Wow, preeeeettttty. I really do wish you would put together a guide for what’s good for cookware. Whenever I try to read those kinds of guides in magazine, I always end up reading, “blah blah blah blah blah.” Although, maybe not for Metroblogging. Heheh. I don’t want other commenters getting all pissy at me.

Fun fact: Copper bowls are preferred when whipping egg whites.

Yes Doran, copper makes your egg whites hold more volume and whip faster.

darleene…I may have to put up a post on my feasting blog regarding cookware. Just for you, and I’ll dedicate it as such!

Frank, you know those training materials that you got on cookware while you were an associate at Bullocks? It is likely that I wrote it. I worked in Bullocks’ corporate training department and developed training materials for each department in the store. It was in the mid-80s. Ahh, those were the days.

Sandi

I love copper too. I just use lemon to clean mine.
I’ve expanded my coppery nuttyness to jewelry and knicknacks.

How thick is the copper vs. the stainless steel? Sometimes what you actually get is a stainless steel pan with a very thin copper exterior. And how are the handles on those? From your photo, it almost looks like black plastic…

Stainless steel is lower maintenance then tin, but I don’t know if tin is a more efficient conductor of heat…? I’ve seen high-end copper cookware that isn’t even offered with stainless steel interiors.

Copper isn’t a pain to clean so much as it requires constant cleaning if you want it to look nice and shiny. If you use it every day, then there’s nothing to worry about, you’re going to be cleaning it every day anyway. If you cook infrequently, but still want your cookware to look nice, expect to polish your cookware at least once per week. And you can’t put copper in the dishwasher.

The stuff is pretty though, and the rolled edge on the saucepan is a nice touch. But I’m too lazy and use some pieces so infrequently that I’ll stick with my aluminum/stainless stuff. I like to bake too though, so I’ve been meaning to invest in a copper mixing bowl.

All good points mrhooks. I’ve opted for the 1.5mm or thicker copper over stainless for a lot of reasons, most you’ve outlined well. I bought one pan, a gratin that is tin lined but felt I could work with that option as it is a pan that isn’t used daily. Lord knows I’d like too but gratin is not a friend of mr cholesterol.

The cleaning myth is one that always gets me, since you have to wash it anyway the cleaning the copper part with a good cleaner is not difficult. It was about myth busting, not a full cookware lesson.

These handles at first glance looked plasticky. When I grabbed it I knew it was a hefty handle. It is actually cast steel that isn’t polished. It is riveted so it as good a mating to the pan you can get short of cast with the pot.

Best source for copper mixing bowls is Tuesday Morning. I got mine there for under $10 each over the last year or so.