The All Clad metal and how to make it could be likened to an alchemist’s transformation of lead into gold. But really, it’s a cook’s dream come true. All Clad is the unique process that metallurgist John Ulam discovered in the 1960s when he bonded different metals into “sandwiched” sheets using heat and pressure. This process was later used in producing bonded metals for the aerospace, automotive and shipbuilding industries. It was also instrumental in converting the US Mint’s sol

Ulam patented this “roll-bonding” process and, in a partnership with Alcoa (the third world’s largest producer of aluminum), founded a company in 1978 that has become known for its complete high-end line of cookware for the discerning buyer.

The All Clad craft

A clad metal is a composition metal with two or more different layers bonded together using methods like rolling, extrusion, welding, diffusion bonding, casting, heavy chemical deposition or heavy electroplating. Ulam first discovered the All Clad process by cladding dissimilar metals in proper formulation and found out that these composition metals had properties that the individual metals didn’t. Moreover, the All Clad metals were revealed to be perfect for cookware applications and actually did better than non-bonded cookware. Alum perfected the process, patented it, and established the company, All Clad Metalcrafters, to produce high-quality bonded metal cookware.

Under fire with All Clad

The All Clad cookware metal is actually a thick core of three separate layers of aluminum sandwiched between a stainless steel cooking surface and a magnetic stainless steel exterior. While over fire, the aluminum core of the All Clad metal retains the heat of the flame and distributes it evenly throughout the surface of the cookware even to its tip. Because of its high performance and extraordinary qualities, the All Clad brand soon became one of the benchmarks of cookware. Seeing its potential, cooking professionals adopted the All Clad cookware and this inspired interest from the cooking community despite the brand’s high-price.

Perfection with All Clad

It also helps that the All Clad cookware has striking designs and aesthetics pleasing to the eye. To get the design right, the All Clad cookware is designed to the last stainless steel rivet on their handles. And because the formulation is important in its creation, the All Clad company actually processes the raw materials in their Southern Pennsylvania rolling mill to get the right chemical composition and microstructure of the cookware. Like an alchemist’s recipe, the All Clad works its magic day in and day out whenever someone cooks their food.