Stanley Adventure Nesting Two Cup Cookset Review

Bottom Line

Perfect for two, the Stanley Adventure Nesting Two Cup Cookset is supremely durable, offers predictable cooking performance, and is easy to use at a great price. We thoroughly put this kit to use during backpacking trips and casual outings in the Rocky Mountains, as well as closely evaluating each feature in the CleverHiker laboratory (aka our kitchen).

The narrow, stainless steel pot is best suited for brewing coffee and heating soups. It heats up slowly and evenly, and retains heat much longer than other pots made from titanium or aluminum. 

The foldable pot handle securely locks into place, facilitating safe and secure handling. Stanley also thoughtfully included a fully featured lid and two additional insulated mugs that stay just the right temperature in the hands.

In addition to its predictability and ease of use, the stainless steel is virtually unbreakable. This pot will last a lifetime, although it’ll add significant weight to your pack. Not sure this is your cup of tea? Check out our full guide to our favorite backpacking cookware.

How We Tested

In addition to thorough, quantitative tests at home to determine each product’s durability, cooking performance, and more, we took them out on the trail to bring you feedback from the field. We sipped, slurped, stirred, and shoveled from this Stanley set and tested it with the most stubborn meals we could think of while romping in the Rockies.

Cooking Performance

The tall and narrow stainless steel pot has a wide range of pros and cons in terms of cooking performance. Out of the three most common cookware materials – stainless steel, titanium, and aluminum – stainless steel offers the most kitchen-like performance. It heats up slowly and evenly to avoid hotspots and potential burning. This makes the performance more predictable, which is ideal for beginners, but more patience (and fuel) is required for boiling water.

Stainless steel can vary in terms of ease of release and cleanability, and we gave this Stanley pot a ‘fair’ rating in this category. During our scrambled egg test, it kept notoriously sticky eggs at bay fairly well, but what did stick required a decent amount of elbow grease to remove.

The narrow diameter of the pot slightly diminishes the even heating property of the stainless steel. The thick material still works to prevent burning as long as you stir frequently.

Weight & Packability

The most obvious downside of stainless steel is its bulky weight. The Stanley Adventure Nesting set is one of the heaviest cook sets we tested at 14.1 ounces. It also has the worst capacity-to-weight ratio by far at 92mL per ounce. Basically, that means you’re not getting much cooking capacity in return for the substantial heft.

Weight aside, it doesn’t take much pack space. When packed, itis about the size of a standard travel mug, taking up about 96 cubic inches of pack space. The two insulated mugs nest neatly together to fill up most of the space inside the pot. Without the mugs, the pot will fit a 4-ounce fuel canister and a stove. With the mugs, it can only accommodate an ultralight backpacking stove (we used the BRS 3000). 

The folding handle effectively secures the lid in place, eliminating the need for a stuff sack, although the kit creates some minor rattling unless you add something soft to absorb the sound.

Overall, we love this for fall and winter camping or short overnights when we want a

Usability

The most obvious downside of stainless steel is its bulky weight. The Stanley Adventure Nesting set is one of the heaviest cook sets we tested at 14.1 ounces. It also has the worst capacity-to-weight ratio by far at 92mL per ounce. Basically, that means you’re not getting much cooking capacity in return for the substantial heft.

The packed kit is about the size of a standard travel mug, taking up about 96 cubic inches of pack space. The two insulated mugs nest neatly together to fill up most of the space inside the pot. Without the mugs, the pot will fit a 4-ounce fuel canister and a stove. With the mugs, it can only accommodate an ultralight backpacking stove (we used the BRS 3000). 

The folding handle effectively secures the lid in place, eliminating the need for a stuff sack, although the kit creates some minor rattling unless you add something soft to absorb the sound.

Overall, we love this for fall and winter camping or short overnights when we want a

Durability

The Stanley brand will always bring back memories of the hot chocolate thermos that came out every winter during pond skating season. That thing took a beating, but the cocoa inside never failed to scorch our tongues. Their adventure nesting cups follow in the footsteps of that same rugged, reliable Stanley tradition.

The pot included in this cookset is made from a thick and robust stainless steel that is highly unlikely to warp or break. Superior durability might not be necessary for most cooking applications, but the pot could also double as a self-defense tool or for pounding in tent stakes!

Similarly to the pot, the lid is also made from sturdy stainless steel. The lid handle, being the more fragile of the two, has shown zero signs of failure so far, and the pot handle feels as bomber as ever.

Unlike some plastic components, which are thin and easy to crack, the insulated mugs are thick and barely flex at all. That being said, they are the most vulnerable part of the whole kit and could probably break with a hard stomp, so just mind your step.

Should You Buy the Stanley Adventure Nesting Two Cup Cookset?

The Stanley Adventure Nesting Two Cup Cookset is far from ultralight cookware, but it’s a great option for beginner backpackers, day hikers, or anyone on a budget. For a durable stainless steel pot that’ll last a lifetime and two insulated mugs for sharing, this kit is a major budget buy.

The ample features like the fully featured lid, sturdy handle, and plastic mugs are both practical and easy to use. While ultralight cook sets often sacrifice stability and durability for weight savings, the Adventure Nesting set is rock solid.

For beginner backpackers or those who appreciate familiar, kitchen-like cooking performance, the stainless steel pot is an excellent choice. Although it takes longer to boil water, it heats up evenly and predictably so you don’t ruin a valuable meal in the backcountry.

This budget cook set, although compact, is likely too heavy for most lightweight or ultralight backpackers. The extra weight is noticeable and there are plenty of ultralight alternatives that’ll keep pack weight significantly lower.

What Other Backpacking Cookware Should You Consider?

A perfect pot for your backcountry kit might be the Stanley Adventure Nesting cookset, or it might be one of our other favorites from our full guide to backpacking cookware.

MSR Alpine Stowaway Review: For stainless steel lovers, the MSR Alpine Stowaway offers kitchen-like cooking performance in a variety of capacity options from 475mL to 1.6L. Although the diameter is much wider and more practical, this pot has a minimal feature set and lacks things like drain holes.

Vargo Bot Review: Similar to the Stanley Adventure Nesting Pot, the Vargo Bot is tall and narrow. Although it’s quadruple the price, it is made from ultralight titanium with a screw-on lid and almost double the capacity.

Snow Peak Titanium Mini Solo Review: Similar in that it features a tall cook pot and an additional mug, the Mini Solo is made from ultralight titanium for optimal weight savings.