After 34 years, I finally am sold on cast iron cooking for most things in the house and while camping. I was given a 9" skillet from a friend when I was having a time with anemia. The iron is absorbed in the food from the pan. Over the weekend, I found two Griswolds and two Wagners at antique shops. They were really grungy and yucky. I bought them anyway, put them in my self-cleaning oven for 2 hours. Dusted off the food dust, rust, let them cool, sos'd them and then began a seasoning process. We seasoned them by warming, oiling, baking and cooling six times over the weekend to be sure they were seasoned well. I cooked in them tonight and nothing stuck. I will start to accumulate a few more Griswolds or Wagners and put them away for the daughters so they have their own. I fully understand now why Martha Washington listed her cast iron pans in her will.
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Nothin better I say. I have a glasstop stove at home, so I can't use them there. However work has a gas stove and I always take them camping. After every use, I apply cooking oil and then heat them over the fire. Always a stick-free surface for next time.
JaredWPhillips wrote: Nothin better I say. I have a glasstop stove at home, so I can't use them there. However work has a gas stove and I always take them camping. After every use, I apply cooking oil and then heat them over the fire. Always a stick-free surface for next time.
Lodge makes one coated with porcelain enamel that wont scrach your glass cooktop.
I can't say enough good things about cast iron cookware. I got my first skillet 45 years ago when I was 11 years old and a Boy Scout. I used it to cook every camping trip and it went with me wherever I went since then. Today it resides in my trailer where it is used every trip.
My cast iron collection has grown quite a bit and includes multiple size fry pans and Dutch ovens. I just wish they weren't so dang heavy!
I used to use all sorts of fancy, anodized this, and coated that, and whatever else was new and improved. Then about 5 years ago I got a good cast iron pan and seasoned it well. Now, I have gotten rid of all the fancy, expensive stuff and almost exclusively use cast.
Omeletts, pancakes, casseroles, you name it, I use my cast iron skillets.
The trick is--keeping DW from scrubbing the seasoning off it every time she washed it. The solution: we agreed that I would be responsible for cleanign the cast iron.
* This post was
edited 04/30/12 07:30pm by Johnworth914 *
Alaska is next! Still trying to fit the pontoons to the RV so We can get to Hawaii!
JaredWPhillips wrote: Nothin better I say. I have a glasstop stove at home, so I can't use them there. However work has a gas stove and I always take them camping. After every use, I apply cooking oil and then heat them over the fire. Always a stick-free surface for next time.
Lodge makes one coated with porcelain enamel that wont scrach your glass cooktop.
Didn't think about scratches. I was told that using them on a glass-top was a no-no due to the fact that the iron gets so hot, and no heat can escape therefore can cause the glass top to crack/break.
A Wagner (thus before Wagner-Ware) #8, thus 10" frying pan with matching lid is my most used utensil. Ok, Wagner, Wagner-Ware, Findlay, Smart, Javelin, Martin.
Let's see about 10 flat bottomed stove top pots from 10" to 12" for baked beans, apple butter, chili......
Over 20 Dutch (Camp) Ovens for outside. Hmmmm. Camp Chef, Lodge, Griswold/Wagner Ware from after W-W bought G...., Martin, Balto, Furphy, Harding, .......
Johnworth was right about the trick is to stop DW from scrubbing off the seasoning. Years ago DH had a cast iron skillet that I scrubbed every time he used it. He finally threw it away. About 5 years ago he got another and the deal is...I never touch it. He uses it almost every day.
JaredWPhillips wrote: Nothin better I say. I have a glasstop stove at home, so I can't use them there. However work has a gas stove and I always take them camping. After every use, I apply cooking oil and then heat them over the fire. Always a stick-free surface for next time.
I have a glass top range, too, but I use cast iron skillets almost every day. Haven't cracked anything yet. Seems to me that the biggest risk is dropping one on the surface. They are heavy.
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