Terminology

People use a variety of confusing names for the various types of cookware; The following are commonly accepted standards:

Pan: Covered cookware having a single, elongated handle, intended mainly for stove-top use cooking liquids; generally of 1/2 to 5 Qt capacity.

Pot: Covered cookware, having two short handles, intended for stove-top or oven use; generally of larger capacity than a pan.

Stock-Pot: A large capacity covered pot intended for use preparing broths, soups or sauces.

Stew Pot: A covered Sauce Pot designed specifically for oven use, with handles capable of withstanding repeated use at 400+ F temperatures.

Dutch Oven: A covered Sauce Pot designed to be used in an open fire where hot coals placed on the lid produced Ideal baking conditions. In the case of stove-top Dutch Ovens, they were wide pots with domed lids allowing cooking vapors to accumulate and condense, dripping back into the body of the pot. The domed lid was often combined with specially designed rims on the lid and body improving both the seal and steam retention.

Skillet: A shallow, covered, 6"-12" diameter pan designed for stove-top cooking.

Chicken Fryer: A large skillet designed for pan-frying (cooking in a shallow layer of boiling oil); generally they were large, had roomy, domed lids, and were often square in shape.

Braisier: A shallow, two handled, open pot, used to reduce sauces or glazes at high heat levels.

Sauté Skillet: A skillet with vertical sides allowing for vigorous stirring or tossing.

Omelet Pan: A small to medium sized skillet designed for rapid heating, with gently rounded ides enabling the user to fold the omelet and then slide it out of the pan rather than lifting it.

Asparagus Pot: A tall, narrow, pot with a internal steamer rack allowing Asparagus to be stood up so that the stems cooked in boiling water, while the tips are steamed.

Percolator: A coffee maker designed to repeatedly circulate the heated water through the coffee grounds, there-by increasing the strength of the brewed coffee.

Drip or "French Press": A coffee maker designed to allow the heated water to pass through the coffee grounds once only, the strength of the brew is adjusted by varying the amount of grounds used, the fineness of the grind, or both.