Kirkland Pans

I'd recommend stainless. Stainless can always go in the dishwasher and you can use any tools on it. Once you buy it, it is yours for life. Cookware is a big investment, and I think stainless is the best bet. I used to sell cookware at a big department store, so I got in on all the promotions and owned one of each of most of the big brands, and have owned lots of different size pans and specialty pans. I'm not a huge fan of sets because usually they are a few pieces you'll use all the time (10" or 12" skillet, 2 qt. to 4 qt. saucepans), but they also fill out the set with specialty pans and pans that aren't all that versatile, like 8" skillets or covered casseroles. I've slowly given away all my specialty pans and replace everything with a core set of pans that I think are the best at what they do. Saucepans are all All Clad. Soup pots are heavy le Creuset. Frypans are All Clad or non-stick Calphalon. I have the non-stick only because my husband loves it for frying eggs and Calphalon has a lifetime replacement guaranty, but more on that next....

The hard anodized ones from Kirkland are non-stick (even though they don't really make that particularly clear). There are lots of reasons why people avoid anodized pans and non-stick pans. Health reasons are a big one for lots of people. I don't like non-stick because you usually can't put them in the dishwasher and they ALWAYS wear out and stop being non-stick. To me, the fact that they wear out is a good indication that you are actually eventually eating some of those delicious Dupont non-stick coating chemicals (uuuugh!). Straight hard anodized pans are rarely available anymore. Calphalon used to make plain hard anodized, but does not anymore. The thing about hard anodized is that it conducts heat really well. So well that we routinely got them back when I sold them because people couldn't get the hang of cooking with them. You have to train yourself to cook at a lower temperature, or you'll be scourching everything. If you have non-stick, that goes double because you'll also ruin your non-stick coating.

That was a lot of explaination, but the bottom line is I would go for the stainless. Even though it is a disk bottom type, rather than a clad type, you'll get a lot more wear out of them than the non-stick hard anodized. You'll also get a lot more convenience.

I would go for the stainless steel. Aluminum leeches out into the body and this is NOT good. If it is coated this is not good. You can go online to see the difference and the pros and cons. However, my families health is very important to me and this is something I would never do it put aluminum or non stick anything in their system. Our bodies are polluted enough. I, myself am trying to get aluminum, lead, and tin out of my system and it is not a fun thing.

N.

The hard anodized is easier to clean, but I would still go with the stainless steel because of the health benefits. Even the highest quality hard anodized or teflon pans leak chemicals into your food and into the air. If they get scratched then the chemical problem becomes even worse (you then have to worry about the aluminum underneath). I researched this on my own at one point and it really motivated me to get rid of the hard anodized that I had and get all stainless steel. Some really high quality stainless steel pans don't stick like the cheaper ones do, so one day I'm hoping to move up .. but I think that any kind of stainless steel is good. Hope that helps!

This is pretty funny since we JUST bought the Kirkland Hard Anodized, non stick. So far we really like them. The biggest difference I can tell is that you can't put these in the dishwasher but you can but the stainless in the dishwasher. If you're more of a casual or basic cook like I am, the Hard Anodized are great , but I do miss being able to put everything in dishwasher. The stainless are better for people who are really serious about cooking I think. There's a really good article in the latest Costco magazine actually that compared the two kinds. I read this a couple times before we decided what to get. You can't beat the price - and they're alot like my Calphalon (I have two ot those). Good luck!

We have both types and I LOVE anodized. You can use silicon utensils while cooking, lower temps, and nothing sticks. So easy to clean!