The Ultimate Guide to Cookware

Key factors

Cool zippers, new waterproofing, etc... sometimes it's easy to get lost in all the hype (over-spending happens on features). Our guide focuses on the fundamental factors you should always keep in mind (thus, this short list is similar across all items). Then only at the end do we have some questions to get you thinking about other minor features.

• Type or Style
• Price
• Material
• Capacity (size)
• Weight & size (for backpacking)

We highly recommend reviewing Type or Style first, where we review what you can use to address the Core function--a regular item you have at home may work! The other factors are secondary & depend strongly on the Type or Style you've picked.

While we encourage you to use regular items wherever possible, as an outdoor gear shop, we only carry outdoor-specific products

Type or Style

We've organized the most commonly used items people use to address the Core function below, with example images, characteristics, features, etc.

We strongly recommend first reading our info on stoves since cookware is heavily impacted by what you're cooking with.

NOTE: Here we refer to cookware as pots & pans. Smaller items that we also carry but that have fewer decision factors are quickly reviewed in the What We Carry section.

Cooking technique		Using hot coals or a campfire	Using a portable stove
			Regular stove (like a portable kitchen stove)	Wood burning stove	Liquid fuel stove	Canister stove	Alcohol stove	Tablet stove
Cookware		Cookware has to tolerate directly sitting on hot coals or in a flame*	Use regular cookware you'd use in the kitchen	May be able to use regular cookware or small cookware (description at right), depending on stove size		Cookware needs to be smaller since the stove top surface is smaller (a heavy, hot pot can tip over!)
Example images				See note above
Effect on secondary factors	Price Per piece	$20-200	$10-100			$10-70
	Capacity For pots	Heavier & larger (1-10L)				Smaller (~500mL to 2L)
	Material	Cast iron Ceramic Porcelain	Any			Aluminum Stainless steel Titanium
	Weight & Size	Heavier & larger				Lighter & smaller
		Depends more on material, see section below
	Rationale	No size restrictions imposed by stove = less technical				Size restrictions imposed by stove = more technical
Why we do/don't carry it = we rent = we sell		To give folks the authentic cook-in-fire experience! Not for sale because these tend to be very expensive	Standard for most outdoor uses in car camping. On our Catalog, this is indicated with 'for portable stove'	Same as regular or smaller cookware (at left & right)		Standard for most outdoor uses in backpacking. On our Catalog, this is indicated with 'for pocket stove'

*Regular cookware can get discolored or warped, or have handles that will melt

Material

An in-depth discussion of the different materials used in cookware is beyond the scope of our protip. You could look at things such as heat retention vs heat conductivity, risk of material leaching into food & toxicity, and consider that with many cookware, the material isn't pure (e.g., copper, aluminum, and titanium cookware usually have other metals used as liners or as bases to complement functionality), or there are other treatments to cookware to improve it (e.g., anodized aluminum or enameled cast iron). That's why we will only quickly overview 8 materials as they generally are viewed (averaged across composition). Given the variances, the lists should not be viewed as rankings.

Capacity (size)

For most people who have experience cooking at home, the only new lens with which to think about capacity is when you need smaller cookware imposed by small stoves.

For example, if several people are sharing a single, small backpacking stove that can only take cookware up to 2 liters maximum, you may need several "boils" to get enough hot water for everyone's coffee or backpacking meal. Is it OK then if people eat at different times? Or should you get more stoves? These are exactly the decisions that backpackers think about when planning a trip!

As you can imagine, as capacity increases, so does price and weight & size.

Weight & Size (Compactness) for Backpacking

If you're thru-hiking 20+ miles (32+km) per day, every advantage counts! In this case, size refers to compactness. You can carry more gear in the same size backpack if all of it is very compact, or for more weight savings, you can get a smaller size pack.

Minor features that may be important

Here, we give you a list of questions to start thinking about minor features. We hope our approach of savings these features for last gets you to more critically think about what you need & not get caught up in the hype of what's cool and over-spend your budget.

• Is there a handle?
• Does it come with a lid? If so is the lid transparent?
• How do the sides taper?

General Notes

• We choose what we carry based on extensive research on what's the best value to our customers (e.g., price given performance & durability features) across all the top brands. We specifically do not carry every brand & model; for details on why we do/don't carry certain items in the How To Choose section
• Buy prices are MSRP with tax, i.e., what you see is what you pay. Prices may differ in-store due to change in models or discounts, but this is rare. If we don't sell what we rent, we list MSRP value with tax
• Rent prices are the starting prices; enter trip dates on our Catalog to get exact prices (based on total trip length, not per day!). We also don't charge sales tax, an automatic savings of almost 10%!

Cookware

Type or Style	Regular, kitchen-like cookware			Small cookware for small stoves		Cookware Accessories
Model
	Xtrema Versa pot	Cuisinart French Classic Tri-Ply series		MSR Stowaway pot	MSR Alpine Fry-pan	Cuisinart kitchen tools	Cuisinart Titan knives & Bambu Undercut board
Buy MSRP with tax	$217 value	4 quart size $108 6 quart size $130	$76	1.1L size $22 1.6L size $27	$33	$68 total $17 - Can opener with bottle opener $16 - Tongs $9 - Peeler $14 - Box grater $12 - Whisk	$56 total $24 - Cutting board $16 - Chef's knife (regular or santoku style) $16 - Utility knife
	$5 Bambu cooking spoon or spatula			$6 Bambu long eating spoon
Rent includes spoon	$15+	$8+		$3+		$6+, includes all pieces
Online rental Catalog name	Dutch oven	Regular pot	Regular pan	Pot for pocket stove	Pan for pocket stove	Kitchen tools	Knives and cutting board
Material	Ceramic	Stainless steel					Titanium & bamboo
Capacities	5.5 quart	4 or 6 quart	10in (25cm) diameter	1.1 or 1.6L	8in (20cm) diameter
Can be used in fire or on coals
Weight	7lbs 3.2kg	4 quart size 4lbs 1.8kg 6 quart size 6lbs 2.7kg	3lbs 1.4kg	1.1L size 16oz 440g 1.6L size 19oz 550g	11oz 320g

When you rent online, we will pick a model for you. You can change the model if you pick-up in-store, subject to availability. On the Options page of our online order process, you can also select options or write-in any preferences. This section describes the majority of our models & options, but sometimes we carry others. We will only pick something else if it doesn't conflict with your choices indicated on the Options page; moreover, if there's a major functional difference (e.g., capacity), we will attempt to contact you first

Small cookware for small stoves (for backpacking)

If it's your first time using smaller cookware for the smaller stoves, a few things to keep in mind:

• They're thin. That means they're quick to heat, it can be easy to burn foods. Keep a close eye & stir consistently
• They may not come with handles. Seriously, sometimes handles are sold separately to reduce weight & size! Even if they are attached, they may heat up. Always have a plan to take the pot off the stove!
• They are usually not treated to be non-stick. Save yourself cleaning headaches in the backcountry & avoid foods that require searing, frying, etc.

Therefore, these smaller cookware are generally used for boiling water for beverages or backpacking meals or light simmering (e.g., soups, pasta, oatmeal, etc.). By the way if you're in a pinch, you can use a fully stainless steel water bottle as a pot! Check manufacturer instructions to verify. The bottle must be wide enough to balance on the stove, you will need a way to hold it (the metal will get hot & there's no handle!)

When washing, follow Leave No Trace principles and take water away from the water source to use at camp for washing. Never wash directly in a water source. Even eco-friendly soaps or other personal care products can contaminate water as the compounds present occur in a mucher higher concentration than they would in the wild.

Cleaning

It's important to clean between uses. No one wants food pieces to go bad inside! Thoroughly rinse with soap & water after use

We have a general protip on how to store & maintain gear that we highly recommend reviewing as well. If you send us video or a good photo series, we may be able to help you evaluate your repair needs.