't clean well in dishwasher, and it will probably never return to the steel color it was when it arrived. The metal is extremely thin, which makes this bad for cooking on a low heat for a long time. It also heats unevenly, probably due to the thin metal.Overall: if this pan weren't so cheap, there's no way I'd keep it. It's not going to last over the long haul, for sure. It doesn't compare to All-Clad, Calphalon, etc - not remotely in the same league. It's looks good and is a useful shape/size, but is bad quality. If it were better quality, then it would probably be my favorite pan, but the quality is so bad that I would compare it to buying something from H&M - it looks good, but is only meant to last one or two seasons. This is a good pan for college students or maybe for camping?

So, I'm a chef. I bought this product with high hopes. Cuisinart is a great brand, and has been for years. The pots and pans themselves are great. The stainless steel is of very decent quality. However... the rivets that they used to attach the handles onto the cookware are made of cheap crap. The first time I made a soup in the stock pot I had to store the pot in the fridge for a couple of days. Common practice for a chef. Common practice for anyone who cooks on the regular. The rivets were literally pitted and eaten through by the food! They deteriorated in a matter of 3 days. Over time the rest of cookware has mirrored the same behavior. I'm actually afraid to cook out of these pots and pans for fear of getting heavy metals in my food. I don't understand why you would make a good pan, but attach the handles with cheap product that break down from simple food and washing over time. Please explain this Cuisinart.

Well. I'm not very happy... I gave this to my husband today for Christmas... He was excited. We used it for our prime rib dinner tonight. The bottom warped. It not longer sits flat. Used it one time. ONCE! Alter a bunch of uses, sure a little warping is expected. But after ONE time?? Totally not worth the amount of money I spent on it in my opinion.

The pan arrived in beautiful condition. The handles are very pretty and looks sturdy. However, the bottom warped after the second time when I was roasting meat. So the base was very unstable.I exchanged the pan for a new one. The new one warped again on the second usage about 15 minutes into roasting chicken legs (450 F). I will see if I can hammer it back in.I ordered it when it was on sale at $24. For the current price of $49, this is definite not worth it.

I like the pan, but my glass lid exploded on first use from the heat. Not sure what happened, pressure must have built up underneath but I heard a really loud POP and the entire lid looked like a giant spiderweb. That sucks because this was exactly what I was looking for, but that was an epic fail as I really wanted a glass lid with this pan. Good pan though.

It is now several months since first review. The only pan that gave a problem from the other three was this 719-14 2 qt. I used it the first time to boil green beans and put salt in water for a few minutes. When done the pan had stains. Some would say the salt pitted it, but I used it for a few minutes and have the other ones that did not do this. So I use it for odds and ends and to fry things but it does stick for frying. Perhaps it was defective. The other Cuisinart 719-18 one quart and the saucier work fine. Amazon did credit my account so they were very fair as usual.Thin metal, IT IS NOT 18/10 stainless steel as written on site, the box nor the actual pot has 18/10 etched on it therefore it IS NOT. CAVEAT EMPTOR!!!

I wanted a pure stainless steel pan, and that's the impression I got when checking the product on Amazon. This product, however, is not pure stainless steel. It has an "aluminum encapsulated bottom" as is noted in the literature accompanied with the product. I really did not want any aluminum or copper in the product. This is because aluminum can be neurotoxic given certain conditions. (-2 stars)The quality of Cuisinart customer service is very variable. Some agents are helpful, but others just copy-paste what I already know from the website. Some even provide incorrect information. (-1 star)Oh and the pan's base turned brown the first time I used it.

The pan itself is great but I wished that I would have read the reviews about the lid exploding because I wouldn't have taken that chance. Sure enough, three weeks after I purchased it, I was sautéing chicken at medium temperature, placed the lid on the pan and then boom... shrapnel went everywhere. My whole dinner was ruined because I didn't have the other foods on the stove covered. I do not know how I didn't get hurt. I would never recommend this product. With so many complaints, how are they still able to sale this? This purchase was the most disappointing that I have ever made.

I cooked some veggies today. After it was done, I turned the heat OFF, took some on my plate and put the lid on to keep the rest of the food warm. Then after about 15 minutes, I heard the loud BOOM! I freaked out, ran to the kitchen, and saw the glass lid shattered! It's supposed to be oven safe and this frying pan was on the stove without the heat! If you are buying this product, don't use the lid! I am returning it and making a complaint to the Cuisinart before someone get hurt!

Do not even try to pre-heat these pans. They are dangerous. If you accidentally leave it on the burner for a mere 2-3 minutes on too high of a setting they become explosive.. even if it's not the highest heat setting. I personally have just a normal conventional/electric coil stove top that it was used on when it happened to me. I contacted Cuisinart and all they did was send me another pan, saying that I would have to claim the damage from the exploding aluminum under my house insurance.This stuff is no joke, I barely picked up the hot pan and liquid aluminum shot out of the bottom where it's supposed to be sealed. I got pretty nasty burns on my feet from it shooting across the floor, and it lit my kitchen cabinets on fire. It all happened so fast... from cooking pasta one minute to shooting molten lava. Thank god it didn't go into my eyes when it shot out.See attached photos for a few visuals of the defect.

This is the worst pan I have ever used. I am an accomplished cook with a great deal of experience in seasoning pans and this one can't be "broken in." Everything sticks - even sauces with a high butter or oil content. I regret this purchase very much.

Bought this because it's a smaller size. Unfortunately, the first time I used it to bake a chicken, the bottom of the pan warped. I was SO disappointed!

I commented on another review that wrote that the glass top shattered, but I feel the need to write another so that this can product can have a lower star review and to encourage people NOT to buy this product.I bought this product in October 2011. Today while simmering on medium heat, the glass lid shattered like a gunshot and thousands of shards went everywhere in the kitchen. It went in the food, and into the other room. This is absolutely unacceptable. If I had been closer, it would have hit me in the face. This is a big safety issue that has seriously made me consider not buying any Cuisinart products as this should have been tested. Please don't buy this product- I think that's why it is so cheap. I will call Cuisinart tomorrow, but I do not want a replacement. It was really scary and I spent hours cleaning the shards out of everything.