# Need Info On Kitchen Craft Cookware By Americraft



## KCI (Jan 23, 2010)

Hi,  I went to a Home Show today and wound up buy $1800 worth of these pans....I don't even need any new pans and at my age, 67, I don't need anything that will last a lifetime...whose lifetime...mine???  Anyway,  I felt like someone going to a timeshare presentation, no intention of buying and you come out with the deed in your hand.  I have 3 days to rescind my order.  They seem like great pans and if they truly are, I would consider keeping my order as is.  However, if anyone here has used them and has any pro or negative feelings on them, please speak up.  I bought the basic set and they threw in an electric skillet, gourmet cooker (slowcooker), kitchen kutter (salad shooter) and a free bowl to catch the kitchen kutter stuff.  Looking forward to some great reviews by my Tugger friends..thanks.  Linda


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## ScoopKona (Jan 23, 2010)

*Rescind!*


You have been hornswoggled. I could buy freakin' MAUVIEL pans for less money. I've seen these bozos at Las Vegas home shows. You're right -- it's a timeshare presentation. Any legitimate company would invite you to buy a single pan and try their system out. 

Their "waterless cooking" tout is a load of garbage. It's just layered tri-metal cookware. You can buy Le Creuset -- one pan at a time, mind you -- and get the same result.

Rescind, rescind, rescind. 

And quit buying stuff without googling it first.

http://www.epinions.com/review/Healthcraft_Basic_Cookware_Set/content_484482190980

EDIT -- Here's another thread on the subject:

http://www.mothering.com/discussions/showthread.php?t=944405


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## ricoba (Jan 23, 2010)

I think you already know the answer to your own question...at 67 who needs lifetime cookware?  Especially at $1800!  

Don't be hard on yourself though, simply cancel the order, just like I think you know you already should.


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## Passepartout (Jan 23, 2010)

Scoop and Rick already said it. Rescind! Take 'em back- or better yet, send 'em back. You can get a shiny new set of Cuisinart or All Clad stainless or anodized non-stick that will last yours and your kid's lifetimes for less than half price. The only way this is a deal is if it comes with the chef to use 'em for a lifetime!

Jim Ricks


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## ScoopKona (Jan 24, 2010)

I forgot to mention, in every forum I googled where Americraft cookware gets slammed, someone logs on as a new user and touts the benefits of "justsmartliving" cookware.

My opinion is that waterless cookware is a total crock. Alton Brown doesn't mention it in his kitchen gear books. It is also not mentioned in any cookbook I own. The ONLY mention of waterless cookware on eGullet (which for me is the zenith of cooking information) describes it as "crap."

There are dozens of reputable companies that sell cookware at every price point you could want. Google will help you decide between the Calphalons, All-Clads, Le Creusets and Mauviels of the world.

I do 90% of my cooking with copper All-Clad pans that I bought on eBay for $50 (that is not a misprint). I do the rest with a wok that is older than I am.

Suffice to say, there is no magic pan that will make someone a great chef. My only advice is to never purchase a pot or pan that has any plastic components. Any cookware that has plastic parts is junk. If it can't braise in a 400f oven, it's useless.

EDIT -- I see a mod has already removed the shameless shill for "justsmartliving" cookware. Yay mods!


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## wackymother (Jan 24, 2010)

I do a lot of cooking, and the total cost of my cookware was probably about $200. For $1,700, I would want my cookware to come with a personal chef!


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## Kal (Jan 24, 2010)

Hey guys, take it easy.  That $1700 included food for a full year!  And yes, it should have included a chef, but only part time for cooking just dinners.  Seems to me there may have been a Home Show special coupon where for an additional $1600 you get not one but TWO sets of pans.

How good is that!!


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## Passepartout (Jan 24, 2010)

Kal said:


> That $1700 included food for a full year!  And yes, it should have included a chef...



Aw, heck, In that case gimme two! Is there an annual MF to go with all this? Jim


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## MuranoJo (Jan 24, 2010)

To the OP:  Get out of it and do some searches for quality cookware (esp. for those prices).

Gonna run to eBay to check out prices for AllClad now...hee hee.  Love the new 12" stainless skillet we got for Xmas. Now want a 2 quart but, sheesh, prices are pricey!


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## KCI (Jan 25, 2010)

Just want you all to know I used my right to rescind today and, hopefully, that will be the end of that!  Thanks for all the ideas on which high end brands I should look into for any future purchases.


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## Kal (Jan 25, 2010)

I just received a set of the new Cuisinart "Green" cookware at Xmas.  These are incredible.  Saute without oil but using only the natural juices from vegetables is a very new experience.  ABsolutely nothing sticks to the surface.

See info here:
http://reviews.chefscatalog.com/8855/24445/reviews.htm


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## pittle (Jan 25, 2010)

Glad you were able to rescind - $1800 is just too much to spend on cookware - even if you are in your 20"s   Last year, we bought a new home and with the gas cooktop, I thought I needed new cookware.  Since I am over 60, I started going to Home Goods _(check TJ Maxx if you do not have Home Goods)_ each month and purchased one new item to convert from my Farberware and Revereware Stainless that I had used on my electric stove for years.  I now have a nice selection.  I have purchased Cuisinart, Calphalon, All-Clad, Chantal, and Chefology just to check them out.  All are heavy tri-clad SS with glass lids.  I have spent $200-$250 and now figure that I have more than enough cookware to last the rest of my life.  It all came in handy for Thanksgiving, but generally with just the two of us, I could have made it with just one 5 quart dutch oven style pot, a good skillet,  a couple of 2 quart saucepans and my new favorite  - Caphalon 4-1/2 QT tall pot with a long saucepan type handle to hold onto while stirring and another one that you can grab with a potholder to move easily.


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## ScoopKona (Jan 25, 2010)

KCI said:


> Just want you all to know I used my right to rescind today and, hopefully, that will be the end of that!  Thanks for all the ideas on which high end brands I should look into for any future purchases.



You will find that in general, high-end cookware is uncomfortably heavy. It is a real workout to use quality pots and pans -- especially when loaded with ingredients. 

Cheap cookware is mostly aluminum. Light enough for just about anyone to sauté, but on the lower end of the heat conduction scale.

I'm partial to copper, but I do a lot of braising. (In fact, I'm braising some ribs in a pineapple reduction as I type this.) I don't use a lot of non-stick cookware. The teflon coating is only good for a couple years, maximum. I have one teflon egg pan -- only used for eggs -- and never washed (only wiped clean).


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## carl2591 (Jan 25, 2010)

you ever do the baking soda test on pots..

put a 1/2 cup water in pot with regular spoon of baking soda. 

bring to boil and let cool some what. now taste

I did that during a salad master cookware demonstration with my pots..

the Teflon coated one was so bad i had to flush my mouth with water to get rid of the nasty taste. 

the glass one  tasted like metal.

the cheap stainless steel one again tasted like metal only worse..

the salad master one, which is 316 stainless steel inside tasted like baking soda.

you get what you pay for with cookware..

and my 12 item set cost $1800.00 as well.. they will last a life time, my mom did a cooking demonstration in 1969 after we moved in the new house.. I remember the pot stacked up on top of each other cooking..
she still has and uses those pot today.


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## ScoopKona (Jan 25, 2010)

I don't know if that's a fair test of cookware. One spoon of sodium bicarbonate in a few ounces of water is a rather strong solution. Seems to me that's testing how metals and metal alloys (and the polymer, Teflon(c)) react with sodium bicarbonate more than anything else.


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## carl2591 (Jan 26, 2010)

ScoopLV said:


> I don't know if that's a fair test of cookware. One spoon of sodium bicarbonate in a few ounces of water is a rather strong solution. Seems to me that's testing how metals and metal alloys (and the polymer, Teflon(c)) react with sodium bicarbonate more than anything else.





your right.. try it with your cookware and see if there is a non sodium bicarbonate taste..  the stainless steel pans we bought when subjected to this test only tasted like baking soda.  not a perfect test but a test non the less..

I can tell you the (bad) taste will be quite noticeable.  like i said the Teflon pan test was not something you would want to drink unless a gun was held to your head..


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## brian1234 (Oct 22, 2011)

*Re:Kitchen Craft Cookware By Americraft*

While buying a non stick cookware, the first thing that needs to be checked is the coating which is used.Non stick cookwares coated with Teflon is harmful for Human Body. It has a substance called Carcinogen which can initiate cancer. There are several coating which are 100% natural.Ecolon is one  of them. Neoflam is manufacturing non stick cookwares coated with Ecolon.


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## Talent312 (Oct 22, 2011)

brian1234 said:


> ... Teflon is harmful for Human Body. It has a substance called Carcinogen which can initiate cancer.



_This is a silly statement._
There is no substance called "Carcinogen."  The term "carcinogen" describes the characteristic of any substance for causing cancer. In August 2008, the EPA stated that it "has no information that routine use of household or other products using fluoropolymers, such as nonstick cookware or all weather clothing, poses a concern." (an EPA warning on chemical risks quoted in Wikipedia)

I rarely accept at face-value what a comany says about its product, but I have no reason to disbelieve Dupont's statement: "There is no scientific basis to support claims that cookware coated with Teflon® causes cancer. There is extensive scientific data, including worker surveillance data, peer-reviewed toxicology studies, and expert panel reports that support this position."
------------------------
As for the taste test with baking soda... When I start using baking soda as an ingredient in my cooking, I'll be concerned.


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## MichaelColey (Oct 22, 2011)

Missed this thread the first time around, but wanted to throw in my two cents.

We saw a presentation of a $2,000 cookware set like this (don't remember if it was the same name) several years ago.  Must buy right then to get the price, etc.  We didn't bite (we're too frugal), but we loved the presentation.  I searched later that evening on eBay and found a similar set for $150.  We bought that one and used it for a while, but gradually went back to non-stick.

Anytime you do a presentation for something that seems way out of line with the pricing you expect (whether it's cookware, vacuum cleaners, buying clubs, fire alarms, timeshares, selling your timeshare or whatever), don't.  Research it and you'll be glad you didn't.


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