5 Best Stainless Steel Cookware Sets, According to Food Network Kitchen
Stainless steel pots and pans are a great addition to every kitchen. They look gorgeous, last a lifetime, and can be used for everything from steaming rice to braising chicken to simmering soup.
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Our Top Stainless Steel Cookware Set Picks
- Best Overall: All-Clad D3 Cookware Set, 10-Piece Set
- Best Budget: Tramontina Stainless Steel Tri-Ply Clad 12-Piece Set
- Best Value: Cuisinart Chef’s Classic Stainless 17 Piece Set
- Best Splurge: Hestan ProBond Clad Stainless Steel Ultimate Set, 10-piece
- Best Starter Set: Misen Essentials Cookware Set
By Sharon Franke for Food Network Kitchen
With its gleaming finish, inside and out, stainless steel cookware is both beautiful and professional looking. It’s also highly durable as it’s resistant to denting, doesn’t have a finish that can wear off, and has handles that are firmly attached. Whether you use it to simmer bottled sauce or homemade Bolognese, whisk packaged chocolate pudding or your own custard sauce, cook sloppy joes or beef bourguignon, you can depend on it to heat evenly without scorching. If you handle it well and take care to clean it carefully after every use, it will maintain its good looks and become an heirloom.
This article has been reviewed since its original publish date for accuracy, pricing and availability.
What to Know About Stainless Steel Cookware
In spite of its great reputation, stainless steel by itself is a poor conductor of heat. To make sure it distributes heat evenly, virtually all stainless cookware is either clad, meaning it has at least one layer of aluminum sandwiched between interior and exterior layers of stainless steel, or has a solid disc of aluminum on the bottom.
As with cookware of all types, stainless steel pieces with a disc bottom will work better than clad ones on an electric or induction stovetop; the perfectly flat cookware base will make better contact with the glass ceramic cooktop surface.
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There are a few things you can do to make sure your cookware lasts a long time. If you sauté or fry with oil, don’t use a bigger skillet than you need to as the empty areas can become gunky and hard to clean. Avoid using the highest setting on the stovetop. While stainless steel won’t deteriorate from being used over high heat, it can develop a brownish or rainbow-like discoloration on the outside. High temps can also cause food to spatter and create burnt-on stains on the exterior that can be difficult to remove.
How to Clean Stainless Steel Cookware
Stainless steel can be safely cleaned in the dishwasher. While most manufacturers recommend hand washing, claiming that dishwasher detergent can cause white spots, discoloration, and/or a duller finish, when we machine washed our recommended skillets, they came out looking brand new. However, the dishwasher won’t remove burnt-on stains from oil that spattered.
If for any reason your stainless steel is not as shiny as you like or it develops stubborn hard-to-remove spots, nothing beats the powdered version of Bar Keepers Friend for restoring it. Any areas that are particularly difficult can be tackled by making a paste with the cleaner, applying it to the pan, and allowing it to soak in for several hours or even overnight. To prevent scratches, avoid using abrasive steel wool or other scrubbing pads. Opt for nonabrasive scrubbers like Dobie pads.
The majority of stainless-steel pots and pans have stainless steel handles that are firmly attached with rivets. However, inevitably, residue accumulates around the rivets. Each time you wash your cookware, it’s worth putting in the time to clean carefully around the rivets or gunk that’s impossible to get off will build up.
How We Picked
We have years of experience testing cookware as well as using it to develop recipes and cook for our families and guests in our own home kitchens. That’s why we’re confident that the five sets that we’re recommending are the best you can buy. To double check our selections, we read what other professional reviewers have to say and what home cooks report about long-time use.
While our primary consideration was how well pots and pans heated, we also gave high marks for useful features and convenient cleanup. Our picks include sets at a variety of price points so that regardless of your budget, you can find a collection that will make food preparation easier.
This article has been reviewed since its original publish date for accuracy, pricing and availability. We stand by our list of top stainless steel cookware set picks.
Included: 2- and 3-quart saucepans with lids, 3-quart sauté pan with lid, 8-quart stockpot with lid, 8.5- and 10.5-inch skillets
This classic cookware is prized by pros and home cooks alike and with good reason. It browns perfectly evenly and keeps stews and sauces at a steady simmer. When you use it, you won’t have to constantly rearrange your chicken, stir your chili, or adjust the heat under your soup. While it’s shiny stainless inside and out, it has a core of aluminum that accounts for its great results. The classic sloped shape on the skillets makes it easy to roll out omelets or pour sauces.
As the handles are riveted onto the base, they’ll never loosen or fall off. D3 can be used at temperatures up to 600 F so you can run a skillet cobbler under the broiler to brown off its biscuit topping. This set includes a good assortment of essential pots and pans, including an 8-quart stockpot for a crab boil or pasta water.
You can go ahead and place these pots and pans in the dishwasher or easily wash them by hand. We recommend that you don’t use them to sear a sirloin over high heat or you could find yourself with cooked-on spatters that will take a bit of work to scrub off. The size of each pan is etched on the bottoms, so you always know whether you’re grabbing the one specified in your recipe. If you prefer to buy American products, you’ll be happy to know that All-Clad is manufactured in the USA.
Included: 10- and 12-inch fry pans, 1.5- and 3-quart saucepans, 5-quart deep saute pan, 5-quart lidded Dutch oven, and 8-quart stockpot
With this set you get the professional look of our top choice and more pieces at less than half the price. You can depend on this cookware with an interior layer of aluminum for solid performance whether you’re sautéing peppers and onions or simmering beef stew. Plus, with their rounded handles, these pots and pans are a pleasure to grip.
This collection is perfect if you cook for a large family. It includes generously-sized pieces like a 12-inch frypan, a 5-quart saute pan, a Dutch oven, and an 8-quart stockpot. Tramontina can be safely be used in the oven up to 500 F. That’s more than adequate for braising a pork shoulder, finishing off a frittata, or crisping up a tuna noodle casserole. While you can clean this cookware in the dishwasher, it is prone to some discoloration over time so we recommend you keep a container of Bar Keepers Friend on hand.
Included: 1-, 2- and 3-quart saucepans with glass lids, 3.5-quart saute pan with glass lid, 4-quart lidded Dutch oven, 8-quart stockpot with glass lid, 8-,10-, and 12-inch skillets, steamer insert
You can’t beat this large set for value. It includes pots and pans for just about every cooking situation imaginable from small ones for heating a single serving of soup or frying an egg to huge ones for braising one-dish dinners or boiling lobsters. On the bottom of these stainless-steel pieces there’s an aluminum disc which provides absolutely even browning whether you’re using them on an electric or induction smoothtop or a gas cooktop. In testing, we also found that unlike some disc-bottomed cookware, the Dutch oven didn’t scorch when we simmered marinara sauce.
You can’t beat this large set for value. It includes pots and pans for just about every cooking situation imaginable from small ones for heating a single serving of soup or frying an egg to huge ones for braising one-dish dinners or boiling lobsters. On the bottom of these stainless-steel pieces there’s an aluminum disc which provides absolutely even browning whether you’re using them on an electric or induction smoothtop or a gas cooktop. In testing, we also found that unlike some disc-bottomed cookware, the Dutch oven didn’t scorch when we simmered marinara sauce.
Included: 1.5- and 3-quart saucepans with lids, 3.5-quart sauté pan with lid, 8-quart stockpot with lid, 8.5- and 11-inch skillets
The moment you unpack this pricey cookware and feel it in your hand, you know it’s special. A brushed stainless-steel finish with a band of polished stainless below the rim, flared lips, and rounded edges give it a more elegant, less commercial look than other luxury brands. While it’s not lightweight, it feels well balanced and the curved handles give you a comfortable grip when you’re carrying a pot to the countertop, pouring out a gravy, or flipping out a crepe. Made of forged stainless steel with a core of aluminum, Hestan Pro provides beautiful browning and exceptionally even simmering. Put up a batch of tomato sauce and you can let it cook for an hour without stirring.
While the handles are riveted on for durability, the rivets are flush with the interior surface so cleaning around them requires no extra work. These pieces can be used at temperatures up to 600 F which means you can run a skillet under the broiler to brown off a piece of fish. Hestan is manufactured in Italy.
Included: 3-quart saucier with lid, 3-quart saute pan with lid, 8-quart stockpot with lid, 10- and 12-inch skillets
If you’re not looking for a huge assortment of cookware but want what you do buy to be of the highest quality, this pro-styled brand is an excellent choice. It’s sold directly by the manufacturer which helps to keep the price reasonable for pieces that compete with the best cookware out there. Constructed of three layers of aluminum that are completely encased in stainless steel, Misen is heavier than its competitors which means it takes longer to heat up but is also less likely to burn or scorch foods. You’ll love using it for tasks like caramelizing onions where you want even results but don’t want to stir constantly.
The pans have a brushed finish while the riveted handles are polished. On the saute pan, there’s a helper handle that makes it easy to maneuver when it’s full. Considering the weight of this cookware, we wish there was one on the 3-quart saucepan and 12-inch skillet as well. You can place Misen in the oven up to 500°F and wash it in the dishwasher.
