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"Stock your kitchen with the most stylish\u2014and practical\u2014pots and pans\nBeing a good cook is about more than the recipes\u2014you need the right equipment, too. Use our cookware guide to decide which pots and pans will work best for you.\nCopper is handsome and heats quickly and evenly. But it's like a top-of-the-line sports car: luxurious, costly, sometimes hard to handle, and high maintenance. Frequent polishing is required to keep it looking good, and regular use will eventually cause the tin lining (which protects against acidic foods) to wear through, leaving you susceptible to copper poisoning. To avoid that, the worn pan will have to be re-tinned by a craftsman.\n\nRuffoni Artichoke-Handled stockpots, hand-hammered copper lined in durable and nonreactive tin, with riveted brass handles. Available exclusively through Williams-Sonoma in sizes of 4.75 qt., 7.5 qt., and 12.75 qt., $325\u2013$425. williams-sonoma.com, 877-812-6235\nClad stainless steel is a metal sandwich of sorts: a layer of heat-conducting copper or aluminum coated with stainless steel. It's one of the easiest kinds of cookware to care for\u2014many manufacturers now make dishwasher-safe pieces.\n\nAll-Clad stainless-steel ten-piece cookware set, $700. all-clad.com, 800-255-2523\nCast iron warms slowly but distributes heat evenly, whether the cookware is enameled or not. Plus, cast iron lasts forever. But keep in mind that it's quite heavy and that nonenamaled pieces need to be regularly \"seasoned\" with cooking oil to keep rust at bay and provide a nonstick cooking surface.\n\nLodge Cast Iron 12\"-dia. preseasoned skillet, available through Williams-Sonoma, $36. williams-sonoma.com, 877-812-6235\nAluminum heats well and resists corrosion; it's also lightweight. But make sure you buy pots and pans with a protective anodized coating. Uncoated aluminum reacts with acidic ingredients, such as tomatoes and peppers, which can pit the metal and leach aluminum into your food.\n\nCalphalon Contemporary hard-anodized nonstick-aluminum 11-piece cookware set, dishwasher safe and comes with a lifetime warranty, $400. calphalon.com, 888-626-9112\nNonstick pans are easy to clean (that's why they were invented) but can be damaged when used over too-high heat or when cleaned with abrasives. Overheating also releases toxins. And avoid cooking with metal utensils, which can scratch.\n\nKitchenaid nonstick-aluminum ten-piece set, offered in red (shown) and black, $230. kitchenaid.com, 800-541-6390\nCarbon steel\u2014often used for woks\u2014heats very quickly, but, like cast iron, it needs to be seasoned to reduce sticking.\n\nImusa 14\" nonstick-carbon-steel wok, available through Macy's, $40. macys.com, 800-289-6229\nThough not ovenproof, enameled steel is lighter than enameled cast iron, easy to clean, resistant to sticking, and it heats quickly and evenly.\n\nLe Creuset 20-qt. enameled-steel stockpot, available in flame (shown), cherry, Marseille, and soleil, $160. lecreuset.com, 877-418-5547"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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