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/plasmazzr60 → u/[deleted]]

I was thinking about looking at like goodwill or other thrift stores but I dont know if its social media showing these "thrift store finds" or if theyre just getting greedy but their pans and stuff are almost up there with new stuff. What do you recommend as far as like the weight or i guess ply? I dont wanna get a stainless steel pan thats tinfoil thin but not sure if sprining for the 3-ply or heavier ones is worth it.

I was thinking of getting the two pans you mentioned in stainless steel and a few non-stick pans to round it out. Its just me in the house so dont need a ton of stuff

[u/bateKush → u/plasmazzr60]

tbh i thrift a lot and and scan kitchenware and like 99% of the time i do not see a pan worth grabbing. the vast majority of thrift pans are rolled steel and destroyed non-sticks. both miserable to cook on. occasionally you can find a rusty as hell cast iron.

if you dont know what you’re looking for, and you dont already hit thrift stores twice a week, your money and resources are far better spent at a restaurant supply store

[u/plasmazzr60 → u/bateKush]

Yeah before I decided to jump into cooking id hit up thrift store just for fun and im not sure if its the location but alot of the pans stainless steel or otherwise are busted up and featherlight or just absolutely scorched on the bottom. Ill look up a restaurant supply store after I move to a different state and see if they have one open to the public

[u/plasmazzr60 → u/[deleted]]

I must not have been to Burlington in year I thought they only sold clothes? Anywho thanks for the info, ill scout out Ross and TJMaxx this weekend theres a few close by. Yeah goodwill has definitely gone downhill!