Cast iron cookware questions...

Mongo said:
Greetings all, my cheepo crappy teflon frypan bit the dust this week. I would like to get a good cast iron fry pan. But first, questions...
What is/are some of the best brands, and where do I find them?
How do you "season" the pans?
How do you clean them once they have been seasoned?
Do I need a Dutch Oven too? How in the heck do you use them?... in the oven, on the stove-top?
Do you need to use a non-stick spray like "Pam" when you cook with these?
My predominant usage will be for frying my eggs in the morning... I HATE it when they stick, so non-stickage is very important to me. But I'm hating the teflon thing... it worries me when I smell that "odor" if the pan gets too hot. Just what is going into my food???? :confused:

Thank you in advance for your answers and opinions,
Mongo
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Pre-heat the pan,pour in cornmeal batter & bake the required time. It bakes the best ever. Pan bread [ hoecake ] does very well too. These breads will keep a working man going .


Uncle Alan a country lad...:)
 
farmboy said:
(BTW, fried 'taters will always stick, but you want them fried until brown and crispy, in bacon grease, of course!)
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They'll stick until they're done. Then they'll release. Same with meat.

Phil
 
farmboy said:
(BTW, fried 'taters will always stick, but you want them fried until brown and crispy, in bacon grease, of course!)
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Your pan will always try and hang on to your food, but if you talk to it nicely and leave it alone, it will let go when the food is golden. :)

Bacon grease is great, lots of flavour and good for homefries..
 
uncle Alan said:
Pre-heat the pan,pour in cornmeal batter & bake the required time. It bakes the best ever. Pan bread [ hoecake ] does very well too. These breads will keep a working man going .


Uncle Alan a country lad...:)
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Got a recipie for squash cornbread with sour cream substituted for milk if you want it Uncle Alan.
 
All good advice here. I don't cook in anything else as a general rule. I have a large Lodge skillet that I use all the time. I have a big seasoned dutch oven that is still unused, but I hope to change that someday soon. The one bit of advice I have heard is to avoid cooking acidic foods like tomato sauces. Something to do with reactive nature of the iron, but if you have a well seasoned pan of dutch oven with a nice black coating, I can't see the harm in cooking chili in it. :)
 
Funny, seems like the only person in this thread that knows the good point about Lodge Logic cookware is the guy that originally started the thread. :D

The Lodge Logic line comes preseasoned right from the factory! My wife and I have been using an older 12" skillet for a while, and on a recent trip to the states we picked up a 6" skillet and 10" round griddle, both in the "Logic" line. They work just as well as the old "traditionally" seasoned one, and didn't require the heating/oiling cycle.

If you are trying to find a retailer near you, in addition to Linen's & Things, try camping stores (though I can't imagine backpacking while carrying CI cookware), and your friendly neighborhood Cracker Barrel restaurant. If you're ordering online, Amazon has great prices.

You just can't beat traditional southern cornbread in a cast iron skillet.
 
FoxholeAtheist said:
You just can't beat traditional southern cornbread in a cast iron skillet.
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You r right about that and nothing is better to eat with butterbeans or Limas, Pintos, field peas, and along side of fresh collards in the pot. Where is that Mississippi Mud Pie for dessert! Fried Chicken or pork chops...a good venison stew. Macaroni and Cheese. What you boys want for dinner?
 
The best thing you can do with your cast iron cookware is use it often. It will stay easy to clean and you won't have to reseason it.
 
I am in the never use soap crowd. I mainly use cast iron on campouts, both Dutch ovens and frying pans. When done, I just put them back in the coals if it doesn't look like rain. By Am the burnt stuff is ready to knock out. I'll bang em a bit and wipe them with a crsico'd paper towel. The paper towels we use in a little chimney deal to start charcoal going. No waste, no fuss, no "lighter fluid" smell to the coals (or tempting flammable liquids for the Scouts).

best AM dish. "napolean dynamite casserole" in dutch oven or large fry pan with lid. Brown spicy sausage and drain. layer on grated cheese, frozen tatertots and or hash browns...cheese following each addition. Pour an approporiate amount of stirred up eggs over the whole mess followed by the remaining cheese. Put on coals above a piece of aluminum foil and coals on top. Not too many coals below and never use matchlite coals as they dont last very long.

ummmm, my favorite. You have to deal with 12 and 13 year old boys to appreciate the name.
 
I second Minjin's (#12) comment about the better quality of old cast iron cookware.
A look around the flea markets will usually find a few old dutch ovens and skillets in various conditions. Ignore rust and stains that can be cleaned off, but avoid any with cracks or chips, these will just get bigger.
Good scrub with soap and water (for the first and last time), then season as described by other commenters and you will have cooking gear that will last forever if you look after it.
 
Steaks and pork chops cooked in cast iron skillets get a much better "sear" than on cheaper aluminum skillets.

The only thing comparable to cast iron in searing steaks and chops can cost 5-10x as much.
 
m_calingo said:
Steaks and pork chops cooked in cast iron skillets get a much better "sear" than on cheaper aluminum skillets.

The only thing comparable to cast iron in searing steaks and chops can cost 5-10x as much.
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I don't sear in mine although I could, it's seen it's share of country steak and gravy to frying eggs. It's just a pan that gets passed down from your grandma to your mom, to you. It isn't going anywhere if you take care of it.
 
Be careful of cooking acidic foods like tomatos in your cast iron. It will strip the seasoning off and you'll need to re-season. No real harm just a little extra work.

Patrick
 
I have 6 or 7 cast iron skillets from Lodge. They make the best steaks in the world (better than the grill IMHO).

Lodge now sells pre-seasoned skillets, and I recommend you use that. As you cook anything with some level of grease and non-acidic (meat, etc), it will get better and better seasoned. A properly seasoned cast iron skillet won't stick.

You don't really need to wash them. You can rinse them under hot water, and scrub, and you'll get most of what you want to get out, out. The skillet should stay lightly oiled, otherwise it will rust. In theory, you're supposed to rinse it, dry it (with a paper towel - not let if dry by itself), and then oil it. I find that cumbersome, and generally I just rinse it briefly while hot and let it dry on the still-warm hot plate with a few drops of oil in it.

You will need to re-season them every year or two. The inside should not need it, but the underside will.
 
Joss said:
I have 6 or 7 cast iron skillets from Lodge. They make the best steaks in the world (better than the grill IMHO).
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I'm always looking for a good steak recipe...do you have anything you can share with us??? :)
 
OK, as promised... just a week late. I made the Green Chile Pork Stew today. It's pretty good.
You will need at least a 5 qt. Dutch oven for this one.

Green Chile Pork Stew


3-ish pounds of cubed Pork. Go to your butcher for this.
enough oil to brown the pork with
4 cloves garlic, diced fine
approx 16 oz. chicken stock
3 stalks celery, diced
2 4oz. cans of diced jalapenos (both mild and hot versions)
2 14.5 oz. cans of diced tomatoes
2 11oz. cans of Green Giant mexicorn, drained


Heat up your Dutch Oven (might I suggest Lodge Logic) add the oil and diced garlic, saute the garlic. Brown the pork in batches and set aside. Add enough chicken stock to deglaze the pan. Add the diced celery, and the cans of green chiles, (here's where you can experiment... I added one mild can and one hot can so my wife will eat it. I personally would go with 2 hot cans, maybe even 3 hot cans), the cans of diced tomatoes, and the cans of mexicorn. Bring to a brief boil, then turn down the heat and simmer for approx 1&1/2 hrs. If the mixture is too watery, mix 2 Tbsp of corn starch and 2 Tbsp of water into a slurry and slowly add it to the pot while constantly stirring.
Serve with cold beer and corn tortillas.
Enjoy!:thumbup:
 
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