Adding some stainless to my cookware...

I mainly use non-stick pots and pans, and occasionally my CI skillet. I ordered [ame="http://www.amazon.com/Calphalon-Contemporary-Stainless-12-Inch-Omelet/dp/B0007D6FH2/ref=pd_ybh_1?pf_rd_p=280800601&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_t=1501&pf_rd_i=ybh&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=0GMSP501YWM3RZPSV1Q1"]this pan[/ame] today. Now I will just have to find a place to put it!

I'm looking forward to some nicely browned meat in my future!

Ooooh - good choice, Robsan! Most of my cookware is Calphalon SS and I love it. Buy some Bar Keepers Friend and it will look like new for years to come.

As for a place to put it - I keep some on a open shelf and some I hang from curtain rods I have mounted on the wall using s-hooks. These are really pretty enough to keep out in the open.

The problem with my kitchen is that between the cabinets, washer/dryer closet, pantry and fridge, I have virtually no wall space to hang things. It will probably live in the drawer under the stove/oven. It's accessible enough. I'll just have to decide what to take out of there!

Ahhh - I hear you, Robsan. I had no place to hand stuff either til I redid my kitchen. (Then I had to buy all new cookware because the old stuff was crap and too ugly to leave out. LOL)

I have a ceiling rack made of cast iron hung for a single beam in the roof. Stainless is wonderful stuff and Bar Keepers Friend really is your friend. I have either cast iron or stainless steel nothing else. Even my non stick are stainless steel pans. I cook on induction so aluminum and coper are out unless encapsulated in something else.

I remember when I got my first SS pan. The first thing I wanted to try was a steak. Up until then, I had always used non-stick pans or well seasoned CI.

I heated the pan and added the steak. BAM….it stuck…..bad. Plus, the pan got really freaking hot fast. The meat was burning and still stuck to the pan. I scrapped it out of the pan and flipped it….and it stuck again.

Needless to say, I utterly ruined that piece of meat and made a horrible mess of my new pan. The lessons learned:

1) Good SS gets really hot, really fast, so you'll need to adjust how you regulate your heat as compared to non-stick and CI.

2) Unlike non-stick and CI, you need to use a little bit of oil with nearly everything you cook in an SS pan, or it will stick and burn.

Once you get used to your new pan and those two rules, SS is a blast. I love it!

Good tips, Keltin. A tiny amount of oil and adjust your temp when using SS. You will usually find that you need to use a lower temp than with non-tri-ply cookware.

Well all my stainless is multiply design and have never used a straight stainless steel pan. I also let my stainless heat a bit before I add oil and never add oil to a cold pan. I then bring it up to cooking temperature before add meats to it. Works pretty well for me and a damp towel will clean a hot stainless surface spotlessly too.