Grande Epicure Heuck Stainless Steel Stockpot, 8-Quart

I shopped around for a set of large stainless steel pots to use as a double boiler set up for making cheese and this set was, without a doubt, the best value. I looked at several local stores, including a wholesale grocery supplier, and couldn't find anything even close to this price (I paid $49 for the set June 2013)The pots themselves are not heavy-duty by any means, but they are not flimsy either, and they will definitely work for my purposes. Another reviewer suggested looking at the W-mart store for these. The quality of the pots at W are about the same - the brand is Mainstays. I couldn't find a 20-qt, which is what I need most, so I didn't price them.I wouldn't recommend trying to cook anything that will scorch in these pots, since they are fairly thin-bottomed - I wouldn't go making chili or spaghetti in them - but a pot of soup with a broth/stock base will be fine. For anything that will scorch (ie things with a tomato base, thick bean or pea soups, anything with sugar, and so on) you will definitely want a heavy-bottomed pot. I don't even use my old Revere Ware pots for these things, I use heavy, enamel covered cast iron (Le Creuset, if you are interested!). These are "stock pots" so they are designed to cook stock - which is water poured over meat or vegetables to make a broth.I also want to address the stated volume of the pots. Perhaps other reviewers have pots from a different manufacturer than the pots I received - it's entirely possible - but I measured, with a measuring cup, and the stated volume is correct. BUT the stated volume is the volume of the whole pot, so when I poured water into the 20-qt pot, the water went all the way to the very brim of the pot, not to the rivets. I'm pretty sure most cookware is labeled as such - the stated volume is the TOTAL volume of the pot, not the usable volume. So when my cheese recipe calls for 16 qts of milk, I need to use the 20-qt pot so I have room to stir.Another pot on Amazon that looked the same had a review which said liquid leaked from around the rivets. I have the 20-qt pot filled with water right now and it's not leaking.Things may change as I use the pots and they get hot and cold and the metal expands and contracts, so the quality may change, and I will update my review if needed. But for now I highly recommend this pot set for making stock and for making cheese.

people have mentioned the fact that it's really thin and cheap feeling, but this puppy worked like a charm! just got done brewing a 5gal batch of a hoppy wheat IPA with LME from NB. was very even heating on the boil(i have gas range), the handles were fine to use with bare hands to transfer the kettle to the ice bath, and i think the fact that it's thinner than pricier pots of the same size, it actually helped cool the wort faster(which was 3gal of wort cooled from boiling to 73 degrees in 25 minutes).easy to clean and fits in my dishwasher. the lid was also great, lightweight, and solid fit. although it was hot to touch if your knuckles touched the lid itself, but the handle was no problem to handle.would recommend for 5gal/batch brewers. very cost effective. very happy customer here.

I recently purchased this set and in my opinion they a very good simple set of stock pots. The product discription and photo are accurate as well. Sizes are 8, 12, 16, & 20 quart deep stock pots with matching lids for each. In total it is an 8 piece set. But these pots are NOT for cooking on high heat for a long amount of time. The metal is stainless steel, but they are thin and light wieght, so if you have the idea for outdoor cooking with these, I would not recomend it. You could buy these individually at W**Mart that are labled as mainstays for about $10 and up by the size. For myself it was better to get the set. I can cook a dinner for 6 with the 8 quart, but for a larger order I can use the 20 quart. What ever suits me. They are holding up well, food dosn't stick on the bottom, a plus is the handles are riveted, not only suadered to the side of the pots. I would recommend these to any home cook as an essential stock pot set. FYI I paid $50.00

I was looking for a nonencapsulated stock pot that I could use to pop popcorn. This is not it. This was a disaster! The bottom of the pot is raised in the center, so the oil rolled out to the sides where it's lower, and the popcorn just burned and didn't pop hardly at all. It didn't smell like popcorn when it burned. It smelled really acrid, as if the pan was also burning, or the coating was or something.Anyway, one attempt and the pot was completely ruined beyond salvation. This pot is super thin, it's super easy to burn the contents of it, and the raised center makes it hard to put oil in the bottom to coat it first. You get what you pay for in this case.

I don't use this for cooking, I actually use it as a table/food scrap collection container for our kitchen counter top. The reason being that Costco's compostable food scrap bags come in a 3 gallon size, but all the counter top compost containers were all at max 1 gallon or 1.3 gallons large. Would be a waste of a bag, or would have food spilling out over the top. And this was $3-$7 less than any of those containers. So far it's worked perfectly, the bags do overlap out over the sides. Like how it is not plastic so absolutely no odors are retained, and also stainless steel so no chance of rusting. Also like the handles because it is easy to tie up the bag, and then bring the whole container over to the side of the house to dump in our green waste bin, as added protection against possible leaks/spills. Don't use the lid as I feel that letting it air out reduces bad smells.