Durable, even heating, still happy 4 years later
These have served me very well over the past 3 years, with 3-5 day per week use.Pros:They have a healthy bit of heft, the handles are very manageable and safe, and they heat very evenly on both gas and electric stovetops. They have had no issues with extremely high temperatures, but due to their density, I would recommend heating them a bit more gradually for an even heating surface. (They are seriously a good weight for knocking someone out if you ever need to... ;-) )Cons: After 4 years I recently started having sticking issues on the 10" pan. I was however cooking eggs on the pan regularly, and as the pan has little ridges, eventually there is a build-up that is very difficult to clean out. I now just use a cheap non-stick pan for eggs from TJ Maxx, and still use the pan for all other meals.I would definitely purchase again, and these are a good deal at a $45 price point.
4Great for the first few months, then in the garbage.
These pans are known to lose their nonstick coating within months. Do a Google search and there are tons of complaints. And Circulon's "warranty" is a joke. You send them a photo and they just say "We regret we will be unable to fulfill one or more of your warranty replacement(s) due to your item(s) shows no signs of any visual defects." I've gone through 4 of these. I kept thinking it was me ruining them. Now I realize the pans are defective.
2Warranty is a relative term.
Bought this set to replace a four year old set of Calphalon pans that stopped being non-stick. Fortunately I didn't toss them and had them stashed away in the bottom of a closet. A few months later I found that food was beginning to stick in these pans so I began doing some online research and tried all the recommended methods of cleaning and reconditioning. Bottom line, after contacting both Calphalon and Circulon, and following their instructions, sending them detailed descriptions and photos of the pans, I was told by Circulon that I voided the warranty by using high heat and they were done with me. On the other hand, Calphalon was most gracious and replaced my old set free of charge, even paid the shipping. I learned a couple of lessons here. Never use heat above medium on these pans, and some companies will honor their warranties better than others.
2Not Quite the Same as the Infomercials...
My husband was stuck in a waiting room while a Circulon infomercial came on. He thought that the cookware would be perfect for our needs. Since I could use a nice heavy skillet, I thought "why not?" I can't say it's totally living up to the infomercials, but here are my pros and cons.Pros:Nice and heavy! These skillets heat quickly and with the thickness of the metal, I don't think they will warp easily. A *big* plus for me, since I have problems in that area with a lot of cookware.Deep enough to hold enough food without it sliding out of the pan before I'm ready.They look nice.Con:Yes, they are non-stick, but not entirely. Food gets in the circular grooves and doesn't wipe out as easily as I expected. To be fair, I was cooking with a lot of cheese, and the areas without the grooves wiped easily. On the other hand, I've made the same cheesy recipes in other non-grooved nonstick pans and they cleaned without any elbow grease.So while I like these pans, they don't completely live up to their billing in my eyes, based on the price I paid.
4These really are nonstick! (But not for long)
I have bought brand name nonstick cookware in the past that was only nonstick for the first few uses, even though I cared for it properly. I bought a Circulon pan decades ago, when they first came out, and did not like it. This time around, I was looking for a 12" nonstick pan and decided to try these even though they were Circulon, after reading reviews here and elsewhere, because I am too cheap to spend twice the money for one pan that I liked more.I'm glad I bought these. This is the first time nonstick pans have still been nonstick after 20 days of use, usually 2 times per day! I have been treating this cookware in my usual way:* My gas stove burners have 8 settings: high - numbers 1 through 6 - low. I do not go above 5 with this cookware; usually 4 is sufficient.* I have used oil or butter in the pans, to make fried rice or grilled cheese, for example.* I wait until the pan has cooled to wash it.* I use silicone utensils.* I hand wash the pans using the soft nonabrasive side of the sponge.So this morning I made eggs to test whether it was still nonstick. I did not add any butter to the pan. The burner setting was 4. I broke an egg into the pan and scrambled it with a silicon spatula. There was a slight egg white film on the bottom of the pan, but otherwise, the egg came out just fine. This egg was for my dog.I then cooked 2 fried eggs in the pan, without cleaning it first. They came out beautifully, leaving no discernible trace of the egg white film beneath where they had been. When the pan cooled, the little bit of egg film that remained from scrambling the egg had dried. I wiped it out with a paper towel. There is still a tiny bit of this very, very thin egg film in the crevices of the circles, but it came out in a jiffy when I washed the pan.These pans clean up in a jiffy, too, which is a huge plus in my book.The only thing I don't like about these pans is that there is no hole through the tip of the handle so I can hang them on a hook. There is a - what should I call it? - kind of a shallow cave-like opening on the back of the handle, so I can still hang it facing outward (with the inner pan exposed). I have a rack (5 TIER UNIT USES 3/4 DIAMTER CHROME POSTS (Chrome) (47"H x 18"W x 18"D)) that I store my cookware on, including hanging pans from it. This works because of that cave thing, but my dog likes to curl up beside it and I'm afraid the pans will fall on him. To alleviate that, I put a Rubbermaid Step Stool in that spot. He can't nap beneath the pans any more, so I don't have to worry.I highly recommend this set of pans.Update: Despite my care, the pans lost their nonstick feature quickly. It took them about a month. I used them for 2 years, and then replaced them.
5Lovely Pans!
Bought these to use with my infrared/induction cooktop. They work with induction and on my gas range. Clean easily - I wipe with a paper towel, then wipe with soapy dishcloth and rinse in hot water. I donated my 2 aluminum pans (they don't work on infrared) but kept their glass lids which fit these 2 pans perfectly. I do wish the larger 12-inch pan had an assist handle on the other side. Empty, the pan weighs just over 3 pounds so add the weight of your food to that and it can get hefty with one-pan meals. But the handle on it is attached very sturdily with an excellent non-slip cover. Also, I love how fast these heat using induction and hold heat to keep your food warm until you come back for a second serving. The underside end of the handle has a "cavity" if you want to hang it. I call it a cavity because it isn't a hole that goes all the way through.Stamped on the bottom of the pan: Hard-Anodized Nonstick, 12 IN/30.5 CM, Circulon Symmetry, QQ15T, Dishwasher & Induction SuitableI would buy these again and will buy this brand again when I need more pots or pans.
5Harder to Clean than they should be for non-stick pans
Circulon is a good brand. So when it was time to replace my gummed up old non stick pans, I got these. They heat up well, they are reasonably non stick, but the circular grid in the bottom of the pan (think corduroy in a circular pattern) tends to have food bits stick in it a little. It requires more elbow grease than I expect from a non-stick pan...you'll need a brush and you'll have to follow the grooves in a circular motion to clean it. I'm disappointed. Eventually, I replaced these with the new ceramic surface pans and I LOVE those!
3great pans unti they buckle
i own an entire set of circulon pots and pans. i general, i LOVE them and have had excellent experiences with all of them.the one exception is the 12" pan. it's simply not made well enough to be that big. i have bought two and neither has lasted 3 months without buckling. you simply cannot use that pan with high heat. if you do, you'll hear a "gloink" after some number of uses, and you'll discover that the pan is now curved on the bottom and no longer sits flat. you can rock it back and forth.once, i presumed this was a rare defect as i love the brand. twice, well, that's a design issue.i'd give any other pot or pan in the circulon symmetry line 5 stars without even having to think about it, but the 12" is simply not well enough made.i'd recommend avoiding it.
2These skillets were amazing - for a month
These skillets were amazing - for a month. Then slowly but surely things started sticking more and more. By three months I would no longer describe them as even semi non-stick. I've had these skillets for four months now and with moderate use EVERYTHING sticks. The description says these pans are dishwasher safe, however, I almost always hand wash them an only ran them through the dishwasher maybe three times. I only washed them with a non-abrasive sponge and have never used oil or cooking spray on them, but since I hate scraping food off them after every use I may need to start. So, if you like to replace your skillets every 1-2 months, these are the ones for you!The Amazon description page says, " lifetime customer satisfaction - guaranteed," but I am definitely not satisfied. As far as I can tell, the seller has nothing to do with replacing them, so I do not think that is a guarantee they should be putting in the description. Returns/replacements I think must be the manufacturer, and to do that you have to pay for shipping to and from, and hope they decide the skillets are indeed defective. I am pretty sure that won't happen.The photo is plain old basic scrambled eggs.
1Still great after 3 years
Just happened across this page and saw that we ordered this set 3 years ago, so I think it's time for a review. We had the Contempo set first but then got these when we switched to induction cooktop. The Symmetry set has held up very well for us. We do burgers, stir fry, eggs...etc. with these - we do use oil in our cooking and we hand wash these with soft sponge in warm water. Food brown beautifully in these and they are very easy to clean. I actually burnt food on the 10 inch pan a few times and thought for sure I'd ruined the pan, but the coating held up and the pan is still working very well.We have this set plus the 8.5 inch pan for omelets, and also the 4 1/2 quart chef pan to use as a wok (I'm Chinese). My husband likes to use a cast iron pan to fry burgers, but my damaged wrist cannot handle the weight, so everything else is cooked in these pans. It really makes food taste better when cooking with good cookware. These pans have more than met my expectation and I think they will easily last at least another 3 years. I just hope they still make these when it's time to get new ones.
5
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