In My Tiny, Drawer-Less Kitchen, These Collapsible Pots Are My New BFFs
Folding the handle feels like a magic trick.
Published Apr 28, 2024 1:00 AM
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If you’ve read the recent home tour story about my 235-square-foot studio, you know I’m tight on storage space. My kitchen doesn’t have a single drawer (yes, you read that right), which means cooking implements go on top of the fridge and inside the oven—it’s not ideal. There’s just not much you can do to make a pot or pan smaller; they’re bulky by nature. But I don’t let all of that stop me from pretending I’m Ina Garten.
Instead I seek out options that are small-space-friendly, like the genius new pans from Joseph Joseph, a British kitchen and home organization brand. The Space collection marks its cookware debut, and it’s just as clever as the rest of its assortment.
When you take the handle out of the equation, cookware is basically just a vessel. And that’s what Joseph Joseph did, using SwingLock technology that allows each one to invert when it’s not in use; all you do is pull a tab on the underside of the handle and it folds 180 degrees. It feels like a magic trick every time. The opposite support and lid handle also fold in so then there’s truly nothing sticking out. When your kitchen is as small as mine, even 2 inches can make a huge difference, so these minor features go a long way.
Joseph Joseph Space Collection
I opted to try the 8-inch frying pan and the 3.5-quart sauté pan that I thought would be great for one-pot meals like shakshuka or stew, and they stack into each other perfectly. I suspect it won’t be long until I get the entire 10-piece collection plus the wok and stockpot. The set even offers a lid holder and pot protectors—the company really thought of everything.
After a few weeks of testing, I have loved cooking with the pans just as much as putting them away. The eggs I’ve fried in the 8-inch size are nothing short of stunning, and thanks to a nonstick ceramic coating, each one slips right out. Like many of the newcomers in this category, these are nontoxic and made without all the stuff I want to avoid (PTFE, PFAS, PFOA, lead, cadmium). And if I want to make something in the oven, they can withstand heat up to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Not that I have anything beyond a cheap gas stove, but the assortment is compatible with all cooktops, including induction.
You’d think for all of these pros, they’d have to be superpricey. But they start at just $90. If you’re going all out and buying the set of six, you’re looking at $600. That number lands squarely in the mix of other fashionable brands: Caraway’s similar set clocks in at the same price, and GreenPan’s set, which is also ceramic nonstick and includes the same sizes, is $400 (but neither sport those coveted flexible handles). I’m starting to feel bad about moving on from all of my old cookware, but as a drawer-less dweller, there’s just nothing that compares.
