La Cintura di Orione Stockpots

Overview

Design by Richard Sapper and Gualtiero Archesi, 2006.
By Alessi.

The stockpot is essentially used to boil water or liquid: a typical utensil for boiling, simmering, steaming and blanching. Alessi's research, conducted with the consultancy of Gualtiero Marchesi, led the company to chose a pot perfectly cylindrical in shape, not least because it corresponds formally with the stylistic feature of the cylinder, an enlightened, rationalistic, geometric form. The characteristics of the cooking method in question, boiling, in which it is the water that transmits the heat to the food, surrounding it completely (the heat, in fact, is not transmitted to the food either by the sides or by the bottom of the pot, but by the liquid itself), coupled with the fact that to bring the water to the boiling-point the width of the bottom is much more important than the perfect heat distribution along the entire surface, prompted Marchesi to suggest a pot entirely of thick 18/10 stainless steel. In fact, stainless steel is a poor heat conductor, but it is unalterable, relatively light, and easy to clean and this combination of features makes it most suitable for a cooking method based on elementary physical-chemical principles such as boiling and its derivatives.