Cast Iron- share all your favorite tips/tricks/recipies

After going thru 2 sets of expensive pans in the last 10 years we are slowly converting our kitchen to mostly cast iron. I have always been a stickler about not metal on the non stick pans but there still becomes missing pieces of the coating that I know gets in to our food. The first nice set of stuff we got was for our wedding. The knifes and dutch oven (ceramic coated) are the only things that are still performing. We have one large stainless pan that is ok but we still prefer the cast iron. We cook at home most meals most days as in Anderson Valley there are not many options. When were on the road we treat ourselves to fine dining (was more before the 2 year old).

We started with a Lodge 15" skillet with lid. Loved it so much we got the 12" skillet for more everyday use, the bigger one is great if we have guests. We also got the 12" deep skillet for frying and less splatter. The most recent additions were the flat rectangle grill/griddle, one smooth side one with ribs and one smaller 10" grill pan with ribs. I use those on the webber, fish on the griddle pan, veggies in the grill pan with tin foil over top. We have a few other miscellaneous hand me downs we have collected as well. Seems like we need less pans which takes up less space and that they are easier to clean once broke in proper.

We really have enjoyed using them, going from stove top to oven or from webber to table has been great. The wife would occasionally burn her had with the other silicone handled items if they went in the oven. Now everything is hot handled so easier to remember. We have an electric stove and the heat is hotter longer and much more even. I mostly use grape seed oil as it has a higher smoking point than olive oil.

So far the only draw back has been eggs. We have one small 1-2 egg non stick that we still use for eggs from our chickens. One of us got that pan in college and it was not expensive but has held up well. Other than that a stick of butter or bacon fat is the only way I have got them not to stick.

Any tips, tricks, recommendations, recipes for the WB foodies. Were planning on basically converting all our cook ware to cast iron. Next is bakeware and handleless griddles enough for serving and scrapping regular plates. We drink lots of wine and I always heat the plates when guest are over but the ceramic can crack and I think cast will hold heat longer.I searched and found the topic mentioned in a few places, mostly around steak/Flannery duh but thought the topic deserved its one thread.

Preheat in the oven.

+1 on the pre-heating and buy vintage pans without the rough surface. Season with food grade flax seed oil.
Pre heat to 200 deg light coat of flax seed oil 450 deg oven for a couple of hours and repeat…

I am a fan of coconut oil, but flax works just as well.

I did notice the hand me downs were much smother than the new ones. Maybe time to start looking for used older stuff. I will have to get some flax seed oil and try it out. Thanks for the ideas.

I’m a big fan of the Finex pans if you want something fancy.

I’ve never had problems with eggs and much prefer the texture to nonstick ones. Just preheat the pan well.

don’t be afraid to clean them. you aren’t going to rub off the seasoning, just don’t cook acid in them.

invest in a cheap induction burner. they are roughly $60 on amazon. they heat up much faster than your electric stove and you can run them outside for summer cooking.

be conscious that they retain heat for a long time so if you have sugars or liquid proteins, don’t leave them in there for a long time after cooking unless you’re ok with very brown or burnt.

you can google it, but flax seed oil is the best way to season them. stinks like rotting salmon though.

get a fish spatula as the slight angle is really great for removing things, not just fish.

bake bread in your preheated dutch oven!

make sure you dry it well after washing. I usually just turn on the burner for a moment and let it evap.

Any particular brand/model you can recommend (or any to avoid)? I have thought about this for occasional outdoor use, but wondered if the sub-$100 options were actually useful

All great info, will try a hotter pan for eggs. The wife has been trying bread in the dutch oven but not pre-heated will try that next. I have used the side burner on the gas grill and the beer making burner in the summer outside but I like the idea a induction will look into that. Neither of the gas ones work great the one on the grill is kinda wimpy on BTU, and the other is hard to fine tune plus they can put soot on the pan.

Pan pizza in a cast iron skillet is pretty awesome.

great topic - i just got my first iron skillet a short while ago.

Q: is it ok to put meat (e.g. flank steak) that has been in a marinade into an iron skillet?

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If you dry it off completely. If not, it will burn badly and smoke like a SOB.

awesome. thanks.

I always cook cornbread in a well-seasoned, old, cast iron skillet.

Preheat oven to 425. Make your favorite cornbread batter. Put the skillet in the oven to heat fully. Add a TB of butter to the pan and let it heat for a minute. Pour in the batter and cook until done. I always turn on the convection for the last few minutes. It always has a great crust and it never sticks.

Yum that ones going on the list to do’s soon.

As its chili season still ill fire this one up next time.

We just had the most insane cornbread at our last offline. The guy who made it used his cast iron skillet too although if I remember correctly he did not preheat the pan and yet the cornbread didn’t stick at all. His pan must have been heavily seasoned to do so I am assuming. I’ve been using my carbon steel pans lately and like them better than my cast iron. To me they perform equally well, but the carbon steel is way lighter and easier to work quickly with.

What’s the make of your pans?

I’ve got Mauviel carbon steel pans.

Wanna keep these puppies well seasoned? Cook bacon in them…lots and lots of bacon.

With the newer pans - just use them! I’ve had several new Lodge pieces, and while they say “pre-seasoned”, it’s nothing compares to what develops after 2-3 years. After nearly every use, I wash, dry, then as someone suggested put on the burner to fully dry. I then wait until it smokes, and wipe down with canola (or your favorite high heat) oil. This might be “overkill” in terms of seasoning, but I also don’t think it hurts.

Also until your seasoning is rock solid perfect, it’ll help to use just a tiny amount of fat with certain sticky foods - pancakes, eggs, etc. Just putting a bit on a paper towel and wiping around the pan can be enough.

Three more easy ones that we have tweaked into our own versions
Splayed Roast Chicken w/ Ramps (I use this method even without ramps)

Cast Iron Skillet Ribeye

Depending on the thickness of the steaks, you may need to adjust the time in the oven

Pan Roasted Chicken Thighs

Beyond cooking, I think cast iron is excellent for reheating. We don’t have a microwave and the cast iron heats things up quickly and evenly. Pizza is way better in the skillet (in oven) vs microwave or on aluminum foil in the oven.