Cooker King Sauté Pan, Wok and Deep Skillet Reviewed

This is the largest of the three, a 5-quart sauté pan with a lid. The brand builds it as tri-ply clad, with stainless steel around a heavy-gauge aluminum core, and covers the cooking surface in a ceramic coating. A laser-etched grid in that surface is there, the brand says, to protect the coating and make it scratch-resistant and safe for metal utensils.

The spec list gives the pan 2.64 kg. Add a braise and a lid and it is a two-hand pan.

That is a fair price for a flat, steady base on a burner, and a poor deal if you flip food with a wrist flick. The brand lists electric coil, gas and smooth-surface induction as compatible and rates the pan oven safe to 500°F.

One reviewer with a new glass-top stove had old pans that were warped and no longer flat, and wanted a deep 12-inch nonstick pan with a flat bottom. The reviewer says this one met every need, though it took a couple of uses to get the hang of it.

Buyers like the depth. One reviewer says nothing spills over the sides when tossing and calls the pan stable and even-heating.

That reviewer cooks on gas, says the handle does not heat up, and says the pan still looks new after many meals. Another buyer says it cooks evenly and that food did not stick. A third likes the weight, calling it sturdy without feeling heavy.

The brand's advice for the best release is to preheat on medium-low heat with some oil. A reviewer says the same, cooks on low to medium heat and lets the pan cool before rinsing.

That reviewer still adds olive oil or butter, because the taste is better that way. Treat the coating as a help, not a replacement for fat.

Here is the gap. All five written reviews we read are positive, so they tell us little about failure. The star breakdown fills in some of it.

About 82 percent of the 230 ratings are five stars and about 5 percent are one star. Roughly one buyer in twenty had a bad time, and none of them explains why in the reviews we read. We cannot say how the coating ages past a few months.

Buy it if you cook on glass or induction and want one deep nonstick pan for sauces, stir-fries and French toast. Skip it if you need an oven limit above 500°F. The uncoated 3.6-quart pan is rated to 900°F by its own spec list.

The wok is the smallest by capacity at 3.51 quarts, and the brand sizes it at 10 inches. It weighs 2.29 kg and has a concave shape and a lid. Buyer reviews come from 10, 11 and 12-inch versions, so more than one size exists.

The build matches the sauté pan: tri-ply stainless over an aluminum core, a ceramic coating and the laser-etched grid. The brand says that build sears bacon and tortillas. It lists stir-frying, small-batch cooking and single servings among the uses.

One number needs care. A bullet on the product page rates the pan induction and oven safe to 900°F, while the spec list gives a maximum temperature of 500°F.

We would plan around 500°F until the brand clears it up. The sauté pan says 500°F in both places, and the uncoated pan says 900°F in both.

Buyers say it gets hot. One reviewer on an induction range says it gets extremely hot and heats evenly, and calls it a well-made wok of the right size.

Another cooks Chinese vegetables every day and bought this one after an old pan wore out. That reviewer first dismissed the surface pattern as a gimmick, then decided the laser etching helps keep food from sticking. The glass lid with its wide lip gets praise too.

This is the product with real criticism. A reviewer in Canada gave three stars because food sticks to the bottom easily and the pan is not nonstick, and wrote only that they were completely dissatisfied.

A four-star reviewer says that in under a month the outside and the cover burn and discolor easily. A third reviewer warns that the pan might warp if water hits it hot, and says to let it cool first.

About 80 percent of the 177 ratings are five stars. Five percent are one star, so a small group of buyers had a bad time.

Sticking shows up once in the reviews we read, and the discoloring once. That is thin evidence for a pan with six written reviews, but both complaints land on the surface and the finish, the parts you notice every day.

Buy it for stir-fries and single servings on induction or gas, and let it cool before it meets water, even though the brand calls it dishwasher safe. Skip it if you cook for a crowd, since 3.51 quarts is the smallest capacity here.

Skip it too if you want a pan whose outside looks new after months. The 5-quart pan has no such report in the reviews we read.

The third pan drops the coating. It is a 3.6-quart sauté pan with a lid, made of tri-ply stainless steel, and the brand lists it as uncoated.

The brand rates it oven safe to 900°F and compatible with electric coil, gas and induction. No weight is given, so we cannot compare its heft with the others.

What sets it apart is the handles and the interior. The brand describes ergonomic side handles for a balanced grip, and a rivet-free interior that it says prevents buildup and makes cleaning easier.

The spec list also names a detachable handle, though the product page does not say how it attaches. Fajitas, omelets, paella and tadka are the uses the brand lists.

One reviewer calls it a favorite go-to pan, deep enough for one-pot meals. That reviewer finishes pasta sauce with cooked noodles and mozzarella in the oven, cooks on a glass-top stove, preheats with olive oil and says nothing sticks.

Another reviewer likes the rivet-free belly. That buyer also says the helper handles suit a 12-inch pan, where a long handle is awkward.

Storage is a quiet point in its favor. A buyer likes that the handles take no extra room in the cabinet, unlike a large fry pan.

Another buyer likes that the handle is detachable. If your cupboard is crowded, that counts for more than it sounds, and a deep pan is hard to stack otherwise.

Criticism is thin. We have four written reviews, and the only one under five stars is a four-star from a buyer who returned the pan because the size did not suit them.

That buyer says it was not the brand's fault. The five-star share is 74 percent, lower than the coated pans at 82 and 80 percent, and 22 percent of ratings are four stars. With only 59 ratings, a few buyers move those numbers.

Uncoated steel brings the high oven limit and the metal-utensil freedom the brand advertises. It also asks you to bring oil and patience. The brand gives no preheating rule for it, so we will not write one.

The reviewer on the glass-top stove used olive oil, and that is the only advice in the reviews we read.

Buy it if you want one deep pan that goes from the burner to a 900°F oven and do not mind cooking with fat. Skip it if you want a nonstick surface. If you need more room, the 5-quart sauté pan holds 1.4 quarts more, and it is the one we would pick for a family.