Decathlon Philippines has been visited by many lately because of the camping gear available for sale. And as we have always visited their stores to purchase gears that we also need, I have noticed that their cooking sets are often low on stock or sold out. Maybe, out of customer convenience, price, or quality?

Luckily, I have purchased 2 sets a long time ago and have used mine for numerous camping trips. More than enough for me to get to know the product and to actually put the set to the test.

So now I gather my thoughts and put to writing why the Decathlon – Quechua Mountain Hiking Cook Set stands up to the hype.

Decathlon Philippines has four (4) sets available for sale at their stores. You can consider these by size as they differ in number of persons it can serve.

• Quechua Trekking Cookset Trek 500 Stainless Steel 1 Person 0.9 Liters
• Quechua Mountain Hiking 2 person camp stainless cook set (1.6L) MH 100
• Quechua Mountain Hiking camp MH500 stainless + anti-stick coating 2 people 2.1L
• Quechua Mountain Hiking Stainless-steel Cook set Non-stick Coating MH500 4 People 3.5L

In this write up I’ll be focusing more on the quality of these items as a whole rather than what’s inside the sets. For such information, I have made the list clickable so you can check the complete list included per set at their website.

Materials Used

The materials used for their cooking sets are on point safe and food grade for that matter. Starting off with the cooking pots, each set is made out of (304) stainless steel. This type of steel is commonly used in kitchen restaurants as it is very durable in intense heat and in food safety. It’s resistant to oxidation so to avoid food contamination. I also tried the MH500 series on an induction cooker, and hey, it does work!

Unlike other camping cooking sets in the market, the MH500 series comes with non-stick cooking pans that have PTFE Xylan non stick coating. Again, that this is food grade safe and the adhesive they used for the coating is also food safe. Just do note that non-stick coating’s worst enemy are metal utensils.

Going to the utensils that come within the set are spoons, forks, and knives that are made out of flexible polymers (technically plastic). These utensils are partially flexible to avoid snapping on you when you used them repeatedly. In my opinion, and after using them for several times, I can safely say that these are durable enough and I do feel these will last a long time. The utensil’s shapes are well thought off as they snap together like lego for easy storage.

Also, the bowls and cups are made of plastic that are also durable. Although, the downside of the plastic bowls is that it is quite hard to clean. Based on my experience I do have to use an ample amount of dishwashing liquid to get it oil free. Don’t have a measuring cup for your liquids? The bowl itself has measuring marks on the side for you to use for measuring liquids. So two thumbs up for me as I have used it countless of times.

Finally, are the plastic lid and the rubber trivet. And I must say these are also well thought off when it comes to materials used. The plastic lid is durable enough and comes with slits for draining boiling water. The rubber trivet keeps the entire set packed tight and also serves as a nonslip coaster.

Durability

Here’s the part that you might be very interested on. And everything did not disappoint. I’ve got the stainless steel pans and pots used both on gas burners and on the campfire. The initial worry I had was if the steel would handle high heat. I’ve put them on the stove with the gas cranked all the way up, and the steel did not even change in color. Putting both on the campfire also stood up to the test. One thing to note tho is the handle of the pot. As long as you keep it away from direct fire and you should be okay and keeping it from burning/melting.

The utensils are also in top durability. I’ve used it on boiling water and even on the frying pan; no damage in sight I must say. On that note, just because not to over bend them as I feel that it will only bend to a certain point before it snaps.

Comparison

One of the cooking sets I’ve first experienced cooking with are the ones made of aluminum (like the one on the photo). One of the biggest downside to this is that I can’t cook my sunny side up eggs properly on these! So when I started using the non-stick pan from decathlon, I was enlightened right away. High heat are also the downside of these as they then to bow or bend up when we placed it on the campfire. Design-wise, the holder easily swings back to the pan which can be a cause for it to melt when you’re cooking.

If there is a good note and worth buying for this set is the kettle. So if you get a chance to buy just the kettle, then grab it.

Final Thoughts

I think these cooking sets are worth buying for their durability, quality, and design. Not to mention the practicality of each and every component of the cooking set. The portability and ease in stowing are a plus as well. No wonder many bought these cooking sets at Decathlon. It is something that you will definitely recommend to other campers when you get to use them.