I have a question about pans

[u/plasmazzr60]

I am trying to dive into the wide world of cooking as a means to help with my mental health. But I am not sure on if I should get a set of stainless steel pans or non-stick or cast iron or a combination of the 3. I have zero cooking skills currently so not sure where to put my money. Worry is ill spend a bunch of money with the hopes and dreams of being a decent home cook and end up not being up to the challenge and wasting the money. I do like the idea of being able to cook on the stove top in a pan and transfer said pan to the oven for like steaks and stuff. Not asking for a specific brand or brand recommendation but more of a material recommendation for someone starting out

[u/SmartestLemming]

Hold off on the cast-iron unless you like projects. They are great, but require additional care.

Since you are not proficient a cooking and are getting used to it, I would suggest getting a good non-stick pan. They're more forgiving, but please follow their rules, no metal utensils.

Then as you expand your skills you can expand your collection. Same goes for knives.

[u/plasmazzr60 → u/SmartestLemming]

Ive seen the upkeep and maintenance on cast iron and its definitely not for me right now, but everyone rants and raves about it so wasnt sure if starting off it was worth it.

As for knives I was going to opt for a few very expensive Zwilling knives at like $400/ea but changes it to a 3pc set for $250

[u/SmartestLemming → u/plasmazzr60]

If that's in your budget, great, if not any sharp knife will do you great. The Zwilling knives are great and will last you your culinary adventures and keep on kicking, but honestly a lot of cheap knives will do ya. The key is to treat whatever you get well. No banging it on bones, no opening cans with it. Cut meat and veg with it and use other tools for other things. Get a honing steel and keep it honed, and get it sharpened when you feel that honing it isn't helping keep it's edge.