I have used this multiple times in the short time I've had it and like all Calphalon products it is fantastic. Heats quickly and evenly, cleans up like a dream and is easy to store. I have a couple of pieces of that "other" very expensive cookware and this is much better and 1/2 the price! It is such a convenience not to have to dump boiling water in the sink and have it splash back on me and you can put the steamer right back in the pot with the lid on to keep items warm while finishing up everything else without worry of sticky pan bottom later. Can't say enough good stuff about it !!!

My Multi Pot set arrived yesterday. I love it! I have been looking for something like this for a long time. An 8qt of good quality at a good price is hard to find. It is good strength, good quality and cooks like a pot should. The pasta basket works well, if it was much lower in the pot, the water would not be able to circulate and keep the pasta from sticking. The lid would be better if it had a "relief" hole in it, but offsetting the lid does the trick. It is so great to be able to drain the pasta right there instead of having to take it to a sink. I used it last night, I am thrilled with the Multi Pot.

I bought this multi pot set because I knew that calphalon was a very good cooking brand. It cooks food perfectly. It does not burn food to the bottom of the pan and is easy to clean. It does not stain easily like most other stainless steel brands. I would highly recommend this product because it does a great job when cooking pasta and steamed vegetables.

No complaints - a good, tough set. True - you can't boil gallons of pasta in the pasta insert at once because it doesn't hold a tremendous amount, but it WILL make enough pasta to serve 6-8 people in one batch.

I researched these sets and this one is (in my opinion) a 'best buy'.

I read reviews of people complaining that the pasta insert was not deep enough and I still purchased this item. Big Mistake. I should have purchased a pasta insert for the Calphalon pot I already have, rather than this 4 piece Multi-pot.

If you already have a pot this size, I'd purchase a pasta insert which is much deeper than the insert that comes in this set.

I was a little worried when I read some of the other reviews but this product is very nice. It holds a lot more pasta than it looks like it would, I also used it to blanch vegetables from the garden. The heavy lid is excellent because it stays on even at a rapid boil. This is an excellent product. I just wish you could put it in the dishwasher :(

Very sturdy construction and I like the glass lid. The only problem I have is the lid has a VERY thin metal that is easily damaged. The pot is thick and the handles are riveted on and very solid. As long as you are careful with the lid, this steamer is awesome!

Calphalon produces fantastic products, which is why this pot set is slightly disappointing. The pot itself is fine, but the srainer insert is fairly useless unless you are making a very small amount of pasta. As previous reviews have addressed, water will boil over, creating a dangerous situation, if you are using the insert with more than a very small volume of water. All in all, however, this was a good purchase at a nice price.

I am very impressed with this product! I use it much more than I expected! I am even trying new items because it is so wonderful! Easy to clean. Very durable! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

I bought this pot to replace a similar pot thatI loved and had used frequently until the handle broke off. I have been very dissapointed in this purchase. I don't even use the glass lid for the sputtering/splashing reasons cited by many other users. I use the lid from my old pot. In addition, the handles on the small basket are ridiculous, as they fall down into the food you are steaming instead of staying sensibly over at the top sides of the insert. The large basket is poorly designed to be raised too far above the liquid in the bottom of the pot, making the basket too short... All in all... a completely frustrating experience. I'm looking for another pot, probably not Calphalon.

Great product. Steal pot, glass lid and steamer are great! The only problem is the pasta insert. The posta insert needs to be deeper. I think this 4 piece multi post set was designed by an engineer and not a cook. However, I would recommend it as a buy, especially at $59! Outside of the pasta insert depth, this is an awesome collection!

I'm a guy, 47 professional ... and cook well ... so I want quality tools in my kitchen, same as I want in my horse barn, or work shop, and I hate poor quality things that don't work well.

That said, this set is very nicely made, quality.

The pasta insert (as mentioned in another review) doesn't go way down into the pan, so it takes adding more water to use it ... but at the same time you can easily get ample water under (and not in) the basket and steam things, like King Crab Leg's ... so I don't think adding a bit more water for pasta any big deal.

For the money, come on ... use that $25 off $125 deal with free shipping and stock your kitchen with quality tools. I bought three orders, list price $550-$700 per order, and paid a total of about $360 (so on about $2300 list that might be at the store on sale for $1150 ... plus didn't have to go shopping and free delivery ... deal).

I PURCHASED THE MULTI POT SET,AFTER SEARCHING THE WEB FOR MONTHS.I WAS TRYING TO REPLACE ONE THAT I HAVE OWNED FOR FOURTY YEARS,THAT I HAD BECOME VERY ATTACHED TO.WHEN I FIRST SAW THIS SET,I KNEW IT WAS GOING TO WORK WELL FOR ME.I LOVE EVERYTHING ABOUT COOKING WITH IT.PASTA AND VEGGIES COOK WONDERFUL WITH THIS.I AM SO PLEASED THAT I PURCHASED THIS SET.AS FOR THE ONE I HAD FOR FOURTY YEARS?CAN'T BRING MYSELF TO GET RID OF IT YET.MAYBE SOMEDAY.

If you are looking for an addition to your already well stocked kitchen, YOU NEED this one. It is a Pasta cooker, with strainer, or it is a steamer for either a little or a lot of vegies. You can make stock with the strainer in it, and voila, just pull the strainer out, and your stock is ready.
Frankly, I have yet to purchase a bad stainless steel item from Calphalon. Thank you Amazon for carring them!

This is a useful combination of steamer and pasta pot. My only complaint is that the diameter and depth of the main pot should be increased. With the present dimensions one can only cook one pound of pasta at a time and have an adequate volume of water when the pasta insert is being used. It's great for steaming vegetables.

I previously had a multi-pot cooker. The lid and inserts never seated properly and it was lightweight. I ordered the Calphalon to replace it and I love it! It seats beautifully and is heavy-duty stainless steel. I have used it every day since I received it and hope it lasts a lifetime! I would highly recommend it to anyone who uses this time of cooker.

Nice high quality set. I agree the strainer pot could fit deeper into the outter pot.

This is the best pasta pot/steamer/blancher/stock pot you could want. Versatile, easy clean, even temperature. I love this pot and highly recommend Calphalon cookware.

This is a fine and built-to-last product and is well worth the price. What botheres me is that Amazon has List Price: $166.99
and if you check out the Calphalon site it is only $59.99 list. I tried to send Amazon a note about it, but I didn't explain it properly, or my note was just mis-understood.
As far as cookware goes though, this is still a great deal.

I bought this multipot as a Christmas gift for my parents and they absolutely loved it. They were in need of a large pot for cooking pasta and it sure is handy to have the strainer insert. The only draw back with the strainer insert is that it doesn't go very deep into the pot - which means you have to put about 6 qts of water in to boil pasta and the pasta only sits in the top 4 qts. Okay, so it might take a little extra time to get the water boiling if you want to use the strainer - no big deal. Another great thing about the pot is the steamer insert it comes with. The drawback here is that you can't really use both the steamer and strainer inserts at the same time to cook pasta and steam vegetables because the water would come to high in the pot. This is a bummer because the 12 qt multipot would have this capability but not so with this 8 qt one. The pot and lid are made of high quality materials. The 8 qt multipot has a separate bottom and I've heard of instances where the bottom has come detached after being subjected to high heat. The 12 qt multipot however is one complete piece. Overall I think the 12 qt multipot is a better pot, but unless you need to cook for 6 or more people, I would suggest going with the 8 qt. You really can't go wrong for the price.

As the owner of a full set of Calphalon Simply Stainless you may imagine that I'm a fan of this line, and you'd be right. As one reviewer suggested, please ignore the negative reviews by some customers. I am baffled by the fact that some folks never grasped that childhood lesson, HOT-HOT-DON'T TOUCH! I will also confess that I'm confused by one reviewer who said:

"To cook pasta or food, you need to add an additional 2 quarts of water (the amount needed to touch the bottom of the insert) making it more time consuming to use."

O-K...I guess the logic there just escapes me. I've made tons of pasta, with great and effortless success. The steamer basket is terrific and holds a generous amount as does the pasta basket. This pot is very sturdy and although I like my LeCreuset 7qt dutch oven best for soups and stews, this is my second favorite.

For the price and the quality you can't beat it.

These are some of the best pans you could own. First, there is no higher quality, heavy duty pan out there. Second, they is surprisingly cheap for such high quality. Third, I have never tackled a project with these pans that has not come out a success. It is truly professional grade for the home. Even if you are not a professional chef or a food enthusiast, these pans make building a great dish easy. You don't have to worry about those non-stick coatings that peel off but you also don't have to worry about your food sticking to the surface. Ignore the fact that it is more expensive than K-Mart Brand Pan--It is worth the extra cost! Food always cooks evenly and always seems to do so effortlessly. It is the perfect size for a family of four or five and can be used for just about any situation when you don't have the proper pan (although you should really go and check out all of Calphalon's other pans too).

After about a month's use, we had a major disaster with this pot. After the contents reached boiling, we turned the flame down, as the recipe said. The glass lid fit so tightly that it formed a partial vacuum, and as the pressure inside dropped, suddenly the lid shattered into zillions of tiny pieces. It totally ruined the food, of course, as well as destroying the lid.

We did find a lid from another pot that we had that fit, so we use that. Otherwise it's a pretty good pot. We use the small basket a lot for steaming. The larger basket, as others have suggested, isn't very good for making pasta, but it works to just use the pot, and use the large basket as a strainer.

After a few years, the pots still look quite good.

But I'd suggest that you file a few grooves in the edge of the lid, to prevent an airtight seal. If you don't, you may end up with a shattered lid as we did.

I see why comments were written about the lid, but so far isn't not been that big of a problem. This is great for stews/soup. The steamer baskets are useful too. The clean-up has been a lot easier than I expected for a stainless steel pot. At the price, great purchase!

It's a bit on the heavy side, but perfectly managable. The inserts function as they are suppose to; a bit short, but overall they're great for steaming. The lid fits fine and if you're just using the pot by itself, any standard 10in lid seems to work.
Great for the price!

This is my first pasta cooker. I'm single and don't really need the huge capacity but I've seen them on all of the cooking shows and decided that I could use one. I was dismayed to find out I had to boil two gallons of water just to cook some pasta. The insert is way too short. Then it was those goofy wire handles on the steamer insert. You can't get anything into or out of this basket without getting tangled up in those wires. I should have read this column before buying. Next time....

I have been teaching myself (a gringo) how to make tamales. I've tried cheap, crappy tamale pots, and various makeshift options. This is the ultimate tamale steamer! Also great for cooking and straining beans made from scratch. Haven't even used it for pasta yet. I don't know why they don't advertise it as a tamale steamer, unless they are afraid they will turn the anglos off. The only reason I don't give it five stars is that there is a slight imperfection at the inside bottom of my pot.

This is a lovely set and a great value. It includes a colander insert for cooking pasta, and a steamer insert for steaming vegetables or what have you. And if you're really into steaming, you can use both at once for 2-level steaming. The glass lid has a stainless metal rim which helps avoid breaking and chipping, and the handles are firmly and neatly riveted on. The only negative: The wire handles for the steamer insert rest sitting in the food you're steaming unless you're clever and take them out of the original holes and reposition them so they rest on the rim. This requires delicately bending the wires so that they move smoothly, but it's worth it. Once you do that, this should be your pasta, steaming, lobster boiling, and soup and stew-pot for the rest of your life.

The bottom's too thick to quickly boil water....a definite shortcoming in a pasta pot...and the top's too loose to use it as a dutch oven. It will probably be useful for slow simmering a sauce. Fortunately, the strainer inserts fit a an old pasta pot of mine. I figure that buying the inserts would have cost me [more], so maybe I'll forgive its shortcomings and keep it. Only the ... price (...) makes it buyable.

Don't be swayed by the negative reviews. This is a very good set and a terrific value.

I can only find fault with one thing in this set and that is the lid. The lip on the lid is simply too small. Since the lip is small, you don't get as good of a seal and this can cause some sputtering and splatter. I can't figure out why Calphalon would have done this, I own other pots of theirs and none have lids like this. Regardless, it hasn't been that big of a deal. I briefly considered replacing the lid, but it hasn't been a big enough problem to justify it.

The pot itself and the two inserts are fantastic. The pot is nice and heavy with a thick bottom. It's been great for making stock and boiling pasta. I've had no problems cooking with it whatsoever. Complaints about too much water when boiling for pasta are unjustified. Most people don't understand that the more water you have for cooking pasta, the better. If you can't wait a few extra minutes for the water to boil, buy a cheap all aluminium pasta pot or learn to plan ahead. Cleanup has never been a problem.

I haven't used the smaller steamer insert much, but I don't understand the complaints about the handles. A pair of tongs easily lifts the steamer basket out of the pot - or you can use the steamer with the pasta insert and lift everything out together.

If you want an excellent all around, multi use, pasta/steamer/stock pot and don't have unrealistic expectations, this is a very nice set and a terrific deal.

When I was a new bride at age 17, I couldn't afford good cookware. Now into my 40's I am upgrading for the umpteenth time, but this time to cookware that will last forever. I have a few pieces of Calphalon and have been pleased with their performance, so when I saw this pot, it definately turned my head. I have not been disappointed.

My first impression was of how heavy this pot is. Heft is a sign of quality, and this pot and it's inserts are hefty. I have owned entire pot sets that didn't weigh as much as the steamer!

Upon first use I found the time it takes to boil water for pasta was noticably reduced. Just cover the pot to bring the water to a boil then remove the lid. In contrast to some other reviews, I found the insert adequate for pasta. Yes, you do need more water, but isn't the idea to BOIL pasta, not STEAM it? Lifting the insert from the pot to drain the pasta is very convienent. Just lift it from the water to strain back into the pot and place it on a plate while you empty the pot. Keep your pasta hot by leaving a couple of inches of the hot water in the bottom, pasta in the insert, lid on.

I have made so much pasta sauce in this pot I had to can 5 quarts of leftovers. The heavy disk in the bottom of the pot allows not only for a quick boil, but also for long periods of simmering without scortching. The glass lid is great since you can peer inside without lifting the lid, and the stainless inside is bright so you can see.

I had concerns about the lid and spattering after reading the reviews. I can see where these people are coming from, but I think the problem is solved by using lower heat. The handle on the lid isn't plastic and will get hot - eventually. It took a LONG time for it to get hot enough I couldn't handle it bare-handed, but common sense will tell you to always check before touching anything that has been in contact with a heat source.

The handles on the steamer can get in the way but I don't know that this is a real problem, and I don't know how they could design it better. After all, you if you are using this insert you will need to retrieve it somehow.

Cleanup was no problem at all. Again, I believe a lot of the issues would be solved if lower heat was used. I usually wash the lid in the dishwasher and the pot by hand. The brushed stainless gives you the beautiful look of stainless without the hassle of "spit shining" it. Fingerprints and water spots aren't quite as noticable.

Storing this big pot and all it's accessories is not a problem since they all stack beautifully and require a much smaller footbrint than several separate pieces.

I love this pot so much I purchased one for each of my daughters as well. I don't want them to have to wait 20+ years for quality cookware. Perhaps owning quality stuff will inspire them and they will enjoy their time in the kitchen - not struggle with it like I did for so long. I only wish I had this a LONG time ago!

I have used this pot for catering a friends party and i found it to be extremely useful. I boiled angel hair pasta with the deeper pasta insert and steamed asparagus that went over so well that when a child went to throw out half a spear, he was stoped and the valuable stalk was savored by a more appreciative adult. I cleaned this pot by hand afterwards and had no problems. Although i have washed dishes in a highly rated restaurant, i dont believe pot scrubing is a skill that is hard to acheive.

I encourage all to at least try this pot. Both inserts are excellent. I imagine the thick bottom would be great for simmering large quantities of sauces or stocks.

Please ignore negative reveiws for this item. The handles on the steamer insert could be slighty difficult to retreive for the lazy but for the rest of us, it is not exactly rocket science. One of the advantages of steaming food is that steam is hot and heat is what cooks food so dont be surprised is the insert gets hot as well.

Dont buy this if you cant take a few micro seconds to relize that fire makes things hot. Just get some mits or a side towel or two and get on with your life.

At the very low price offered, this pot is definitely worth a try.

I'm glad I ignored the negative comments about this item. I just love this pot! It seems big for a single person, but its versatility makes up for the large size. Now I don't need to have a stock pot and flimsy vegetable steamer insert to clutter my kitchen shelf and drawer.

I like its convenience of cooking pasta and steaming vegetables at the same time. Last night, I put the steamer on a plate when the vegetables were done. Then I took out the pasta insert and left it in the sink, emptied the steamer onto the plate, placed it back into the pot, and continued using the hot water again to steam FOUR artichokes.

Tips: Just be careful when you lift the inserts out while cooking. I lean the inserts to one side to drain the water into the pot on the stove before removing them. Use a large fork to grab the inside handles for the steamer. Also, you need to use a thick kitchen towel and/or pot holders for the handles and lid. I like using a towel because it protects my hands and arms from the hot steam.

Collector's Edition 8 Qt Multi-Pot
BTTOM LINE: Boil time was only minimally faster (gas: 16 min vs 20 min in standard stainless). Food residue sticks to the fared rim. No lid vent created boil-overs. Too long to clean within warranty: a quick meal took 20 minutes at the sink.

This set came with 4 pieces:
SHORT STEAMER INSERT. With 2 opposite handles that swing down when steaming. Good concept. Very poor execution! Can be dangerous and for sure, very awkward to use: Handles hang down and get extremely hot so be careful when trying to dig them out of your veggies. Best if you use a mitt, if you can grab both handles with a mitt. Forget asparagus unless you want to individually place and remove around the handles.
Maybe they should be clip on handles.

DEEP STEAMER. Works well as a steamer but the whole concept of an in-pot steamer w/ handles is over-rated. You have to take the twice-as-heavy pot with the steamer to the sink to strain, remove steamer to strain, find a spot to put it so you can pour out the boiling water. Think about it.

The POT. Food residue collects by and in the inside rivots making it time consuming and difficult to clean within warranty.

The LID. Nice glass but ... no vent so steam collects and water tends to boil over. Cleaning this puppy with its stainless rim is a chore to say the least.

CLEANING. If you have hard water think twice as the rings are very difficult to remove within warranty. Pot is big too so it's cumbersome to clean in the sink within warranty (and who wants to be careful when cleaning). Special cleaners are required (Barkeeper's or similar).

CALPHALON MAKES DIFFERENT GRADES OF STAINLESS. Be alert when shopping for Calphalon Stainless. This is 18/10 stainless, not all Tri-Ply. I thought this set was Tri-Ply. If it doesn't say Tri-Ply, it's not.

CALPHALON CAN BE 'MADE IN CHINA'. I did not know until this purhase, but Calphalon maufacturers both here in the U.S.A. and in China. This set is made in China, as was another hard-anodized piece that had to be returned. Might want to pay a little more and get the Made in U.S.A. pieces. This reviewer thinks it's worth it!

BOTTOM LINE: 1 year after purchase, I no longer use this pot; I use my new Farberware Copper Clad.

Collector's Edition 8 Qt Multi-Pot
BTTOM LINE: Boil time was only minimally faster (gas: 16 min vs 20 min in standard stainless). Food residue sticks to the fared rim. No lid vent created boil-overs. Too long to clean within warranty: a quick meal took 20 minutes at the sink.

This set came with 4 pieces:
SHORT STEAMER INSERT. With 2 opposite handles that swing down when steaming. Good concept. Very poor execution! Can be dangerous and for sure, very awkward to use: Handles hang down and get extremely hot so be careful when trying to dig them out of your veggies. Best if you use a mitt, if you can grab both handles with a mitt. Forget asparagus unless you want to individually place and remove around the handles.
Maybe they should be clip on handles.

DEEP STEAMER. Works well as a steamer but the whole concept of an in-pot steamer w/ handles is over-rated. You have to take the twice-as-heavy pot with the steamer to the sink to strain, remove steamer to strain, find a spot to put it so you can pour out the boiling water. Think about it.

The POT. Food residue collects by and in the inside rivots making it time consuming and difficult to clean within warranty.

The LID. Nice glass but ... no vent so steam collects and water tends to boil over. Cleaning this puppy with its stainless rim is a chore to say the least.

CLEANING. If you have hard water think twice as the rings are very difficult to remove within warranty. Pot is big too so it's cumbersome to clean in the sink within warranty (and who wants to be careful when cleaning). Special cleaners are required (Barkeeper's or similar).

CALPHALON MAKES DIFFERENT GRADES OF STAINLESS. Be alert when shopping for Calphalon Stainless. This is 18/10 stainless, not all Tri-Ply. I thought this set was Tri-Ply. If it doesn't say Tri-Ply, it's not.

CALPHALON CAN BE 'MADE IN CHINA'. I did not know until this purhase, but Calphalon maufacturers both here in the U.S.A. and in China. This set is made in China, as was another hard-anodized piece that had to be returned. Might want to pay a little more and get the Made in U.S.A. pieces. This reviewer thinks it's worth it!

BOTTOM LINE: 1 year after purchase, I no longer use this pot; I use my new Farberware Copper Clad.