The Alessi Mami Stockpot
Buying a good stock pot is essentially important to every home cook because of its versatility. Not only will you use it for making stocks and stock reductions,it will come in handy when you cook pasta, make soups, tenderizing meats or when you make your famous homemade recipe this coming Christmas. You want something that will work well for every type of cooking you do and one that will hold up for many years to come. Here are some important things to look at when choosing a soup pot.
Its important to consider the size since stock pots need to be larger than the soup pot because you usually make a larger batch of stock than you do the soup. So the recommended size should be 6-qt.-1-qt. range so it would be versatile for your other cooking needs. Next is the shape, a soup pot usually has a round base just like the picture above with deep straight side and a cover. The structure should have a thick, heavy bottom to prevent burning. Soup requires time to cook so the pan will be sitting on the stove tip for long periods. For me the most essential is the handle, you want a well constructed pot with a handle that you feel secure won't fall off when you are lifting a pot of hot liquid. So look for stock pots with handles that are securely attached to the pot. Cool resistant doesn't mean cool proof. Always use your Oven Mitts when taking any cookware out of a hot oven. Personally, most of my pans are products from Alessi which are made of stainless steel. The Mami Stockpot Miniature just like the picture above is part of the Alessi miniature collection, a series of 11 design classics selected from the last sixty years of production. This unique product was designed by Stefano Giovannoni in 1999 as a small version of a classic kitchenware piece. These pans are great and I highly recommend them. You can use them on the stove top, in the oven, use metal utensils,and best of all they clean up fast and easy. It's great to find a new piece of cookware under the tree at Christmas and find out out some new feature that makes using it easier.