Special Magic Kitchen

So how come there are so many brands of stainless steel multi-clad cookware on the market now, whereas ten years ago there were so few? Well, for the longest time All-Clad Metalcrafters had the patent on the bonding process to make multi-clad cookware. Basically, by bonding different metals together a pan could achieve the benefits of various metals and offer superior cooking performance, and All-Clad owned that process. Just look at the edge of a quarter. That same boding process that layers the metal in a coin is what All-Clad developed for the U.S. Mint and also made into a great line of cookware.  

All-Clad founder John Ulam has had patents on variations of this bonding process extending from 1967 until 1982, but in the early 2000s All-Clad’s patent expired. Soon after that, Cuisinart produced its Multiclad Pro line along with Calphalon and its Tri-Ply series. Viking has its multi-ply, and now Le Creuset and J.A. Henckels have multi-clad cookware. And if you want an inexpensive multi-clad option, you can buy Tramontina sets at Walmart for around $150. By the way, Tramontina was also recommended by Cook’s Illustrated in May 2009 along with All-Clad and Calphalon. And All-Clad has also teamed up with Emerilware to produce its Pro-Clad line of cookware, and Sur La Table has its own branded tri-ply. There are so many options these days, and though there will be differences in design and metal thickness, most of these brands are good performers. 

What this means is that All-Clad as a brand is no longer the top dog in the home cookware arena, and when I recently visited a kitchen store, the salesperson informed me that All-Clad is having to resort to sales for the first time. They have also been adding ‘extras’ into sets such as utensils, aprons, panini pans etc — though many of these items are made in China and not the US. And they currently have a sale on a 12-inch skillet with lid for under $100. A bargain by All-Clad standards.

As for performance, the average cook probably won’t notice much difference between All-Clad and the other brands, but the price will be a big difference. But it is also important to consider features such as how the pans feel in your hand, the covers (glass or metal), and the look you want. The good thing is that all these pans have collectively raised cookware quality in kitchens all over, and we have All-Clad to thank for that. But the next time you are on the market for cookware, there will be many reasonably priced options for purchase.

My only advice is to choose your pans or pan set wisely. Look for sets that have a 12 and 10-inch skillet versus an 8 and 10-inch. A lot of the sets out there have a strange combination of pans and will include some sizes that will rarely be used. You may also want to look at the handles. Some sauce pans will have a ‘gripper’ handle, which is nice. Also some sets will have a 6-quart versus and 8-quart stock pot. This is one area where All-Clad does a better job than the other cookware brands as you will have many different options for sets. My favorite sets are currently sold from Williams-Sonoma and the All-Clad Stainless Steel 10 Piece Set sold from MetroKitchen.