Opinions on the Mauviel 1830 copper saute pan?

[E_M]

Found one at Marshalls for $130. It's about 9.5 inches, bronze handle. I didn't have a tape measure to measure the copper thickness.

What's your opinion of this pan? How does the price compare to other quality saute pans?

TIA.

[kaleokahu]

Not useless at 2mm. I have a tinned Mazzetti skillet at 2mm that works quite well. Better to be 3mm, but very functional. Certainly better than the essentially DYSfunctional Mauviel 1.5mm line in stores now.

My concern is the price--$130 is no super deal for a 2mm pan. Last week Marshalls' price for a Mauviel mixing bowl was $20 higher than Sur la Table's!

[NotJuliaChild]

Who currently manufactures 3.0mm copper cookware?

[kaleokahu]

NJC: Scarce as hen's teeth. In America: Rocky Mountain Retinning in Denver probably has new, 8-pc. sets (4 saucepans plus lids) left for $320. Hammersmith/organiccookware.com does custom work from the old Waldow catalogue, and I know their lathes and chucks will handle 1/8 sheetstock. French Copper Studio might also muscle you out some on a custom basis, if their tooling is stout enough.

In Europe, I think you will find that E.Dehillerin still carries the old Mauviel tinned "fort" thicknesses, but they are not listed on their website.

Beyond these sources, IMO you have to be like a car mechanic in Havana, and scrounge for 3mm. But 2.5 works well for those who have to have it now.

[Chemicalkinetics]

And they say car mechanics in Havana are way better than ours in the US.

[kaleokahu]

Chem: In resourcefulness and inventiveness, you bet. But in that embargoed environment, IMO it's a lot easier to keep a 1953 Chev on the road than a 2011 Lexus--as if they could get one to work on.

Just wait until the EMP devices go off. The Cubans and the NKs will be the only countries with functioning automobiles!

[stock is my muse]

EMP devices? Are those the ones that make mushroom clouds?

[kaleokahu]

Hi, Stock:

Nope, just a little pop, and then everything electronic within the radius that is not shielded is fried, and not in butter. Since we have to keep this about food, maybe I should say that the electronics will be poelled.

Aloha,
Kaleo

[NotJuliaChild]

Good info.

But aren't we splitting hairs? How many people really need the level of performance offered by tin lined 3mm copper cookware?

I think most people, myself included, would be better served by spending less time discussing cookware and more time cooking.

[kaleokahu]

NJC: "...need...?" Who (beside your handlesake) said anything about 3mm copper being a necessity? I merely appreciate that level of performance, which can be had on the cheap if you look and scrounge.

I do cook a bit, I promise. Working myself through Escoffier--ME SO STUPID!

[Will Owen]

Is it lined with tin or stainless steel? Mauviel no longer offers tinned pans in the American market, I believe, and if this pan is at Marshall's it could be one of the tinned ones they're trying to clear out. Just a guess, but I'd go look. Tinned copper requires careful use and cleaning, though you can pour water into a hot one without hurting it, and the people who still do re-tinning are getting thinner on the ground. But the stuff cooks so damned well. I've been buying up all I can find at yard or estate sales and paying the one and only re-tinner in L.A. County to make them useful; if I could find a new one at that price (about what a re-tinning job costs) I'd get it in a heartbeat.

[E_M]

It was stainless, and according to M's website, the bronze-handled items are 2mm copper, not 2.5. Ergo, I really wasn't sure if it was a good buy or not. That is, I have been told that copper really isn't useful unless it's 2.5mm thick.