Zwilling's Stainless Steel Pan Set is an elevated take on basics - here's why they should be in your kitchen

Zwilling is best known for their high-quality stainless steel knives, so the fact that they've expanded into stainless steel pans makes total sense. There's a lot to choose from, but I think the Zwilling Passion Stainless Steel Pot Set is one of the best out there. Here's why.

Over the past few months, I've tested over 20 of the best stainless steel pans on the market. From AGA to Ikea, I've boiled, sauteed, stewed, slow-cooked, and simmered on some impressive stainless steel.

Looking back on all of them, Zwilling still stands out as one of the most simple, yet sophisticated takes on a basic set. The 18/10 stainless steel is welded together, promising to last for a whole lifetime, as the warranty guarantees. I put these to the same tests that our best induction pans go through to find out whether they're better than the basics without getting too technical for the average chef.

Specifications

What's in the set?

The Zwilling Passion Stainless Steel Pot Set covers all bases, from the large stew pot to the handy milk pan, you can cook a whole roast dinner and still have some pans left over. In total, the set includes a 2-litre stock pot, a 3.5-litre stock pot, a 6-litre stock pot, a 3-litre stew pot, and a 1.5-litre saucepan (or milk pan). All of the stock pots have snug-fitting, flat lids, that still sit stably on the pan when they're turned upside down, so I would feel pretty happy stacking them on top of each other.

The five-piece set is all crafted from premium 18/10 stainless steel, with an aluminium core and steel base. This neatly makes use of the speedy, even heat transfer of aluminium with the robustness of steel. They're compatible with all hobs, oven-safe, and super durable. Even the handles feel premium: they've been made not to heat up when the rest of the pan gets hot and they've been welded onto the pan too. There's a lot on offer here.

Who would it suit?

Three hundred pounds might not sound like a bargain, especially when there are stainless steel sets on offer for under £100, but stick with me because I think that the Zwilling Passion Stainless Steel Pot Set set is one of the best value ones out there.

Zwilling has hit the sweet spot for price and durability because they guarantee their pans for a whole lifetime. The only other brands that do this are Le Creuset, who's stainless steel set will cost you twice as much as Zwilling's. Considering that these pans are crafted from 18/10 stainless steel and welded, rather than nailed or stapled together, they're a great investment, for a family home at least.

My only caveat comes with respect to smaller homes. If you know that you’re not particularly adventurous in the kitchen and you’re often only making meals for one or two, there will be smaller sets that cater to your needs much more effectively. You could remove two pans from this set and be happy. Luckily, you can buy them individually and I’ll be going into more detail on what each one is like further down this article.

Unboxing

Zwilling Passion Stainless Steel Pot Set, for all its size and capacity, comes in a relatively small box. It’s dense and quite heavy to lift, but you could get it into the work surface without any problems.

Getting all of the pans out of the box was a treat. They’re elegantly designed, robustly built, and packaged well enough to arrive in pristine, shiny condition. While the box and aspects of the packaging are recyclable, this did come with some soft plastics. These are recyclable if you have a big supermarket such as Waitrose or Sainsbury’s near you, but it takes more effort to dispose of these consciously. Aside from that, it’s an impressive set. They look good together and I would be happy to have them on display in my home.

What is it like to use?

All of the Zwilling Passion Stainless Steel Pot Set comes with stainless steel lids that nest securely on top of the pan, even if you put them on upside down for things to be stacked on. The milk pan doesn’t have a lid, but I wouldn’t expect that.

The inside of all of the pans are marked clearly with measurements. This useful feature is surprisingly easy to mess up with a less clear, smaller font. Before using these, I gave all the pans a rinse to get rid of any factory dust and dirt and then they were good to go. They're all safe for use on all hob types (and you can even put them in the oven too).

Test 1: milk pan

Milk pans aren’t always included in saucepan sets, but I think they’re actually some of the most useful pans out there. The Zwilling set calls their milk pan a saucepan, which makes sense, because all the other saucepans are called stock pots. Once you've shifted the names to suit the ones that we would usually use, it's all very straightforward.

The pan has a nice, long handle that feels comfortable to hold. It doesn’t get too hot when it’s cooking, nor does the pan feel heavy when it’s full of water or potatoes. It’s really nicely designed.

I have a few tests that I put all milk pans through: making porridge, boiling eggs, and heating milk, or soup. These three basic tasks test how well the pan heats different dishes as well as how quick it is to warm up and how consistent the temperature is across the pan, this is particularly obvious on porridge.

For my porridge, I added a cup of oats and two cups of milk and then let the oats bubble on a low heat. I kept stirring them to stop them catching and, in under five minutes, my porridge looked ready. That’s pretty speedy compared to some other pans, so I wanted to give it a taste test too.

Getting all of the porridge out of the pan was easy, it slid effortlessly into the bowl. Then, I gave it a taste. The oats were really soft, but they still had a nice bit of bite and texture to them. It was steaming hot, even after I added some fruit and berries. All in all, I would say it was a success.

I boiled an egg in the pan every day for a week. I like my yolk to be soft and a little runny in the middle, so I normally let them boil for four or five minutes. Generally, the eggs took this long. I started by taking them out at 4.5 minutes every day, but I was getting slight differences in the consistency of the yolk, so I tried being a little more reactive. Whilst the eggs were always good, it’s worth noting that this does have some slight variance in how quick it is to heat.

The last test that I have the milk pan was heating soup, which generally requires a quick blast of heat. I could only get about one or two servings in. If I tried to pack too much in, it spat over the sides. Generally, the soup warmed up quickly. With me stirring, the heat was evenly dispersed across the pan. It’s a useful bit of kit.

Test 2: the saucepans (or stock pots, in this case)

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I mentioned earlier that the Zwilling Passion Stainless Steel Pot Set calls their saucepans 'stock pots'. This makes sense, because they have the smaller, stubbier handles. Lots of British sets kind of oscillate between stubby and long handles on bigger pots, but this design makes more sense. They're easier to lift up (the longer handle can get uncomfortable on bigger, 6-litre pans) and they've been cleverly designed so that they don't get too hot.

Depending on what you want to cook, you can select a different stock pot. I generally found myself drawn to the 3.5-litre pan, but, depending on what you're making and how much you want to make, you'll want to pot for different sizes. Some are better for stews, some for casseroles, some for boiled potatoes, and the biggest one is perfect for jam, because it’s deep. I tested them all on everything, so that you could get a good idea of their versatility.

This meant that I used each pan from the Zwilling Passion Stainless Steel Pot Set to make: a bean stew, a curry, boiled potatoes, soup, and then the biggest pan was tasked with making jam too. They were all great. The sides are very deep, so this was the only set that didn’t have any of the food spitting over the hob. All of my foods heated nice and evenly, the only qualm I had was that the handles got quite hot when they were on the hob for longer.

The stew, curry, and soup were perfect, as were the potatoes. However, when I came to drain the potatoes, I thought the lid could be a little more helpful. You can hold it in place, leaving a gap for drainage, but I’ve tested pans with special drain holes, meaning that you don’t need a colander. Don’t get me wrong, these are great basics, but some parts could work a little harder.

Are they easy to clean?

It’s easy to get the Zwilling Passion Stainless Steel Pot Set cleaned up. They can go in the dishwasher, which makes cleaning up really easy, but I like to wash them by hand. I keeps the stainless steel looking fresher and in better shape. I would also recommend using a gentle washing up liquid such as Ecover or Method, since these are much kinder to your pans too. If you have any seriously stubborn problems, we have a guide on how to clean stainless steel pans.

How do they compare?

Zwilling Passion Stainless Steel Pot Set pans fall firmly into the category of brilliant basics. Whilst I love them for how deep they are, especially the biggest jam pan, the stock pots do blur into one, making it feel like you get a bit too much for the average kitchen. If you're savvy, you're probably thinking it's an opportunity to save some money. It is.

M&S makes a 5-Piece Stainless Steel Pan Set that’s stainless steel too. It’s just £99 and it comes with three saucepans, a milk pan, and a frying pan too. The saucepans have clear lids, which is really useful if you want to keep an eye on your cooking, whilst the milk pan and frying pan are coated with ceramic non-stick. This makes them easier to cook with and cheaper too. They don't have a lifetime guarantee, but M&S promises that they'll work well for 25-years, which is a pretty good length of time. If you're really looking for basics, you can't go wrong here.

If you like the sound of that, but you want some more finesse and fireworks, it’s worth investing in the Tefal Jamie Oliver Ingenio collection. These are incredibly well-built, neatly designed, so they can stack inside each other, and the handles come off too. They’re a similar price and they’re the ones that I chose to invest in.

Should you buy it?

If you’re looking for a good range of basics, the Zwilling Passion Stainless Steel Pot Set is a wonderful investment. You’ll never run out of pans and you’ll also know that you can rely on these to last a long time. The stock pots will really appeal to some cooks, offering the same functions, in more versatile set ups. However, some others might find these a little redundantly similar. Whichever you are, you have options.

How we test

I've set up the process for how we test stainless steel pans at woman&home, which means that every pan set gets run through the same series of tests. That way, we can make a fair comparison between each model.

Before I see any set in person, I do my research. I'm always looking for the best, most suitable stainless steel pans on the market. As soon as I see a set that I think you'll like, I call it in to put through our tests ready for a review.

Once I have the set in my hands, I make notes on everything. I'll let you know what the box and packaging is like, what the pans look like, how heavy they are, and any special cleaning instructions that come with them too. Then, I'll put them through a series of tests. I ask milk pans to make porridge, boil eggs, and reheat soup, so that I can test the heat distribution, non-stick, and consistency of how quickly the pan heats up.

Next, I'll test the saucepans and stock pots. These are generally very versatile pans, so I use them for a range of different meals. I make curries, stews, soups, boiled potatoes, and jams in the pans. I look for any spitting and splashing, test the panhandles, check that they don't get too heavy, and I interrgoate every extra feature. I'm looking for pans that are nice to handle, quick to heat up, and ones which evenly heat across all of the base. Only the best ones make it to the review stage.

Aftewards I'll wash up all of the pans. Then, I'll think about how they compare to other models on the market. This is a great opportunity for me to make comments on who the pans would suit, whether they're good value for money, and also whether they're a good investment. I'll draw useful conclusions for you, telling you whether I think they're worth it. None of our reviews are sponsored, so you can rest assured. You're getting my unfiltered, expert thoughts.