Just as quality matters when you’re picking out bedroom furniture sets, quality matters when it comes to cookware. But how do you know when you need to buy quality and when the cheap option will do? Or how do you know when the price reflects the actual quality of the item you’re buying?

       I’m a big fan of Alton Brown and his series Good Eats. One of his major tenets is to avoid unitaskers as much as possible. So when my wife and I were registering for our wedding (and later buying the rest of the cookware we needed), we consulted Alton’s book Gear For Your Kitchen. We wanted to make the right decisions about which items we should have to avoid a cluttered kitchen. There’s no use in spending money or space on something you’ll hardly or never use.

       But the other reason we consulted his book was to learn where quality counts and how to choose the right tool for the job. This doesn’t mean always buying the “best” tool. It just means buying (or making) the tool that will get the job done well at a reasonable price for the level of quality needed. So we pored over the book and made a list of what we felt were the items we should have in our kitchen (that I didn’t already have before we got married).

       We found that expensive kitchen tools aren’t always the right tools. For some pots and pans, it’s important to have high quality materials (which do cost more). But for others, the cheap option is just fine.

       Choosing the right tools matters because cooking can be much easier and much more fun if you’re using the right tools. If you hate cooking, it could be because you lack the right tools. Or it could be because you have too many tools and no space to cook!

       Having quality cookware in just the right amount is key to good, enjoyable cooking. You’ll be able to prepare your food easier and possibly even tastier (as you continue to improve your own skills). It’s also the key to having a frugal kitchen. Having tools that you don’t use or don’t need (because another tool can do that job) is simply wasteful. So I’m touching on two ideas here – the value of quality cookware and the value of having just the right tools (and not every possible tool).

       If you want to learn about having just the right tools, you really ought to buy Brown’s Gear For Your Kitchen or check it out from your local library. One of the most useful aspects of his book is helping you know how to decide if you really need a tool or not and which features you need and don’t need. He also discusses the quality aspect and let’s you know when it’s best to go more expensive on an item.

The Problem with Quality Cookware

       The problem with quality cookware is that it is often expensive. And that’s what keeps many people from buying the good stuff. I’m not saying you need to equip your kitchen with copper everything. But being frugal is not about being cheap. It’s about getting a good value for your money and making sure you get the best price you can at the same time.

       It’s obvious that frustrating yourself with cheap, useless, or too much cookware will make for some miserable cooking. You know that quality cookware matters. The only part left is for you to figure out what you need and then how you’ll get it. (Again, I can’t recommend Gear For Your Kitchen enough for helping you figure out what you need.)

       If you can’t afford quality cookware all at once, you’re better off picking a couple of the most useful items and building up your set of tools from there. In our kitchen, the 3-quart saucepan and the 5-quart Dutch oven get the most use by far. If I had to recommend just one pan and one pot to use, those would fit the bill. They can cover most of your cooking needs. So I’d start there. And to help you get started, I’ve got a $100 giveaway for you from CSN Stores.

Enter for Your Chance to Win $100!!!

       CSN Stores has agreed to sponsor this $100 giveaway by offering the winner a $100 gift certificate to use at any of their online stores. They’ve got over 200 different online stores (you can see them all here) so you’re bound to find something you want. This $100 gift certificate even covers domestic shipping (sorry, international shipping isn’t covered), so as long as you don’t go over $100 on your order you won’t have to pay anything.

       Want to enter? I’m making it easy. All you have to do is sign up for free updates to Provident Planning via RSS or email, then leave a comment here letting me know you’ve done that. If you sign up by email, make sure you confirm your subscription before leaving your comment on here. (I’ll know if you haven’t!)

Get Free Email Updates:

       If you’ve already signed up for free updates to Provident Planning, just leave a comment on this post letting me know you’ve already done that and would like to enter the drawing for this giveaway. Be sure to use a valid email address when you leave your comment so I can contact you if you win. The deadline to enter is Thursday, July 15, 2010 by 5:00 P.M. EDT. I’ll use random.org to select an entry and announce the winner in my weekend reading roundup on Friday.

       And just in case you do win, here are my recommendations on how you could spend the $100 at CSN Store’s Cookware.com. For the pan, I’d go with either Calphalon’s 3-quart non-stick saute pan or their 5.5-quart anodized shallow sauce pan. For the pot, I think Calphalon’s 5-quart Dutch oven would work well. But like I said, you can spend the $100 at any of CSN Store’s online shops so don’t feel like you have to use it on cookware!

         Paul Williams is a fee-only financial planner in Lancaster County, PA. He has a passion for teaching others about personal finance - especially from a Christian perspective. If you'd like to learn about his financial planning and tax preparation services, click here.

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