One of the strongest memories of my childhood was the night my mother bought new cookware. I think I was 4 or 5 years old at the time.

My father was a mild-mannered, easy-going, gentle man who rarely raised his voice to anyone (including me when I brought the new car home with a dent – but that’s another story.)

My mother had made the mistake of letting a door-to-door salesman in the house. (So the story goes.)

He was selling stainless steel cookware.

It was very expensive cookware.

I have no idea what my mother was thinking – she often said she had no idea what evil possessed her at the time, but she wanted it. She was determined. She won. She bought it. It was outrageously expensive and she had to buy a special expensive cleaner to make it stay shiny and new.

Their marriage survived, as did the cookware.

Fifty years later, when she moved into assisted living, she gave the cookware to my sister. It still looked like new.

My sister was thrilled to get it.

But in all those years, with those beautiful pans, my mother always used one of her 2 cast iron skillets for frying.

Good pots and pans make your time in the kitchen easier and more enjoyable – read on for some tips on choosing.

Guide: How To Choose The Best Cookware For Your Home

Are you thinking of getting new cookware sets for yourself? ‘Cause I really do know how it feels to explore the never-ending brands and their different stocks and feeling more and more confused. Here comes a few tips which will make your task a bit easier.

• Start with considering your budget.

It does not really mean that the expensive items are the best ones. Nor are the expensive items the most useful one in all cases. So… decide the price which you are willing to spend on the cookery sets. The budget might vary depending on a number of factors including the material of the cookware set, the number of pieces and the sizes of the cookware and many more. You need to take into consideration the number of people for whom you cook: is it just you or do you cook for your family; how many times do you cook and how many different items do you make every day.

What kind of dishes do you cook the most often?

Do you fry veggies more or do you make soups and pancakes more? Think of the type of meals you cook and on the basis of that, you will decide the type of pots and pans you need. Note down all the dishes you cook and then think about which type of pan would have made your work easier. Dig in, find out the right types and then proceed to the next step of this guide.

• What type of cookware material are you looking for?

Mainly there are two kinds of inner coatings in the cookwares- Teflon and ceramic. While the ceramic pans are more long-lasting and eco-friendly ones, the Teflon pans are still the most used ones being the perfect non stick pan. 

The competition between a ceramic pan and a Teflon one is never going to end but we also really cannot deny the fact that Teflon releases quite an amount of toxic fumes which can be harmful for the one who is cooking.

And there are a number of different materials with which the outer covering of the cookware is made. The most used ones are aluminium and stainless steel while the others include hard anodized and lastly cast iron. 

The stainless steel made cookwares are highly resistant to scratches while the hard anodized cookware is considered as the most user-friendly one among the others because of its non-reactive surface. 

Cast iron is the most useful one as it is highly durable on one part and it is budget-friendly too. The aluminium cookware sets have been used since ages back mainly because of their lightweight nature. However, each one of them comes with their own sets of pros and cos and thus do consider them before getting the final set.

• Check the durability.

Even though the nonstick sets are usually cheaper, they do not really last more than 5 to 6 years. The most durable one is hard anodized, however, the cast iron cookware are long-lasting ones too. Make your selections according to your needs and if needed pick the fewer durable ones and repurchase them as and when needed in the future.

• Decide the number of cookware you need.

There are many cookware sets available in the market based on the number of pieces. Some are 5-piece while the rest are 10 or even 20 piece sets. The most popular seems to be the 10-piece set as it has enough variety to serve your needs properly.

If you are still uncertain about which one of the cookware sets you want, start with noting down the items and dishes which you cook quite often. As the materials of the cookware should be chosen according to the food you are cooking. So go ahead and go through this complete guide while thinking of the dishes you make every day. In the end, those are going to play a major role and if you end up cooking better and more comfortably after getting the cookware set you are looking for, it will definitely prove that you have found the right one.