Inexpensive all-clad 4-Quart saute pan or rank impostor?

January 28, 2011 4:20 PM

Is the "All Clad Stainless Steel 4-Quart Brown and Braise Pan" ($120 at Amazon) the same as the "All-Clad Stainless-Steel 4-Quart Saute Pan" ($225), just with a different lid? One reviewer says it's exactly the same, but the other reviewer says it has the diameter of their "3-quart saute pan" ($200), and is deeper. Who's right? And why is it so much less expensive than either of the sauté pans? Is it the accent aigu? I like the domed lid and the low price, but mostly want the large evenly-heating expanse of bare metal you get from All Clad. My turn-ons include braising turkey thighs and long walks on the beach.
posted by jcrcarter to Food & Drink (5 answers total)

The dimensions for the saute pans are in your links, and it looks like indeed both pans are 10.5' diameter, but the four quart saute is deeper. Probably the braising pan has similar dimensions, and yes, it is the lid that makes it a braising pan rather than a saute pan.
posted by padraigin at 4:40 PM on January 28, 2011

Pay less attention to the dimensions and more to the core - is it the same, copper? This will have a big impact on how it stabilizes heat in the oven and how it performs on the stovetop.
posted by digitalprimate at 4:54 PM on January 28, 2011

It's hard to tell because the expensive one clearly states it's 3-ply aluminum core while the cheaper one just doesn't say. One of the comments says he did in fact get a 3-ply pan, in which case it would be lovely! As long as the seller allows returns it would be worth finding out.
posted by grapesaresour at 5:16 PM on January 28, 2011

The first pan says that it's "invection compatible," meaning that it's some sort of magnetic metal (steel, I'm guessing). The second says that it's aluminum (a very good conductor) sandwiched between two layers of stainless. The first is only slightly heavier than the second (6.5 vs. 6 pounds respectively). If it was me, I would save myself the 80 bucks and take advantage of that domed lid. 80 dollars can buy a lot of turkey thighs.
posted by Gilbert at 9:32 PM on January 28, 2011

So, one weird thing is that the "brown and braise" pan isn't listed anywhere that I can find on All-Clad's website in any of their product lines. Make of that what you will.
posted by dersins at 10:37 PM on January 28, 2011