All-Clad Stainless French Skillet

My All Clad LTD 13" French skillet pan will now get more use now that I converted from an electric range to a (natural) gas range.I tried using the 13" French skillet on my 8" electric element and was disappointed with the uneven heating: the outer portion of the bottom did not get hot enough to cook the food (in my case, omelets).That was not a problem with my All Clad 12" fry pans (Copper Core and LTD).Now that I have a natural gas range, the French skillet's entire bottom heats evenly and my omelets turn out great.The handle length works for this largest of All Clad's French skillets.I decided to buy this pan over the All Clad 14" fry pan while both pan bottoms are the same diameter, the French skillet's pan top has a smaller diameter than the 14" fry pan due to the steeper slope.If I need to cover the French skillet when cooking, I can use the lid from my All Clad 6 quart sauté pan (which fits)!There is no All Clad lid I know that I can cover the 14" fry pan, not even if you buy it separately.And the 13" French skillet feels lighter than the 14" fry pan (LTD or stainless).If All Clad made the French skillet in Copper Core, I may get it depending on the weight.Copper is heavy.

PROS:

Weights less than the All Clad 14" stainless or LTD fry pan but with the same bottom cooking area.

Can be covered if you have the lid for the stainless or LTD 6 quart sauté pans

CONS:Does not heat evenly when used on an electric (coil) range.

One last note.If you have a gas range (mine is a Wolf) I really noticed just how quickly the Copper Core pans heats up when compared with the stainless and LTD lines.When I was using an electric range, I appreciated how quickly the Copper Cores heat up.My suggestion is to hold each pan and determine whether you can comfortably handle the weight of each pan and whether the pan's handles are comfortable to you.I like the longer length handles on the All Clad Copper Core pans.All Clad uses a different length and style handle for their LTD and stainless series than the Copper Core series.That standard length handle does not work for the larger sauté (6 Qt), sauce (4 quart), and fry (14") pans: it's just too short.It's all right for their other pans.

I've been using this pan a lot since I bought it a few months back. I bought this pan as an alternative to my old All-clad 12-inch pan which is justtoo wide for my small stove top.Dimensionally, this 11-inch pan is just right.

While I thought the older 12-inch pan was an overall excellent product, this new pan falls a little short of 5 stars. Here's why: the thickness of the pan is thinner than the older pan (though some people will find this a plus if they thought the older pan was too heavy.) The thinness however may have contributed to All-Clad's decision to use a non-flared edge which makes the pan more difficult to clean.Theedge is just too sharp.And for a saute pan with short side walls, you will need to clean the edge often. Also, since the edge is not flared out, pouring is more messy.

On the good side, the handle angle is more acute than older pan. This makes sauteing a little easier than the almost horizontal handle of the older pan.I also like the steeper walls which gives the bottom a large surface area.It also heats up evenly. And best of all it's cheaper than older pan!

Overall, I like this pan but they could made it better. However, knowing All-Clad, if they did, they would have priced it comparable to the older pans. Clearly and unfortunately, marketing entered in the design decisions.

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The All-Clad stainless line is made of fairly thin stock, and the performance is acceptable, but not outstanding.My desire for All-Clad started when I used the old Master Chef products, but those were manufactured of thicker material, and they conducted better than the current stainless series of products.

January 2010 update -check out the "d5" line of All-Clad stainless offered by Williams-Sonoma.Much heavier, and they have also added a pouring lip to the pots -the 90-degree lip on the regular stainless pots does not pour cleanly, and makes a mess down the side of the pot.Ridiculous for a product in this market segment.I bumped into an All-Clad rep at Williams-Sonoma, and he told me that the changes were made as a result of comments from consumers.

My All-Clad stainless pots and pans are serviceable, and I use them daily, but if you want a luxurious heft, and very even heating, you may want to consider spending a bit more.

Lastly -specifically regarding the French skillet -heads-up -this style of pan doesn't have a rounded transition from the bottom to the sides.Instead, there is a corner at the junction of the bottom and sides.Additionally, the sides are a bit steep.I'm baffled why anyone would want a small fry pan that doesn't have rounded sides, as the corner and steep sides prevent the easy and rapid tossing of the contents, so I offer this review to warn others who also might not know of this distinction, particularly in light of the fact that Amazon's description specifically addresses use of this pan to toss ingredients.If you want to be able to easily flick-toss the contents of your pan, to turn and stir them, then look at the All-Clad fry pans, with a more rounded edge transition, not French skillets.

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Another reviewer of this excellent skillet suggested the use of a non-stick pan for those 'sticky' foods.Can't fault that because who wants to do battle in the sink afterwards?However, I found a different approach can work wonders with this pan.For instance those love-to-stick morning eggs.My solution: Heat pan on low for a few minutes with a little olive oil or whatever you use.Turn off heat, toss in eggs, cover pan and sip on that coffee you just brewed.

Oops, what cover you say?Hmm....that's a problem since it is not offered with this skillet.Thus the four-star rating.So improvise or find something you can purchase (and let me know what you find!).

Well, back to the eggs.They're done in a few minutes (how many minutes? Who knows get a see through cover if you must).And guess what?Since this pan heats so evenly and you've compassionately chosen free-range eggs, they slide out of the pan as if they couldn't wait for breakfast yours.

One other note.The handle, cool to the touch and rakish in appearance is what you would have to characterize as non-ergonomic. But that's the French for you beauty and form overshadow a minor annoyance.

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Some other reviews have stated a dissatisfaction with this skillet due to it's "convex" bottom. Actually all of the All Clad pans have a Concave bottom. They are determined concave by looking at the pans upside down. The reason for the uneven surface is that when the aluminum core heats up to a certain level it actually warps straight. If the allowance of this concave was not there, the pan would wobble around on your stovetop as then it would be truly convex. Most high quality pans have this feature, and it is built in by design. Also, some people dislike the sticking quality that some food presents on this brand of cookware, but this is also a desired effect. I'm not a chef, but have learned that this caliber of cookware takes a certain level of cooking skill and experience to utilize it properly. Sometimes things can be interpreted as negative if you are using the wrong tools for your skillset. There is a reason that all of the worlds top chefs use this brand exclusively, and it is not endorsements. Lots of great brands out there, and All Clad never dissapoints.

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