Cookware Pieces - Right Pan for the Recipe

So when you are perusing through a cook book or a food web site, and you come to a dish you would like to try, but don't know what pan to use, how do you find out what pan is right for the job?

For instance, what do you cook paella (pronounced pie-AY-yah) in? Or what is the proper pan to prepare risotto with? Exactly what is a saute pan? What do you need to make ebelskiver? What IS an ebelskiver (keep reading for the answer)? These questions can be harrowing for someone whose favorite kitchen appliance is the phone - for ordering take out. Even serious amateurs may have trouble.

Not to worry, though. As you learn to explore your kitchen, these tips can help you use the right tool for the job.

Most cookware sets will contain a variety of pieces, such as soup and stock pots, sauce pans, sauté pans, skillets and fry pans. Some may even have a wok set or roaster pan. However, to prepare certain dishes like paella or ebelskiver, you will need a specialized piece of cookware. Any well-prepared kitchen should have a few unmatched pieces for the odd use. In many cases, they will come in handy elsewhere.

Let's begin by defining the uses for the most common pots and pans in a good cookware set.

Sauce Pans:
Sauce pans are containers with handles, usually as wide as they are tall, normally about four to six inches. They often have lids and can hold about a quart to a quart and a half of liquid. Cream sauces, tomato sauces, or other sauces that need simmering are often made in a sauce pan.

Saute Pans:
These pans are about eight to ten inches wide and have straight walls about an inch to two inches tall. They have enough space to brown vegetables, chicken breasts, fish fillets, or thinly sliced red meat. Sauté pans can be handy in making sauces, too.

Skillets and Fry Pans:
These pans are like sauté pans but do not have the straight walls. Instead, they have slightly sloped and shallow sides. A skillet or fry pan also can vary more in diameter from one to the next.

Stock Pot:
A stock pot is taller than a sauce pan, and is narrower in proportion. This is to lessen evaporation in simmering, so the solid ingredients in stocks can flavor the liquid. Their large capacity makes them perfect for boiling water for pasta, corn on the cob, or potatoes. Use them for serving warm beverages like wassail or hot apple cider at large gatherings.

Wok:
This is what you use for stir frying cut up vegetables quickly. Wide in diameter with sloping edges, a wok or stir fry pan can be covered for faster cooking. You can prepare steamed dumplings or pad thai in them, too.

Roasters:
These hold food above the pan and let the hot air in an oven cook it. The roaster itself holds a V-shaped rack that keeps the food from touching the sides of the pan. Drippings from the meat are caught in the roaster. You can baste the meat with it, or save it for making a stock.

To answer the earlier questions, paella is cooked in wide, yet shallow pan, often covering two burners. Cook risotto, or Arborio rice, in a wide sauté pan, and follow preparation instruction EXACTLY. It does not cook like normal rice. Ebelskivers (filled pancakes) require a special pan that holds about six to seven of them. The pan is normally round-shaped cast iron with a wood handle.