This is arguably John Lewis' best-value pan set with 7 pieces for £180 – I put it through its paces in my family kitchen

Choosing a new saucepan set is a hard job — you probably have a huge list of non-negotiables that you want, right? Well, I've been testing this 5-piece set from John Lewis, and it is ticking a lot of my boxes. If you want a set that offers a combination of non-stick and naked pans, then this is your best choice as it offers two coated fry pans, plus a coated milk pan and two uncoated fully stainless steel saucepans, complete with lids.

This set is dishwasher-safe, oven-safe, and all handles are heat-resistant. It's the perfect size set for families, and the non-stick coating on the two fry pans and milk pan is impressive, making them super easy to clean after use. Naturally, the bare pans are harder to clean, but they do offer chemical-free cooking.

I used this pan set in my busy kitchen for two weeks. I used the pans to cook a variety of foods — the saucepans were used for boiling pasta and bulgur, for heating beans and cooking vegetables, plus making sauces. The fry pans I used for fried eggs, scrambled eggs, halloumi and salmon. Here's how I got along with them.

In a nutshell

If you're after an entirely new pan set and want a few naked pans thrown in there, then this is a great option — especially if you're a big John Lewis fan.

Included in this set are two saucepans measuring 16cm and 18cm with matching lids, plus a 14cm milk pan. You also get 24cm and 28cm frying pans, made from premium-grade 18/10 stainless steel with a PTFE coating (the same coating is also on the milk pan). Design-wise, all pans have a curved lip for easy pouring of foods and liquids, while their handles never get hot while cooking. The two saucepans have measurements inside as well as matching lids — the lid handles do get hot, FYI. These pans arrived in a box with eco-friendly and easy-to-recycle packaging and wrapping.

While using them to cook, all pans performed well. The non-stick coating on the fry pans and milk pan was impressive. The saucepans come in a great range of sizes, but the two without a coating are a lot more difficult to clean after use. I noticed that white marks started to show on the saucepans after a few uses, because I live in a hard water area. They also ideally need to be dried as soon as they are washed, to prevent water marks. All of the pans clean well in the dishwasher. The thing I disliked about them the most was that I couldn't use metal utensils while cooking.

In short, I think £180 for all of these pans is a bargain, but it's not the most convenient pan set you will ever use since you have to avoid metal utensils, and the naked saucepans are naturally more difficult to clean and maintain. I'd also have loved even one of the fry pans to come with a lid.

Product specs

• Materials: Premium-grade 18/10 stainless steel 
• Metal utensil safe? No
• Dishwasher safe? Yes
• Pan diameters: 14cm milk pan, 24 & 28cm frying pans, 16cm & 18cm saucepans
• Warranty: 5 years
• RRP: £180

Who tested this saucepan set?

Annie Collyer

Annie was previously Deputy Ecommerce Editor at Ideal Home but has since taken on a freelance role. She has 7+ years of reviews experience, having tested everything from cookware to hot tubs, various air fryers and even a lawnmower.

Annie used this 5-piece set in her busy family kitchen. The saucepans were used to cook pasta, bulgur, vegetables, potatoes and sauces such as gravy and a parsley sauce. The fry pans cooked halloumi, fried eggs, salmon and scrambled eggs.

Unboxing the product

This pan set arrived in a nifty box that wasn't heavy to lift onto my worktop, and inside the packaging was eco-friendly. Each pan was wrapped in paper, with round cardboard inserts separating the pans that nestled together.

In the box came a page of instructions which I quickly glanced over. It was here I learned that this pan isn't safe to use with metal utensils. It said to wash all pans and lids before first use, so I did just that.

Cooking

I found that the size ranges of the pans were pretty perfect. I did end up using the milk pan for other things — cooking a single boiled egg and a couple of stalks of broccoli for my toddler. But, the medium-sized pan proved handy for cooking vegetables for the entire family, and the large one was great for cooking pasta, grains and potatoes for all of us.

I loved the design of the saucepans — all three feature curved rims for easy pouring, and they actually worked. I was sceptical about the lids for the medium and large pans, as while they did have air holes, I thought their handles might get warm. They did get hot when in use as they are made entirely from stainless steel, so I had to protect my hands with a tea towel when using them.

The handles on the pans themselves never got hot. I made sure that my flame was never larger than the base of the pan, which definitely made a difference.

Otherwise, I loved that the medium and large saucepans have measurements etched inside both pans, as this can be useful when cooking certain foods, such as rice.

I did find it frustrating that the pans cannot be used with metal utensils. I don't tend to use plastic utensils, and my wooden utensils go as far as spoons because I prefer using metal ones. This is a big game-changer for me.

Using the fry pans
The first thing I cooked in the smallest frying pan was an egg. No oil, just a hot pan and one egg. Despite accidentally breaking the yolk while cracking it, the egg cooked well. I managed to slide it around the pan, and cleaning the pan afterwards was pretty minimal.

I cooked another fried egg a few days later, and it was a total success as I managed to keep the yolk intact, and again, the egg was nice and crispy on the bottom and didn't require any oil. If you look closely, you can actually see the markings from the pan etched onto the bottom of the egg.

This is the point where it annoyed me that I couldn't use metal utensils — my spatula I use for fried eggs, is metal, and I don't own a plastic or wooden one. Luckily, I was able to slide the egg off the pan and onto my toast.

This pan was also used to cook a box of mushrooms in butter for breakfast. Again, they cooked well, fast, and the cleanup was minimal. I had no issues using a wooden spoon for this, as I would usually use one.

The larger frying pan was used to cook halloumi. A whole block managed to squeeze into one pan. It did take a while to cook, but it cooked well, and I was impressed that I managed to squeeze a lot of halloumi in one pan.

We also used the large pan to cook four salmon fillets. These were cooked in butter, but they never stuck to the pan, and the clean-up afterwards was easy. Four large salmon fillets fit into this pan easily, so it's great for family meals.

For both of these, I used my tongs, which are metal but have plastic tips, so this was no issue.

I also used this pan to cook scrambled eggs, and my husband's famous recipe uses butter. The eggs didn't stick to the pan at all, and the pouring lip on this pan made them easy to serve straight onto our plates. We washed the pan in the dishwasher afterwards. He usually uses a wooden spoon to scramble his eggs, so we had no metal utensils issue.

Using the saucepans
I used the smallest saucepan the most while testing, as not only was its non-stick coating great while heating foods like baked beans, but its tiny size was perfect for toddler-size portions. I also used it for cooking a parsley sauce for salmon, because I wanted to ensure that the sauce wouldn't stick to the base of the pan. This pan does not come with a lid, just an FYI.

I would've usually used a metal spoon to stir and serve the beans, and the same goes for the boiled egg as I would use it to submerge the egg in the water and remove it. I ended up using alternatives, which were fine, but I did find that it was hard not to use a fork while making the gravy in this pan.

The medium-sized saucepan was mostly used for cooking side dishes for us as a family of three. I used this pan to cook broccoli, carrots and green beans several times throughout the space of 2 weeks. Each time they cooked fast. I also fit 4 small corn on the cobs into the medium-sized pan, handily enough. They cooked according to the packet instructions.

I also used it for cooking baked beans, to see whether they would stick to the bottom of the pan even though the pan was bare without a coating. They didn't stick whatsoever, but I was constantly stirring them with a wooden spoon.

I used it for boiling pasta (photo below), which cooked according to the packet instructions. As well as this, I cooked bulgur wheat in this pan. This was down to user (me) error, but I ended up burning the bulgur and soaking the pan to remove the burned bits. I did manage to get the burnt marks off after a lot of scrubbing.

The larger saucepan I used for cooking potatoes several times. I used this pan for both new potatoes and for par-boiling roast potatoes. Once the water was boiling, which did take a while because of the amount of it, the potatoes cooked as per the packet instructions.

I did use the two lids while cooking, which fit the medium and larger saucepans. These lids have tiny air holes to allow air to escape. I noted that they rattle when the pan is on too high, which is almost an alert to tell you to turn the temperature down or remove the lid before the pan spills over. The handles do get hot, so beware.

Cleaning

Everything is dishwasher-safe, including the lids. I washed one of the saucepans, one lid and one fry pan in my dishwasher to see how they came out, and surprisingly enough, everything cleaned fine. Even the bare pans, which I was shocked by, as these usually require a lot of work to clean.

The bare pans are a lot harder to clean than the milk pan, depending on what you use them to cook. I recommend watching them like a hawk while cooking with them, as I ended up burning bulgur wheat while cooking it, and a load of it stuck to the bottom of one of the naked pans, and I was soaking it for a few days. Not recommended!

The only issue I had when it came to maintenance was with the three saucepans, as I noticed that they had gradually started going white. I do live in a hard water area, so this is a little expected and has happened to other pans I own. But, it has happened a lot faster with this set and is a lot worse. I haven't had the same issue with the fry pans (yet).

I've noticed that cleaning these pans and drying them immediately definitely makes the white glaze on them a little less obvious; otherwise, you can put some baking soda and water into pans to remove the white marks, as it's quite common. The lids do get fingerprint marks on and it's pretty impossible to avoid this.

Storage

Unfortunately, there's nothing storage-savvy about this pan set if you're on a quest to store pans smartly. It didn't arrive with pan protectors to stack or nest them together, so do so at your own risk. The saucepans are fine to be nested together, as they don't have a coating that could be damaged, but you'll need to be careful when stacking the fry pans.

I managed to configure two ways of storing this set in my drawer. But, to put it simply, you're going to need quite a lot of space for this set.

How does it compare to similar models and its predecessors?

John Lewis sells a huge range of pan sets, but let's compare this one with other similar sets, focusing on price and design. Interestingly enough, this is the only John Lewis brand saucepan set that comes with more than one frying pan. They all tend to come with four saucepans (including one milk pan without a lid) and just one frying pan, of various sizes.

The John Lewis Stainless Steel Saucepans & Frying Pan Set, 5 Piece, is currently £125 for the set and comes with an extra saucepan, so four saucepans in total, with three matching glass lids and just one frying pan. There's a PFAS-free non-stick coating on the frying pan and milk pan, while the others are naked. All pieces are dishwasher safe and oven safe to 220°C. While not specific in the description, it looks as though they all have pouring lips, and the glass lids do have air vents.

Only slightly more expensive is the John Lewis 'The Pan' Stainless Steel Lidded Saucepans and Pan Set, 5 Piece at £128. You get four saucepans with three lids and one frying pan, too. The pans are made from 18/10 stainless steel, with the frying pan and milk pan coated in PTFE. All handles are made from silicone, including the handles on the 3 glass lids. All pieces are oven safe up to 180°C, while all pans have pouring lips. The saucepan lids have the handy design addition of strain holes that double as air vents.

Usually £150 but on sale right now for £120, the John Lewis 'The Pan' Aluminium Non-Stick Pan Set, 5 Piece is similar to the set above but aluminium with silicone handles. You get four saucepans (one is a milk pan), 3 lids and one frying pan. Everything is dishwasher-safe, and all pans feature pouring lips, while the 3 lids have air vents that can be used for draining liquids. They're oven safe up to 200°C, and there's a PTFE coating on all of the pans.

The John Lewis Aluminium Ceramic Non-Stick Pan Set, 5 Piece comes in at £180 and includes four saucepans, three lids and one large frying pan. They are made from recycled aluminium, with riveted stainless steel handles. All pans have a PFAS-free ceramic non-stick coating, while they are dishwasher-safe and oven-safe to 220°C. They are not designed with pouring rims.

Lastly, at £200, the John Lewis Aluminium Non-Stick Pan Set, 5 Piece, in copper. Again, you get four saucepans, three glass lids and one frying pan. They are made from aluminium with stainless steel handles, and each pan has a ceramic (Sol Gel) non-stick coating. They are dishwasher safe and suitable for oven cooking, but it doesn't say a maximum temperature.

Should you buy the John Lewis Classic 5 Piece Pan Set?

If you don't want to spend more than £200 on a new pan set but need a wide range of sizes of both fry pans and saucepans, then this set is worth it for £180. It's also great if you'd like a few pans without any non-stick coating, as two out of five of them are naked. They all have spouted rims for easy serving, and you can put them in the oven, too. If you do want pans with measurements inside, then the two bigger saucepans have them. If you're eco-conscious, the packaging is entirely recyclable.

If you need frying pans with lids, then avoid this set. Also, avoid it if you tend to use metal utensils, as they can't be used with any of the pans. The milk pan is great, but doesn't come with a lid. And do remember that non-coated pans do require a lot more work in the cleaning department.