Le crueset saucepans - worth it?

PiggyPenguin · 2009-07-12T18:07:39+00:00

OK, so I need new saucepans and have been hankering after some Le crueset ones (the blue iron ones, not the stainless steel ones). Does anyone have then, and would they recommend them? Also, are they really heavy to use, and do they clean up ok? Any info. would be greatly appreciated, especially if it aids my case with dh

poopscoop · 12/07/2009 19:08

lovely if you have arms like jeff capes.

Original poster

PiggyPenguin · 12/07/2009 19:10

so that would be a 'yes' on the heavy question then? 'Cos I have arms like Olive Oyl so might be an issue...

OP posts:

poopscoop · 12/07/2009 19:12

well yes, when you have a load of potatoes in them, but obviously you don't have to carry them very far, so I have them because I love them. Just use 2 hands.

nkf · 12/07/2009 19:15

The casseroles are excellent. And the gratin dishes are useful. I wouldn't go for the basic saucepans. They are too heavy to work with.

choufleur · 12/07/2009 19:17

i don't like the saucepans - casserole dishes etc are ok as they have two handles. i struggle with the saucepand (particularly the large ones when full)

RorysRacingMa · 12/07/2009 19:17

Love them love them love them. But the big frying pan is too heavy for me to carry - the casserole dishes are better because they have handles on two sides.

dizzydixies · 12/07/2009 19:18

no too bloody heavy - mine look lovely on top of my cupboards but I use my kitchenaid ones ALL the time and I love them

AppleTreeWick · 12/07/2009 19:36

I loved le creuset...I bought one massive casserole and a lovely pan... Anyway dropped the pan straight off - onto an ordinary tiled floor and lost it...handles came straight off. Brittle. That's the word. Brittle.

The casserole is also far too heavy for me now..no idea why obviously child rearing has robbed me of upper body strength as well as lower body tone.

chevre · 12/07/2009 19:39

i have some ancient saucepans i only use them occassionaly since i discovered the handles were going a bit weirdy in the dishwasher. otherwise i would use all the time. the new ones don't seem to have the same issue. for me if they don't go in the dishwash the don't get used.

i also have copper bottomed affairs which are standing up the dishwasher rightly.

the casserole dishes are marvelous.

InTheseShoes · 12/07/2009 19:52

We got some when we got married 13 years ago - a large casserole, a smaller oval casserole, both with lids, and a large pan with a lid. We also bought ourselves a hob kettle whilst on honeymoon in Dublin. I can honestly say that they are all we need in a pan set (we do have a two tier stainless steel steamer as well which we use as a steamer and an extra pan) - they have really stood the test of time, they still look good and I haven't found anything that I wish I had another type of pan for. They are a bit heavy, but I am a sturdy girl...

InTheseShoes · 12/07/2009 19:52

We got some when we got married 13 years ago - a large casserole, a smaller oval casserole, both with lids, and a large pan with a lid. We also bought ourselves a hob kettle whilst on honeymoon in Dublin. I can honestly say that they are all we need in a pan set (we do have a two tier stainless steel steamer as well which we use as a steamer and an extra pan) - they have really stood the test of time, they still look good and I haven't found anything that I wish I had another type of pan for. They are a bit heavy, but I am a sturdy girl...

scattykatty · 14/07/2009 18:45

I must admit I have literally 2/3rd's of the stuff LC makes as I totally fell in love with it but the pans are SOOOOO heavy which is a nightmare when they are full and have boiling water in them and you have a DS pulling at your leg! We also bought a set of Royal Doulton pans and use them so much more

mouseman · 14/07/2009 18:50

Mine have been in daily use for about 16 years and only ever go in the dishwasher if dh is washing up (seldom!). They have lasted brilliantly. They are heavy but you get used to it. I wouldn't be without mine.

Flibbertyjibbet · 14/07/2009 18:51

I was given a set of le cruset. I couldn't pick up a big pan of veg or the big frying pan etc so I got rid of some.
Kept the small frying pans (turn one upside down and it makes a lid for the other one) and the caserrole dish as food just does so much better in these.

Sausages etc just do so well s-l-o-w-l-y in those lovely heavy iron pans.

Mine were 15 years old when I got them and the two fry pans and casserole dish that I kept have been used by me for another 10 years. Still going strong.

The other pans I passed on to a real foodie who uses them constantly. male I might add, with huge arm muscles!

NaccetyMac · 14/07/2009 19:32

I love mine. They were my mums, she bought them in about 1984 (in Hideous Yellow) and they are FAB. I also have the grill pan and a large casserole in blue, lovely they are. . They are a wee bit on the heavy side though.

pollywobbledoodle · 14/07/2009 21:29

have frying pan, big casserole and medium sauceppan....
frying pan is great unless you want a very hot pan eg to caramelise onions then it spoils the nonstick,
casserole is great and can be dishwashed, med saucepan is too heavy for me once it has veg in, we hardly ever use it

senua · 14/07/2009 21:41

I have never been impressed by the non-stickability; food seems to burn on quite easily (eg if I am bubbling a bolognaise sauce). If you let the pan cool down then it is easy to scrape off the charcoal, but I would prefer it if things didn't burn in the first place!

pushkar · 14/07/2009 21:57

i would never use aluminium non-stick as they are full of aluminium and cause auto immune diseazes like asd or add stick to old fashioned pots

Yorky · 14/07/2009 22:14

Mum had a set of 5pans and frying pan, non stick peeled off the frying pan quite quickly but the pans are going strong still. Not great at non stick but survived me parboiing spuds and falling asleep while on GCS study leave ( - just realised how old the pans are!)
LOVE the casserole though, great for big chilli family gathering type catering

procrastinatingparent · 14/07/2009 22:24

Saucepans no - heavy, held the heat too much for the sort of cooking I needed to do.

Casserole dishes, fantastic, I love mine and use them loads. I haven't got the real Le Creuset, though but French supermarket cheapie jobs that seem to work just as well - and were a third of the price.

jemart · 14/07/2009 22:25

I love mine. The frying pan is fab, though as others have mentioned the non-stick coating doesn't last.
I have a blue set, now 8 years old and still beautiful. MIL has a set of le creuset pans in orange, she got for a wedding present in the 1970's and have been used daily all that time.
So in terms of value for money, they are superb and will last a life time. Just as long as you can lift them