All-Clad Copper-Core Fry Pan

Over the years I have used a variety of cookware--aluminum bottomed stainless Revere Ware, Magnalite Professional, Calphalon, Calphalon Professional NonStick. When I finally had to throw out the last of my tattered collection, I started to look for some stainless cookware that would stand the test of time and offer performance to boot. I decided to splurge on this All-Clad Copper Core.

One of the pieces I recieved was this 10" Fry Pan...

Delighted to report that I am THRILLED with this expensive splurge! All-Clad is NOT about expensive hype and status, those these pans are beautifully made, instead they do everything cookware should, and have literally changed the way I cook. Having attended CIA and worked as a professional chef for a few years, I know the golden rule for food not sticking: preheat pan, add oil, let oil heat for 5-10 seconds, then add food. Using these guidelines with the Copper Core, nothing sticks! And I mean for some things, like omelets or fried eggs in the 10" frypan, the performance is as good as my brand new Calphalon NonStick was; when you can just slide omelets and fried eggs out of the pan without ANY sticking at all, why would you ever need Nonstick or Teflon based products?!

However, these pans are also superbly capable of developing a fond on the pan bottom for deglazing and subsequent sauces; in fact I have had them give every last bit of the fond up when deglazed, almost cleaning the pan for me! That's the best thing about them--they do everything right. I am not sure if it's All-Clad propriety stainless "recipe" or what, but these pans are so amazing to be able to function on all levels from eggs sliding out with ZILCH sticking to chicken breasts sticking just enough to develop rich fond for complete deglazing, to the light and glazy fond from sauteed onions and garlic for developing a richer risotto when deglazed with wine.

Mind you, this is partly about knowing some basic cooking principles, and these pans might not act so obligingly in non experienced hands, because when I read about people commenting on how everything sticks in their All-Clad stainless interior, I know it isn't All-Clad's fault, believe me!

I have found the copper core very responsive and quick to adjust to temperature. Perhaps not as great as true copper pot and pans, but noticeably better than aluminum cores (Stainless line) or anodized aluminum (Magnalite Pro/Calphalon). These pans heat up and boil water faster than anything I have ever used, aside from true copper cookware, and when turning the heat down, or removing from burner, they also cool incredibly quickly. It's nice to have semi-copper performance with the ease of stainless steel clean-up. And this cookware does clean-up quickly and easily, particularly when using Barkeepers Friend. I use plastic and wooden utensils (no metal) and they still look almost brand new after several months.

The copper band however does tarnish and discolor just as much and just as fast as a true copper pot or pan, so if you are fanatic, you will need to polish the tarnish away fairly often (at least every other week). However this is barely noticeable for us real world users, and Barkeepers friend does a good job of semi-polishing the copper (but it won't gleam).

I know, I know, they are SO expensive. But honestly, if you know how to cook or want to learn with responsive cookware, I honestly feel this is a great investment. I am wholeheartedly thrilled that I made it and cannot recommend highly enough.

Next to my All-Clad Copper Core Dutch Oven, this is my favorite cooking utensil. I also have the 12 inch fry pan I use when company comes over. After using this pan a few times I threw out all my nonstick cookware. Now I use nothing but All-Clad Copper Core. Every morning I scramble eggs in this pan. I put a pat of butter in the bottom, turn the heat to medium (never high or you'll scorch any pan), let the butter start to turn brown and throw in my eggs. They don't stick; it's amazing. The few times I do have some stickies, I just soak in water for 10 minutes before washing and they easily come clean. About once a month I might soak the pan with a 1/2 inch of vinegar for an hour or overnight. It turns the bottom shiny and new looking. This pan is also great for bacon, sauetingpork chops and chicken--just about anything. And, I never have to worry about toxins migrating from nonstick cookware into my food.

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You cannot beat All-Clad in the quality department. After using this pan for a week my family even noticed how my cooking was tastier. This pan does a fantastic job caramelizing meat and veggies. It heats very quickly and evenly. But it also cools very rapidly because the copper is a fantastic conductor of heat and cold. I like the copper core better because of the ease of maintenance. Just a little Barkeeper's Friend and it shines like new. The handle stays cool enough in most applications for me to use it bare handed. The sides are sloped just right to impress your friends with a little food flipping action. I've used it on both electric and gas stoves and was happy with the even heating of both. If you can swing the price you won't regret it.

Read Best Reviews of All-Clad Copper-Core Fry Pan Here

Let me start by saying I give this pan 3 stars more for price then performance. This pan cooks as good as the $120 MC2 or LTD pan. Its about 1mm of copper sandwiched between aluminum and stainless, not nearly enough copper to get the full thermal benefits of copper. I got mine for a little over half price. If you have the money to plunk down $225 for a frying pan, save up for a little longer and buy a Matfer Bourgeat fry pan of the same size. 3mm of copper and stainless interior will be worth the extra dollars. The Matfer is the Ferrari of frying pans. Otherwise, go for the LTD (The thickest of the All Clad line) and use the money you saved to buy ingredients for a killer dinner. Dont buy into the copper core hype, it really cooks no better then the cheaper All Clad models. Oh, and by the way, if you use the correct heat and enough fat, sticking is a non-issue.

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This is the first piece of All-Clad Copper Core cookware I have owned, and it is by far the best piece of cookware I have ever used.Be mindful that the different lines of All-Clad have significant differences.For example, the MC2 line is lighter, but at the expense of durability (note the limit on the temperature at which the MC2 pans are oven-save) and heat distribution.I didn't want to have to deal with the care of the Cop-R-Chef line, with its exposed copper outer layer.But I did want copper for its excellent heat distribution.To give you an idea of my perspective and how I view my cookware, I've been cooking a while, and have studied French and Northern Italian cuisines.I don't believe in having pumpkin-shaped soup tureens cluttering up my life, and I have Global knives that I keep razor sharp, but only a few that I use to cover everything.I sear/braise/roast primarily for main dishes, with the occasional stew.

This pan exactly met what I hoped for; a good pan to serve as my mainstay for daily cooking, that would be durable and hassle-free while giving me good results and allowing me to improve my cooking that much more.It replaces a Scan-Pan nonstick that served me well for over 3 years before its nonstick properties started to fade, and I have to say that I like the All-Clad better for everything but cooking eggs.But you have to know what you're doing with one of these pans to get the best use from it.

Some will complain about discoloration of the stainless steel; they are using too much heat.Others complain about sticking; they aren't cooking the way you need to, with a stainless steel pan.

So a few things.One, these pans transfer heat very easily.This also means that even though the pan will distribute heat very well, it also won't dissipate that heat.So you don't need to heat it as much as with an aluminum pan...trust me.I found myself turning the heat down the first few times I worked with this, to get the cooking results I was used to, sometimes by as much as one-third.

Two, you have to use oil.Not much, and not extra-virgin.The solids that give EVOO it's green color scorch, and the flavor benefits of EVOO go bye-bye when you heat it.Use yellow olive oil; it's very heat stable and healthy for you as well.Get the pan hot first.Then add the oil, and let that get hot...it should start smoking just a bit.Then add the food.

Three, you have to recognize that the food *will* stick, at first, and that this is good.The maillard reaction (aka, 'browning') requires contact with heat, and the way food will latch onto this pan (at first) is wonderful for this.This also produces the fond that you want for making sauces.But remember...don't crank the heat, or that fond (and the crust on your food) will scorch.When the food has browned, it will automatically release from the pan, just like it had never stuck in the first place.In fact, this isa great way to know how far along the food is.If you're cooking duck, beef, pork, etc...this is a good thing.If you're cooking something that should not brown (an omelette, for example), then why are you using this pan?Use a non-stick for that.

Now the really good news.It's stainless steel.You don't have to baby it, as long as you ease up on the heat.You can scrub it like crazy to get it clean.No, it won't look as nice as it did the day you unpacked it, unless you are willing to spend an awful lot of time working at it.But it's a pan...it's for cooking food, not for hanging around your neck like a piece of bling.Don't be ashamed if it shows that you use it :)