We may earn revenue from the products available on this page and participate in affiliate programs.
Nothing brings people together quite like food. It may sound like a platitude, but that’s just because it’s perfectly uncomplicated. And the same goes for the food itself. Why fill your kitchen cabinets with all kinds of pots and tools that you use once in a blue moon when you could instead buy one pan that can do virtually everything for you? That’s what cooking brand Our Place wondered when it developed the much-beloved Always Pan—and its latest iteration is even better.
The company just launched its Lunar New Year collection, made in partnership with Chinese and Chinese-American makers and artisans, and it includes the limited-edition 10,000 Abilities 万能 Always Pan: a bright red version of the original, with the addition of a bamboo-and-spruce steamer basket and cooking chopsticks. It’s made in Yongkang, Zhejiang, China, in a women-owned factory, and, yes, it can cook just about anything you’re craving. Cofounders Zach Rosner and Shiza Shahid have plenty of recommendations: Steam homemade or frozen dumplings with the spruce piece (line it with cabbage leaves to prevent them from sticking), make a fluffy omelet in the nonstick pan, boil noodles with the help of the stainless steel strainer, and make fried rice with steamed veggies by utilizing both the pan and metal steamer at the same time.
Whether or not you’re celebrating the Lunar New Year on January 25, the whole line is perfect for entertaining. The blue-and-white platters (with cloud art by Sarula Bao) would surely come in handy after the festivities have ended, when you have friends over for snacks and cocktails, and that cleaver would make the job of chopping up garlic for a weeknight dinner a breeze. We’re only two weeks in and the Year of the Rat is already looking pretty good.
See more stories like this: If You Choose Correctly, This Cooking Essential Should Last a Lifetime This Ingredient Makes All of My Pasta Dishes Better I Cooked Chili in Amazon’s Best-Selling $45 Dutch Oven and It Was a Breeze