In-Depth Product Review: Tramontina Tri-Ply Clad (also known as TriPlyClad)

THE COMPANY

Tramontina (pronounced “TRAM-on-TINA” in the USA and “TRAM-on-CHEENA” in Brazilian Portuguese, though there are variations on pronunciation in Brazil) a is a privately-held Brazilian company founded in 1911 by Valentin Tramontina, an immigrant from northeastern Italy.¹ Tramontina’s headquarters are in Carlos Barbosa, near the southernmost tip of Brazil. Tramontina produces lots of products, but is best known in the USA for metalwares such as machete knives and cookware. Tramontina has over 7,000 employees and eleven factories worldwide as of 2015, including Chinese production.

THE PRODUCT BEING REVIEWED

Today, we’re reviewing the Tramontina 12 quart Tri-Ply Clad stock pot, but it is applicable to the rest of the Tramontina Tri-Ply Clad product line. (I once had most of the product line, so I’m very familiar with it.) NOTE: Tramontina’s Tramontina Tri-Ply Base product line is different–that’s the cheaper product line with thin stainless steel sidewalls and an undersized aluminum disc base bonded to the bottom, capped off with stainless. Thus the bottom has three layers, but the sidewalls do not; therefore the Tri-Ply Base design does not transmit much heat up the sides. It also has the thermal discontinuity problem that most disc-base cookware suffers from.

Most Tramontina Tri-Ply Clad is made in China with 304 stainless steel interior (also known as 18/8 or 18/10 stainless), aluminum alloy middle layer, and an outer layer of magnetic stainless steel (18/0) that is induction-compatible. The total thickness is about 2.6 mm (same as All-Clad Stainless).

Almost all Tramontina Tri-Ply Clad sold in the USA is the Chinese version, but there is a rarer, made-in-Brazil version that uses a non-magnetic grade of stainless steel on the exterior for extra corrosion resistance. If you have even the slightest interest in maybe using induction one day, then I highly recommend getting the Chinese version because it’s “futureproof” in that it’s induction compatible, and you don’t need that much corrosion resistance on the outside. (Induction is a rare but growing stove type in the USA; I wrote a quick guide about it here.) Tramontina Tri-Ply Clad that is advertised as induction-compatible is made in China.

Overall Rating: 4.25/5 Very Good. For an explanation of ratings methodology, click here.

Cleanup: 3/5 Good. I never give 5/5 to stainless steel because it can stick, but if you preheat the pan, then turn down the heat to low (or medium low depending on your burner’s strength) and add oil, and then add food, you can minimize sticking. Deglazing a pan (adding a little liquid such as wine to stuck-on bits of protein while the pan is still hot) can also help with cleanup as well as make a great pan gravy.

As far as stainless pans go, I would rate Tramontina Tri-Ply Clad as average in terms of interior cleanup. It can be a pain to clean stuck-on grime around rivets, but I won’t take a point off just for that. Also, Tramontina is built with straight-sided rims and thus it has a tendency to spill liquid down the exterior side of the pot when pouring. So I am taking a point off for that combination of factors, especially since I still remember rather the times I had to wipe up the counter due to liquid dribbling down the sides of my Tramontina Tri-Ply Clad saucepans.

If you ever find yourself with dull protein stains or rainbows of heated oil left on the pan, try boiling a little vinegar and water in the pan. If that’s not enough, use Bar Keepers Friend.

Durability: 5/5 Excellent. The interior stainless steel is SAE 304 (also known as 18/8 or 18/10 stainless steel) and should resist corrosion quite well. The cladding isn’t that thick at only 2.5 mm, but it’s thick enough that you should not experience warping so long as you don’t abuse it. For instance, don’t dunk it in water while it’s still hot. The manufacturer rates it oven-safe up to 500F (260C), so feel free to use it in the oven. (If you ever see a merchant list Tramontina Tri-Ply Clad as oven safe to only 350F, ignore that; it’s a mistake. The stainless steel body is always oven safe to 500F, and stainless steel lids are also oven-safe to 500F. If you have a discontinued model with glass lids, though, then the glass lids are oven-safe to 350F.)

Most companies leave exterior stainless steel only semi-polished, but Tramontina Tri-Ply Clad is very finely (mirror) polished on the outside. That does not affect durability, but it means the exterior will show scratches a lot more clearly than non-mirror-polished brands.

Finally, a bit of bad-and-good news:

• The bad news: My original Tramontina Tri-Ply Clad 12-quart stock pot warped after fewer than 20 uses, to the point where the lid would not fit! I’ve never experienced warping with any other brand of stainless-aluminum-stainless clad cookware.
• The good news: Tramontina stands by its lifetime warranty. Tramontina gave me a free shipping label to send in my defective pot. Perhaps they would have made me pay for return shipping if the company determined that the damage was user abuse (not covered under warranty), but they didn’t do that. They accepted responsibility and sent me another 12-quart stock pot free of charge (the one you see in these photos).

Even heating: 4/5 Very Good. I got rid of almost all of my Tramontina Tri-Ply Clad over the years, and even if I still had my 12-inch skillet, it wouldn’t matter anyway, because you can’t buy it anymore–Tramontina’s new skillet design is more wok-like. That said, if you were wondering about the discontinued 12-inch skillet, it performed very slightly worse than Cuisinart Multi Clad Pro, which in turn performed very slightly worse than All-Clad Stainless. But the difference was small. You can basically think of Tramontina Tri-Ply Clad as performing pretty close to All-Clad Stainless.

Heat retention is decent, but a large amount of food such as a steak will crash the temperature of the pan harder than thicker pans like Demeyere Proline, resulting in more time spent steaming food and less time browning and developing flavor via Maillard reactions. This is more of a problem for high-temperature frying, though. For lower-temperature cooking, especially with continuous stirring, you can get away with thinner pans. It’s not particularly fun to have to keep stirring, though, especially if you have other tasks in the kitchen. If you don’t stir a thick stew and crank up the heat past medium, you could burn food at the bottom of thinner clad like Tramontina Tri-Ply Clad.

Handling and ease of use: 4/5 Very Good. The handles are utilitarian and not particularly comfortable or uncomfortable. They stay cool for a long time though will heat up faster if you cook on gas at higher burner strengths. The lack of flared rims on all non-skillet pieces means messier pours, which was one of the reasons why I got rid of almost all of my Tramontina Tri-Ply Clad. (The other reason why was rivets–it’s a lot easier and faster to clean welded handles than riveted handles.)

Value: 5/5 Excellent. Tramontina is close to a clone of All-Clad Stainless, without rolled lips, at a much more affordable price. However, the prices on individual pieces are pretty high, so if you are going to buy into this product line, you may want to buy an entire cookware set (see Conclusion, below, for more information).

It bears mentioning that Tramontina has imperfect quality control, to say the least. Years ago I bought a set that included the 12-inch skillet, and there was a scratch on the bottom that extended for more than six inches. And as for the 12-quart stock pot that they replaced under warranty? The replacement had some polishing residue left on the inside bottom of the pot, which I had to wash off with some BKF. The scratch and residue did not hurt cooking performance, but they are a reminder that Tramontina Tri-Ply Clad is a budget brand.

Versatility: 5/5 Excellent. This pan can cook on any heating surface including induction. It is also dishwasher compatible and oven safe up to 500 degrees Fahrenheit (260 Celsius).

CONCLUSION

If you’re wondering whether you should buy Cuisinart MCP or Tramontina Tri-Ply Clad, it boils down to:

• how much you value getting a guaranteed 18/10 stainless interior (Tramontina Tri-Ply Clad) vs. “premium stainless steel” (Cuisinart MCP) which may be slightly less corrosion resistant in theory but seems fine in practice.
• how much you value flared, drip-free rims (Cuisinart MCP has them for every piece; Tramontina lacks them except for skillets)

If you’re wondering why you should buy All-Clad Stainless instead of Tramontina Tri-Ply Clad, it boils down to:

• how much you value “made in USA” (All-Clad) vs. “made in China” (Tramontina)
• how much you value flared, drip-free rims (All-Clad Stainless has them, with the exception of French skillets; Tramontina lacks them except for skillets)

All of the above brands are made by big, reputable companies with lifetime warranties. Comparing the budget brands (Cuisinart and Tramontina), they are made in China and cost around $200-400 for a medium-sized cookware set.  All-Clad is made in USA.

If you want to buy individual pieces, Tramontina’s individual-piece prices are high enough that you might as well buy Cuisinart MCP instead.

If you want an entire clad cookware set, I think it comes down to a matter of personal preference and what sizes you need. Cuisinart sizes their products to fit the needs of 2- to 4-person households. Tramontina does that too, but also offers some larger pieces in their larger sets which some may find appealing. Here’s a breakdown of the four Tramontina sets available (8, 10, 12, and 14-piece sets):

• The Tramontina 8-Piece Tri-Ply Clad Cookware Set has poor sizing and is only useful for one to two-person households that don’t plan to expand or to ever have leftovers.
  • You get an 8 inch skillet (which is inexplicably called a saute pan in marketing materials), a 10 inch skillet, a 2-quart saucepan, a 3-quart saucepan, and a 5-quart Dutch oven. The 8-inch skillet and the 2-quart saucepan are duplicative, since the 10-inch skillet and 3-quart saucepan can fill in for those pieces. In effect you’re paying for just the 10-inch skillet, 3-quart saucepan, and 5-quart Dutch oven.
• The Tramontina 10-Piece Tri-Ply Clad Cookware Set is a decent budget set. You get 8- and 10-inch skillets, 1.5- and 3-quart sauce pans, a 3-quart saute pan, and an 8-quart stock pot. Once again, you get duplicative smaller pieces. In effect you are paying for just the 10-inch skillet, 3-quart saucepan, 3-quart saute pan, and 8-quart stock pot. That’s actually not a bad setup. Note that for a little more money, the Cuisinart MCP 12-piece set (I review it here) is arguably a better choice, with a 3.5 quart saute pan (half a quart bigger than this Tramontina set), a 3-quart steamer insert, and flared rims for drip-free pouring.
• The Tramontina 12-Piece Tri-Ply Clad Cookware Set is the best size for most families and has the least amount of filler.
  • You get a 10- and 12-inch skillets, a 1.5-quart saucepan, a 3-quart saucepan, a 5-quart saute pan, a 5-quart Dutch oven, and a 12-quart stock pot. All of those pieces are useful sizes for ANY size household, except for the 1.5-quart which is not strictly necessary for most people. The large sizes are great for families, but singles benefit, too, because a) making big batches of food and eating leftovers is very cost- and time-efficient; and b) if your household size ever goes to 3+ people, you won’t have to replace your cookware. Few other cookware manufacturers have such good sizes in their clad cookware sets.
  • Two glaring weak spots in this set are a) the lack of a medium-sized stock pot and b) the lack of a steamer basket.
• The Tramontina 14-Piece Tri-Ply Clad Cookware Set is not really better than the 12-piece set.
  • The 14-piece set has a strange mixture of pieces: 8/10/12-inch skillets, 2/3-quart saucepans, 5-quart saute pan, 5-quart Dutch oven, and 8-quart stock pot with pasta insert. The 8 inch skillet and 2-quart saucepans are extraneous pieces designed to increase the piece count and not the set’s usefulness. The remaining pieces are a bit odd since you lose the big, 12-quart stock pot from the 12-piece set and get an 8-quart stock pot instead.
    • Forget the pasta strainer. It’s a pain to clean. I replaced mine with this stainless steel strainer that’s much easier to clean: a Kuchenprofi Pot-Top Strainer Sieve in 18/10 Stainless Steel.

The following is a list of the interior diameters, and capacities, of all Tramontina Tri-Ply Clad pieces:

• Tramontina Tri-Ply Clad 8-Piece Set – 10 inch skillet, 3-quart saucepan, 5-quart Dutch oven. Filler: 8 inch skillet, 2-quart saucepan.
• Tramontina Tri-Ply Clad 10 piece set – 10 inch skillet, 3-quart saucepan, 3-quart saute pan, 8-quart stock pot. Filler: 8 inch skillet, 1.5-quart saucepan.
• Tramontina Tri-Ply Clad 12-piece set – 10 inch skillet, 12 inch skillet, 3-quart saucepan, 5-quart saute pan, 5-quart Dutch oven, 12-quart stock pot. Filler: 1.5-quart saucepan.
• Tramontina Tri-Ply Clad 14-piece set – 10/12-inch skillets, 3 quart saucepan, 5-quart saute pan, 5-quart Dutch oven, and 8-quart stock pot with pasta insert. Filler: 8-inch skillet and 2-quart saucepan.
• 1.5 quart saucepan with lid = 14 cm (5.5 inches)
• 2 quart saucepan with lid = 16 cm (6.3 inches)
• 3 quart saucepan with lid = 20 cm (7.9 inches)
• 4 quart saucepan with helper handle and lid = 20 cm (7.9 inches)
• 3 quart saute pan with lid = 24 cm (9.5 inches)
• 4 quart casserole pan with lid = 30 cm (11.8 inches)
• 5 quart Dutch oven with lid = 24 cm (9.5 inches)
• 5 quart saute pan with helper handle and lid
• 5 quart braiser with lid = 30 cm (11.8 inches)
• 8 quart stock pot with lid = 24 cm (9.5 inches)
• 8 quart stock pot with pasta insert and lid = 24 cm (9.5 inches)
• 12 quart stock pot with lid = 28 cm (11 inches)
• 8 inch skillet
• 10 inch skillet
• 12 inch skillet

The skillets do not come with lids, so if you don’t already have other lids that will fit, I would recommend buying a universal lid such as this one.

FOOTNOTES