Anolon Advanced Hard Anodized Nonstick 12-Inch Covered Ultimate Pan

It just arrived so I have no comments on its utility or durability.But before I forget, I want to post the actual dimensions.That would have helped me a LOT if anyone including the manufacturer had bothered to do so.This is a 12" pan measured across the top.It is a 6.25" pan measured across the flat bottom.The sides curve up from there, to a height of 3.25".The handle is 7.5" long, with 4.5" of that insulated.

This is a great piece of equipment for many cooking tasks; don't let the "stir-fry" moniker limit your uses of it.In fact, because of its large flat bottom, it doesn't quite work as well for stir-frying as a traditionally shaped wok, and the nonstick coating, while durable, means you have to be a little bit too careful when moving food around -a true stir-fry should be stirred with abandon.But this large pan is good for all kinds of sauteeing, and because of the high sides its capacity is tremendous.Combined with the tight-fitting glass lid, one of the best uses of this pan is to make risotto for a huge crowd; it's also really nice for tossing almost-cooked pasta into a hot sauce.

A few minor notes: be aware that the pan is really very large, and quite heavy, and because of this it takes a long while to heat up.It can be hard to lift when full of food.You probably wouldn't want to use this for a side dish, to whip up a little sauce on the side, or to cook for one or two people.It can block nearby burners on a small stove.The silicon-covered handles are oven-safe to a degree, but they're not magic; coming out of a hot oven they will be painfully hot to the touch.

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If you enjoy cooking, you know how useful it is to have quality cookware.Cheap cookware doesn't last, nor does it perform well (uneven heating, insulated grips that get very hot, poor grip design, non-stick surface that degrades, poor lid seal, etc).You can spend $15 on a pan that may *look* nice and seem like a bargain, but then you find in a year or two you're wishing you had a better one.

The best thing is to go all out, invest a nice chunk of money, and get a major cookware set by Calphalon, All-Clad, Paderno, Le Creuset, etc.But if you're budget conscious, this is a difficult thing to do.If you're like me, you buy your cookware one pot at a time, when you find a good quality one on sale.

I bought this Anolon pan at Macys when they had a one-day sale (got it a little cheaper than here, in store).The price presented on Amazon is actually quite good, considering the free shipping.I'm very happy with it.It is a substantial pan, that rivals pans from other makers at twice the price.

PROS:

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* Handle rivets on pan and lid are top-notch; no exposed screws or rough edges.

* Handles are rubber padded and insulate well, and can tolerate being in an oven up to 400 degrees (although they will get hot--you'll need a pot holder).This is super for when you're pan roasting meat (brown on one side cooking on the stove, turn the meat, then finish it in the oven).

* The pan shape is interesting, like a cross between a frying pan and a wok.Excellent for stir-fry.It has a good heated surface area and the curved edging is useful for arranging food that you want to cook slower or less.

* The lid fits on the pan perfectly, with a thick and even quality glass.

* The hard anodized non-stick surface is top quality, far better than something like T-Fal.It looks like it will last a very long time.It cleans up really well, too.

* "Restaurant Tested" -apparently they conducted a field test with the cookware and had great results.Anolon does not provide any specific details about it... but if it isn't just marketing speak, this is a very nice testimony for durability.

* Nicely weighted.It is heavy, but not extremely so for this size.You don't want something too light weight anyway, as a lighter pan gets knocked around rather easily.

CONS:

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* The grips are well made, but I'm not sure how well they will hold up if exposed to repeated high heat in the oven over a long period of time.That would only be a concern if you do a lot of pan roasting (your alternative would be to just transfer the meat when you're ready).

* The edging on the lid is stainless steel, but it's not super thick--it may suffer dents if you're careless with it.

Overall, an excellent buy.It really feels and looks like a pan costing several times more.And as of this writing, almost all of the reviews are 5 star.It's no wonder!:-)

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My needs were pretty basic when I was searching for a replacement for my Kitchen Aid 12" Teflon coated pan.

* 12" (since I got used to the size for cooking for 2)

* be a highly versatile pan (I planned to have one-pan-to-rule-them-all)

* high quality nonstick surface (Teflon didn't last long... just over 1 year)

* not super pricey

The Analon fit the bill exactly.It's great for everything I throw at it, large enough to cook for two, and is super nonstick (I can fry an egg with no oil, which was impossible with my old cheapo pans).I believe the awesome nonstick surface is from "hard-anodizing" the pan instead of putting on a coating, which eventually wears off.I might be able to compare in a year or so, but for now (used for about 2 months), the hard-anodized surface provides a MUCH better cooking experience than my old pan ever did.Since food doesn't stick, my cleaning time for the pan has decreased significantly.

Other random thoughts that come to mind are: +comes with a see-through lid (that actually creates a good seal), +heavy (if you like heavy pans).

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This is one of the best pans I purchased. I am a chinese and cook a lot of stir fry chinese food. Most american pans are not good for this purpose. But this pan is great. This is not a perfect pan like those of 200 dollars. some of my friends bought a pan of 500 dollars. I think that is too much for a pan.

For regular daily use, I think this pan is good enough, at least better than most american pans I purchased before.

I have to say, after using the pan for 6 months, I did saw some small light scratches on the pan, but nothing serious. Overall, a great pan for stir fry chinese food.

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