ProCook's Professional Stainless Steel Uncoated Cookware Set offers incredible value for money. It's crafted with premium materials and yet doesn't demand a toppy price tag. They're a must for any keen cook.
If you Google the best stainless steel pans, ProCooks pop up almost instantly. They are chic enough to please a chef, without being overkill on for the average cook. In short, they’re perfect.
On my hunt for the best stainless steel pans, there were a few classic names that I knew would make the shortlist: there are brands that I grew up with, brands everyone recommends, and brands that are seemingly everywhere. ProCook is all three.
Scrolling through their site, you can choose a range of different stainless steel pan sets from ProCook. I thought I would ask ProCook themselves which is the best one for you. Giving them some information about woman&home, the other brands we’ve tested, what made our shortlist for the best induction pans, and what our readers like, they came up with this. This is the pan set they recommend — and it’s a great suggestion.
Specifications
What's in the set?
In the complete set, ProCook sends a 14, 16 & 18cm saucepan, 20cm stockpot, 24cm shallow casserole and a 24cm frying pan. They're all uncoated and crafted from heavy duty 18/10 stainless steel. That's at the super premium end for pans, but ProCook took it one step further. All of the pans have been constructed with a 7mm impact bonded base. In layman's terms (because I had to look this up), it means that they're really strong, really even, really quick heat conductors.
All of the lids for the saucepans, casserole, and stockpot are crafted from toughened glass lids. These are fitted with handles that look like stainless steel, but they're actually heat-resistant CoolTouch®, meaning you can lift the lid on any of your dishes with complete confidence.
The set is generous and elegantly designed, so it will more than cover the average person’s weekly requirements. However, come roast dinner day, you’ll be set.
Who would it suit?
The ProCook Professional Set is an elevated basic. These pans feel like a really well-built collection: they’re made to last, but they don’t overstep into pans that are all a bit too cheffy and overly complex for the average cook to use.
You could probably get by with just one or two fewer saucepans if you’re not particularly adventurous with your cooking. However, if you would use all six, you get great value for money.
While we're on the subject of costs, there are cheaper sets with similar pans, but they don’t feel as premium as this. Equally, if you spend more money, the pans will probably get heavier and less convenient to hold. There are some design exceptions, such as the Tefal Ingenio Collection, which costs more and is easier to store, but we’ll go into more detail on that further down.
Unboxing
What’s wonderful about the ProCook Professional Stainless Steel Uncoated Cookware Set is that you can buy the full range, but you can also invest in the pans individually. For that reason, they all come individually ‘boxed’. I’ve put that in quotation marks because the packaging is really a simple cardboard wrap. It’s completely recyclable and doesn’t take a second to remove, which makes life very easy.
The pans all look great together. The glass lids sit nicely on top. If you turn the lids upside down, they’re fairly stable on top. In fact, you can stack the saucepans on top of each other, so if you're putting them in a cupboard, you won't need to stress about space. They’re a classic set.
What is it like to use?
I’ve tested over fifty stainless steel pans and ProCook’s professional range was one of my favourites. The handles are nice to hold, the weight is well distributed across the base of the pans, the clear lids make cooking easy, and they transfer heat really quickly and evenly. The specs promise this kind of performance, but it's great to see it implemented in practice. They’re a really lovely set.
Test 1: frying pan
Both frying pans and milk pans aren't often included in stainless steel pan sets, so the fact that the ProCook set includes them says a lot about what they think of their frying pan. It has to be excellent.
Most frying pans these days will come with some sort of non-stick coating, whether it's ceramic or Teflon. However, plenty of more competent chefs can work wonders with uncoated stainless steel. If you can get it hot enough, the material acts as its own non-stick.
The tests that I run on every frying pan are simple, but discerning. I fry onions and I make pancakes. The first test, making pancakes, was easy. The pan warmed up in two minutes. I splashes water onto the base and the droplets danced and sizzled. Knowing that this was now hot enough, I added a teaspoon of butter, let that melt, and then I poured in my pancake mix.
You can see in the image above that my pancake cooked really well. The brown spotting is even across all of the pancake, it was cooked through, and it didn't stick either. The deep sides of the frying pan meant that I had to flip with a little more energy than on slimmer pans, but it still did a fantastic job.
The deeper edges of the frying pan made this perfect for frying onions. I didn't need to worry about stirring with too much energy, because all the onions were effortlessly kept within the walls of the pan. The edges of the onion caremalized beautifully, they softened in the middle, so each bite was tender. The pan, in short, did a sizzling job. What I liked about the deeper sides was that I could have added more onion, or some sauce, to the pan, if I didn't want to create more washing up with the casserole pan, for example. Even though it disadvantages the pan a little when it comes to pancakes, it's really helpful for other tasks.
Test 2: milk pan
Milk pans don’t always come included in sets, but I think they’re the unsung heroes of all stainless steel sets. If you want to make a quick porridge, warm up a single-serving of food, or boil an egg, these pans are perfect. I normally put them through those exact three tests, so you can see what you’re getting, but in this case, I also warmed up a single serving of soup. Here’s how the ProCook milk pan fared.
I make porridge every morning, so I have it down to a fine art. The ProCook comes with all the features that make this useful for breakfasts: there are measurements engraved on the inside of the pan and a deeply curved lip all around the outside. This makes it easy to measure out and then pour out whatever you put in the pan. It sets you up for true success.
After adding a cup of oats and two cups of milk to the pan, I let my porridge heat up. Then, I stirred it to stop it from sticking to the base of the pan. In almost exactly five minutes, my porridge was ready. The oats had plumped up and softened beautifully, without turning stodgy. They were tender, with a little bit of texture too.
I also tested boiling water and boiling eggs in the pan. The ProCook was one of the most consistent pans, day after day boiling my eggs to the same point in just five minutes. I could boil the pan full of water in two minutes, without turning the hob on to full blast and then it cooked my eggs with complete precision. If you like consistency and routine, these are the pans for you.
Test 3: the saucepans
You get a great range of different pans in the ProCook Professional Stainless Steel Uncoated Cookware Set. They all do roughly the same job, just in different quantities. So, I gave each pan the same test: making soup, boiling potatoes, simmering a bean stew, and making a curry. I gave the final, deepest pan an extra test by making jam in it.
There's little more than praise for how this pan performed. The lids and handles stayed cool, even after boiling the potatoes for over fifteen minutes. They didn't bubble over, but some of my curry did catch to the side of the pan. These were easy to clean, but not as straightforward as non-stick pans, of course.
The jam test was a great one, not only for heat distribution but also for the depth of the pan. None of the raspberry jam spat onto the hob, nor did it with any of my other dishes. I think the deep, steep sides really helped there. However, what really made a big difference was the handles. The lids didn't get hot, but the handles did begin to get a little too warm for me to want to clutch them without a tea towel. The aspect that made life easy is the handle sizes across all of the pans. Even when full, they didn't aggravate or strain my wrist, which was a common issue that I came across with other pans.
Are they easy to clean?
The ProCook Professional Stainless Steel Uncoated Cookware Set is all dishwasher safe, so to say that it's easy to clean is an understatement. We have a guide on how to clean stainless steel pans, where our experts recommend hand washing where you can. It'll keep your pans in better condition for much longer.
I washed all of these pans up, by hand, multiple times, and I didn't struggle to get them clean. Most of them just needed a squirt of Ecover and some warm, soapy water and they came out as good as new.
How do they compare?
If you like the sound of the ProCook Professional Stainless Steel Uncoated Cookware Set, but you want some safety nets, both for price and performance, I love the M&S 5-Piece Stainless Steel Pan Set. This has ceramic non-stick coating inside the milk pan and frying pan, so you don't have to be adept at getting it hot and keeping it boiling to enjoy the non-stick properties of stainless steel. The set offers just one less pan, but it still comes in at one third of the price. It's a steal. The only compromise you make is that these pans are smaller. You get the same 25-year warranty though, so just think about your kitchen needs.
Alternatively, for the same price as the ProCook Professional Stainless Steel Uncoated Cookware Set, you could invest in the Tefal Jamie Oliver Ingenio collection. These are super compact to store, their lids are equally useful, and the frying pan is lined with an expert non-stick. It's a great option for less confident cooks who like the idea of a professional set, but lack the skill to make the full use of it.
Should you buy it?
If you're confident in your cooking skills and you want a set that looks as good as it really is, the ProCook Professional Stainless Steel Uncoated Cookware Set is a safe bet. It might be overkill for more amateur cooks, but you can't go wrong with an investment like this.
