Shallow casserole pan with glass lid, 30 cm

One layer, side by side

Most home cooking goes wrong at the moment the meat starts to overlap. Four pieces in a twenty-centimetre pot no longer brown; they cook in their own steam and turn grey. This pot is 30 cm across: four thighs, four chops or a full batch of vegetables all reach the floor of the pan at the same time.

What 4.5 litres means in a shallow pot

The walls stand 8 cm high and the pot holds 4.5 litres. In a stockpot that is a middling figure; in a shallow pot it is a lot. The sauce stays put even when a whole tin of passata joins the meat, and because the liquid spreads over a wide surface it reduces faster than it would in a tall pot.

Thirty centimetres has its price on the hob. On a small hob the rim overhangs the zone and the food at the edge stays cooler. If your largest zone is 18 cm, expect to turn the pot now and then.

Two handles, two hands

There is no long handle here: two short handles sit facing each other on the rim. Full, that makes sense: you lift four and a half litres with both hands instead of levering it off the hob with one arm. The handles and the lid knob are ergonomic, soft to the touch and stay cool, so no tea towel is needed when the pot goes to the table.

A lid that does not clatter

The tempered glass lid sits on the rim through a slow-closing, heat-resistant silicone system. It does not knock when you put it back, and it does not hop at the edges while the pot boils. In practice that means you can put the lid on where the sauce is spitting and skip wiping around the hob afterwards.

It is glass, so you do not have to lift it to see what is happening underneath. In a shallow pot that matters, because five minutes is the distance between a saucy stew and a scorched one; if you can see it, you never get there.

What the steam vent is for

The lid has a steam vent. That is the detail that keeps rice from boiling over and the lid from dancing on the rim. If you want the dish to stay saucy, turn the pot so the vent faces away from you; if you want to reduce it, slide the lid aside rather than taking it off.

Why the onion does not stall halfway

titanPro non-stick coating

Fashion by Berlinger Haus's hard-wearing non-stick coating. In a wide-based pot it is the coating that lets the fond stay without burning on: the caramelised layer under the onion and the meat lifts with a splash of liquid rather than a scraper.

The body is forged aluminium, so it takes up heat quickly. A wide base spreads the same amount of heat over a larger area, which means less oil for browning and less compulsory stirring.

Materials and safety

The pot is forged aluminium, the lid is tempered glass and the coating is the brand's titanPro system.

Turbo induction base

The base is a turbo induction build and works on every type of hob: induction, gas, electric, vitroceramic, halogen.

Two evenings with this pot

Wednesday, chicken paprikash. The thighs lie skin down in a single layer on the floor of the pot with enough room between them for every side to colour. Then the onion, the peppers and the liquid go in, the lid goes on, and from there you watch it through the glass.

On Sunday the same pot takes over from the roasting tin. Fish fillets or seafood, rice alongside, the lid slid aside so the steam can leave. Serving happens out of the same pot, because 30 cm sits well in the middle of a table and a trivet fits between the two handles.

Care

• Four and a half litres cool slowly: wait until the pot is only warm before you run water on it.
• Stir with wooden or silicone tools so the coating stays unscratched.
• Dry the silicone rim of the glass lid after washing so no moisture is trapped under it.
• Check around the steam vent from time to time so dried sauce does not build up.
• Metal scourers and scouring powder damage the silicone rim of the glass lid too, so leave both out of this kitchen.
• In storage keep the lid separate, or lay a soft cloth between the pot and the glass.

Whom 30 cm is for

Do not buy it if your largest hob zone is small, or if you want to boil soup and pasta water in it: that calls for a tall pot. In a two-person household its 28 cm sibling is often enough.

Frequently asked questions

Specification