D5 Stainless Steel

For some reason the 3qt sauce pan came without a lid

Best pans I’ve ever owned – worth every penny (especially at the Black Friday price!) I’ve been using these on my induction cooktop and love!! Yes, they’re expensive, but I snagged the set during the Black Friday sale for around $800 and it honestly feels like a steal for the quality. The non-toxic coating is exactly what I was looking for (no weird chemicals, no PTFE/PFOA), and they’re legitimately almost nonstick when you use the right heat. One small learning curve with induction: these heat up FAST, so I just keep the temp a notch three lower than I would with my old pans and nothing sticks. Even if I get distracted and something does manage to cook on, it lifts and cleans pretty easy. They are definitely heavier and cook as evenly as any pans I’ve ever used. If they go on sale again next year, I’ll probably buy a second set just to have backups. 100% would buy again – highly recommend if you’re ready to upgrade to something that’s truly non-toxic and performs this well.

It took a little almost a month before it arrived but it was worth the wait. I was a little worried since it’s from the US and was wary of damages or something but they came intact. Tho when I checked some pots, I think it cannot be helped that there are some scratches and some little black spots from the manufacturer but they are not so visible unless you check really carefully. Not all, only few of them so it’s forgivable given that they all came perfect without deformation or anything. Haven’t tried using them yet as I plan to use them in our new house. Looking forward to it! They are a little heavy for my petite arm but it was not a surprise anymore. After all, I’m after the durability and health benefits of stainless steel cookware.

Love these pans! I took a little to learn how to cook with lower heat, but once you do you’ll never go back to no stick pans! Well worth the investment!

After 3 decades of hefting Le Creusets around it was time to give my arms a rest. They were always great when I used gas but now I worried about dropping a pot on the ceramic surface of my cooktop. I'd used them for so many years I had to relearn a few things when making the change. First off, a concern I had was heat control after years of cooking with gas. That's turned out to be no problem -- at all. These pans heat up in a fraction of the time, at a much lower setting, and are nicely responsive. I find med-low the new favourite setting while the 'high' setting now gets reserved for boiling water -- and even then it gets turned down to hold a nice roll because these pans conduct heat so very well. So there's been important relearning about temperatures and settings. The other thing to overcome was the problem with sticking. I invested in a Fluke no-contact thermometer and had a bit of fun getting the water ball drop test down pat -- and what a huge difference that makes! The only thing I will not do with these pans is fry bacon, for that I'll gladly wrestle with a seasoned cast iron. Over the decades, Le Creuset offered more shape options than are in the D5 range and, while the tall-sided pots in the D5 range are great, I'm kinda short and we're only two in the house, so low and open pots are my go-to preference. I had to go outside the brushed D5 range to the D3 line-up (which are also very well made and beautiful but have a shiny exterior) and added a 6 Qt pot along with the 1 and 2 Qt sauciers. I indulged a bit more by adding in the little 0.5 Qt sets of ramekins, cocottes, oval bakers and gratins which are great for making single serve items, especially desserts. The handles are quite long, compared to what I was used to, and more angular. It didn't take long to feel the benefit of their size, they make these pots perfectly maneuverable. My hands are rather small and not 'strong' but these are designed to be very well balanced and everything that needs to has two handles to work with. I invested in the silicone grippers which made a big difference for my small, wobbly hands, and use these mostly for grip because the handles do not hold heat. Where my LC handles would get as hot as the pot, the D5 stays comfortably cool. I understand how the shape of the long handles feels too angular for comfort, and can feel especially painful for smaller hands, but read how they were intentionally designed with ergonomics for a solid, safe grip from underneath. Once I have the silicone in place to help my small grip, the handle design becomes natural and feels really sturdy. I did get a couple pots/pans from Le Creuset's stainless steel line up before turning to the All-Clad line. I like the feel of the comfort handle on the Le Creuset SS -- they are softer shaped, just as long, and also don't hold the heat. But, if my hand is wet then that comfy rounded handle quickly becomes a hindrance for getting a solid grip which could become a hazzard. The brushed finish is why I chose the D5 line-up over the D3. As beautiful as the Le Creuset SS is, their high gloss chrome-like finish will drive me a little nuts keeping clean. As it turns out I had to get a few D3s, and there are those little add-ons, which all have polished exteriors -- but the All Clad 'polished' is not at all like the mirror-like finish on the Le Creuset, which is a relief. Having both D3 and D5 models I can see the differences in manufacturing, styling and features, and there are benefits of choosing cookware from both ranges depending on specific needs. These are built to last, beautifully. After being invested in Le Creuset for decades (and a huge fan of their quality) it was a bit of a mindset adjustment to change brands when the LC SS line up is out and really nice, and is what I started out making the switch to SS with. But, after a lot of research and looking at all the variables, I feel really happy to make the investment in All Clad going forward.

I had to update all my pots & pans as we installed a new induction cooktop. These are incredible quality! Great to cook with. Buying them ‘like new’ from Amazon was half the price of buying them ‘new’ from other online stores. They arrived in mint condition! Also easy to clean, if there’s any type of discolouring after cooking & cleaning with dish liquid, I just use a scrub mommy & The Pink Stuff. Gets it right off. Heads up, they are solid & quite heavy! 10/10