Abused cookwear

[franksdad]

Just a few moments ago I was reading the new posts to Ultramatic's Vintage Appliance Advertisements: Part 9 concerning Revere Wear.  And may I say I have truly enjoyed that thread!  Anyway, in my post about my older Revere Wear I mentioned finding some abused Revere Wear at thrift stores.  I am certain that you folks were taught, as my wife and I were, to take care of your "stuff."  I can't for the life of me imagine why anyone would abuse their stuff. 

 

I have my Mama's original blue cornflower Corning Wear collection (minus two bowls which were broken and discarded 40 years ago) she bought when Corning Wear first became popular here in the 60's.   After nearly 50 years of regular use it still looks new.  I want the matching lasagna pan for this set.  For several years now I have been on the look out at thrift/antique stores for an original Corning Wear Blue Cornflower lasagna dish.  Occasionally I'll find the iris or spice-o-life patterns at antique stores but they are not exactly what I want and I think they are overpriced.  Then about two months ago it happened!  As I walked  into my local Goodwill my eye caught the most beautiful sight.  A blue cornflower lasagna pan.  My heart was pounding as I was pushing folks out of my way as I raced to the dish aisle.  But my excitement was for naught.  This beautiful dish was permanently stained brown inside and the bottom  looked as if it had been sanded with an electric sander - not to mention the huge chip on the side.  If that wasn't enough the bottom was covered with baked on solid black.  I was both disapointed and angry.  

 

Back in 2002, for a wedding gift to my wife's best friend, my wife and mother-in-law went in together and purchased a $300.00 specially boxed set of Chapalon (sp?) cookwear at Macy's.   We have a set of the same brand Chahalon we bought at Macy's years and years ago and it still looks like it came out of the box.  Trust me, it's been used!  Anyway, her friend was married on Valentine's Day 2002 and when we went over to their new home later that summer for a cookout I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw that set of pots and pans.  Then Kim's friend had the audacity to hold up the dutch oven and say to Kim "I know you and ya Mama paid a bunch for these pots and pans but they ain't no good!"  Needless to say that is the last thing Kim has bought this friend.

 

Sorry for babbling.  But would any of you be willing to share your feelings on abused cookwear or other things?  And have you found what you were searching for only to find out it was abused?  Thank you and have a happy Easter!  Jim   

 

[tomturbomatic]

John & Jeff used to see lots of abused cookware. My favorite expression of John's is, "looks like they used it to drive stakes into the ground." These are invariably people who complain about not being able to cook on an electric stove and need to have burned out elements replaced. Examination of the cookware reveals pans so warped and dented that only half of the base sits level on the surface unit.

As for bad looking Corningware: often it can be cleaned & bleached or put through a self-cleaning oven, but when people have ruined the finish by using metal utensils and Chore Boy pads, there is no repair I know of.

My pet peve is people who allow grease to burn onto the outside of pans like they can't be bothered to wash the outside. When I worked in a kitchen store, Calphalon was all the rage and there was a bunch of it in the demo kitchen, but the outside had a brown varnish of builtup baked on grease. First thing I did was put the pieces through the WasteKing DW even thought it was not recommended and then did some scouring. I told someone that you can't expect to sell this stuff when it looks like hell in the store kitchen.

 

[westingman123]

abused Revere

I grew up and learned to cook with Mama's Revere Ware. Every piece shined like new, and they were married ('twas a wedding gift) in 1950. I'm shocked, just shocked, at how some of the pieces I find at the thrifts look.

I do have to say, though, that Revere will clean up from just about anything. Particularly if you are lucky enough to find the double-circle Revere with the heavier copper bottoms.

I often wonder about the scratches on Corningware, too. Did they use a belt sander, forcryingoutloud?

And, don't get me started about abused Farberware. I have a friend who collects it, and you'd just be amazed.

 

[oldskool]

Thrift Store Finds...

Incompetent cooks are rampant in our society. And yes, the abused cookware is evidence of their ignorance. If the cookware is bad, can you imagine the bad and possibly contaminated food it contained?
Locally, thrift store contents vary greatly. One particular store operated by a quality Senior Facility has the best finds on used pots/pans that appear to be in great condition and some I think have not been used. I've frequently purchased very nice Revere Ware, $3-4 each. Got a Corning Ware Percolator also for $3.00 that makes a great cup of coffee. Too high of heat for the particular application and/or failure to properly clean cookware seem to be the primary causes. Poorly constructed and "cheap" cookware - well - why even bother.
Sorry for the rant...one of my peeves...
John

 

[norgeway]

Im like my Granny...

She didn't want anyone borrowing ANY of her cookware!!! She NEVER stirred with anything but a wooden spoon, and neither do I, and she would always scrub the bottom of her cookware with a Brillo pad!

 

[polkanut]

My Revere Ware may not have the shiny copper bottoms that some of you have, but it doesn't have any grease build up on it.  If an item has detachable handles I will remove them before putting it in the dishwasher, it drives my wife nuts, but it gets the nooks and crannies clean.  If soaking is necessary, it gets scoured as soon as possible, and then into the dishwasher to let the machine, and the detergent work their magic.

 

[wayupnorth]

I have mostly the old school Revere cookware, even the whistling teakettle. I am sure some of the pieces are older than me. They have never been in the dishwasher. I have some Revere copper cleaner that works perfectly with a nylon scrubber for anything that burns on. I had a partial set before and many years ago was in upstate NY at the Corning/Revere outlet and found everything to complete the full set dirt cheap.

 

[lordkenmore]

Chapalon (sp?)

I think you probably mean "Calphalon"

Calphalon was, I think, the brand that was "built to be the last cookware you'll buy." Or something like that. However, they evidently did not plan for it to fall into the wrong hands. Almost all Calphalon I see turn up is abused beyond belief.

In fact, I check cookware in thrift shops, and most "good" stuff that turns up is really not good due to abuse. Someone who worked at Goodwill was heavily into thrift shops, but she told me don't bother with cookware. Just go and buy something new. And I think she had a point, although for me the affordable "new" wasn't acceptable. (I avoid Chinese made. Except for one short period, I have avoided nonstick.) My current collection of pans are mostly bought used, and it took many, many, many thrift store visits to get them. Still, if I'm there, it doesn't take more than a couple of minutes to quickly walk down the cookware aisle looking for a treasure.

 

[polkanut]

The majority of our Revere Ware has come from estate/tag sales.  In most cases the previous owner was elderly.  Most of the time the people running the sales just see it as plain ole cookware, and therefore it's priced quite reasonably.  The only cookware that seems to go for big bucks at estate, tag, or rummage sales is Le Creuset.  I've tried it, and it's ok, but not that spectacular IMO.  I still like my late mother-in-laws vintage Rena Ware the best.

 

[perc-o-prince]

Tim,

If you do any long-braising, oven pot roasts, or long-cooked sauces et cetera, the enamel over cast iron is great! We have some Le Creuset from flea markets and thrifts, but also some Olive & Thyme from Marshalls and a few others. Rich has one gratin pan that he uses on the electric burner for swordfish and salmon all the time! The advantage to the Le Creuset over some of the others is that theirs has a thinner iron core so it's a lot lighter.

And, the enamel cleans up quite well! Any residual stains generally bleach right out. Think 'cooking with non-stick, non-rusting cast iron' and that's close to what you have here.

In the Revere, Calphalon, Le Creuset, or most other pans, if you have a mess in them you can fill them with hot water and a dash of d/w detergent and let them soak for a bit. Seems to do the trick for those few times it's needed!

Chuck

 

[polkanut]

Chuck,

I've only used it stove top, never had the opportunity to use it in the oven.  My sister loves the Le Creuset dutch oven that belonged to her late ex-father-in-law.  She won't use anything else when doing meat in the oven.  She found one at an estate sale that was quite stained inside, and soaked it with a little bleach in the water and it cleaned up beautifully.

 

[lordkenmore]

I like Le Creuset...although I only have one pot. They don't turn up used very often, and when they do, there are usually chunks of enamel missing. My pot isn't perfect, but the inside is still good. I use it quite a bit. I can't say it really works better than anything else--I haven't done any critical comparisons, and my feelings might be biased by the name/reputation. But I will say I have noticed one thing for certain--it really is easy to wash.

As much as I like my Le Creuset pot, I'm not sure how much I'd be willing to spend to buy more. I'm cheap, and the prices I've seen advertised on used Le Creuset makes me cringe. On the other hand, if buying new, I can see one huge advantage to Le Creuset: the last I heard, they were still making at least some stuff in France, not China.

 

[tomturbomatic]

The Martha rip off stuff made in China was recalled some time back for pieces of the porcelain flying off. I have Le Creuset and Copco. Don't use them much, but they help weigh down the house in windy weather.

 

[franksdad]

Le Creuset

We have a couple of pieces of the LeCreuset ceramic bakewear I've picked up at T J Maxx.  My wife gave me the LeCreuset lasagna pan for Christmas a couple of years ago.  We enjoy them.  We do have two pieces of the Lodge ceramic over cast iron pots we bought at the Lodge Outlet in Commerce, Georgia.  We have the large dutch oven which is wonderful for roasts and the red apple bean pot which we cook beans in on top of the stove.  If I'm not mistaken, Tyler Florence uses the Lodge wear.  We've been well pleased.  However, I still want some of the LeCreuset wear.  

 

[sudsmaster]

I still have a set of Magnalite cookware I got in the '80's. Unfortunately, I got the stuff with teflon antistick inside. Wish I had gone for the more traditional anodized interior. In any case, the teflon has worn off my favorite cookpan, and the thin stainless layer under it has also pitted, so that the pan gets little white aluminum/magnesium oxide deposits inside if it's left to soak in soapy water for any length of time. It's a great fry pan, though, and maybe some day I'll take a wire brush to the interior and get rid of the nasty teflon and pitted stainless plating.

Currently using Green Pan cookware set, which I really do like. The frying pans are truly non-stick, and very durable. And they can take high heat, which means they are good for searing, unlike Teflon coated stuff. Plus they heat up much quicker than the stainless stuff I had been using.

 

[polkanut]

Rich,

I have my grandmother's Magnalite 5qt dutch oven, and it has to be 60+ years old.  The anodized pieces really do hold up well.  The only special care I take when washing it is to not use regular dw detergent.  I use Melaleuca dw detergent because it doesn't darken the aluminum.