Cast Iron Cookware

[Shinob1]

Definitely true for me. I have to keep my vintage Wagner at a lower temp than even my Le Creuset enameled cast iron.

I will try a lower temp. How long do you preheat on low? I've had the most issues with hotspots when I'm cooking bacon. One side gets done way before the other and what happens is I get burnt bacon one side. Searing veggies, chicken, fish, and beef have been manageable. For some odd reason bacon has been giving me the most problems.

 

[DwarvenChef]

Lodge is a quality piece of CI that gets a bad rap because it's not Griswald or Wagners. I have picked up many pieces at yard sales and flea markets because the "pickers" ignore them. My last several skillets where under $5 each. I have about 20 lodge pieces and use them everyday at some point in the day.

When it comes to cooking these pans are consistant everytime. They are all the same thickness for each style. Something that Griswalds are not. Each of my Griswalds are a different thickness and cook differently because of that. New lodges need to be broken in, they are rough in that where Griswalds are polished and season easy. But once you get that seasoning in there Oh yaaa

I have one skillet I got for $4 at a flea market that lives on the stovetop, it gets useded everyday, and burnt-up at least once a month because my wife turns on the wrong burner... All I do is reseason it and it's off and running again in no time. Not something you can do with a stainless skillet, they warp and thats all she wrote...

 

[DwarvenChef]

It does have a hot spot and you are correct, cast iron really shines in the oven. I'm not sure what temp preheating a pan to and then using it on the stove would be. If I were to just guess I would guess around 330. Before you do that, even with the hot spot, try cooking at a lower stove top setting. My experience is that cooking with cast iron you need a much lower stove top setting than you would initially think.

-AJ

Correct, CI uses much lower heat setting. They heat rather fast already and if you using anything over a medium heat you will smoke the pan in no time. I cook my eggs on med low (2.5/3 on dial) butter smokes on 3 in my CI pans. I pre heat on the stove top at least 5 mins. Usually I come in and turn on the burner than gather my chow and prep it up. Once prepped I add the fat and move on no problems

 

[ajhuff]

Lodge is a quality piece of CI that gets a bad rap because it's not Griswald or Wagners. I have picked up many pieces at yard sales and flea markets because the "pickers" ignore them. My last several skillets where under $5 each. I have about 20 lodge pieces and use them everyday at some point in the day.

So very true. Lodge makes a great product. Their manufacturing methods are far superior to what was being done 80-100 years ago allowing them to make a far more consistent product. I have an old griddle of unknown origin that I got from my Dad. You can see the tooling marks on the cooking surface where it was turned on a lathe. That allows for a much smoother surface than what Lodge provides and I think that is the greatest difference between the old stuff and the new Lodge stuff. Providing a similar finish, Lodge would cost 3x as much and no one would buy it.

-AJ

 

[heirkb]

I can preheat on low/med-low for a minute or two and be ready to go for eggs, bacon, pancakes, etc. The pan heats up quickly and really holds the heat. I'm totally converted to cast iron for everything that doesn't involve acid.

By the way, from what little I've read on the cast iron forum I visited, heat spots could be caused by a warped pan. You should put it on a flat surface and press down around the edges to see if it has a lot of (or any) wobble.

 

[ajhuff]

I put mine on low heat until it looks wet if that makes any sense. Then throw my Bacon in. Never had a problem.

-AJ

 

[Shinob1]

I have a gas stove and the burners are fairly small - that's what I think part of my problem is. I think that when I put it on a lower temp the hot spot is worse since the flame is smaller, but I may not be giving it enough time. I'll try preheating on a very low setting and see how it goes.

@Dwarven - are you buying the new lodge logic stuff at flea markets or the older lodge? I read that the older lodge CI had the polished cooking surface and therefore was similar to Griswold and Wagner. That's one of the main reasons I'm buying the Griswold, is for the smooth surface. And I think it will be nice to own a vintage piece of cookware that's older than me and my wife combined.

 

[DwarvenChef]

I have a gas stove and the burners are fairly small - that's what I think part of my problem is. I think that when I put it on a lower temp the hot spot is worse since the flame is smaller, but I may not be giving it enough time. I'll try preheating on a very low setting and see how it goes.

@Dwarven - are you buying the new lodge logic stuff at flea markets or the older lodge? I read that the older lodge CI had the polished cooking surface and therefore was similar to Griswold and Wagner. That's one of the main reasons I'm buying the Griswold, is for the smooth surface. And I think it will be nice to own a vintage piece of cookware that's older than me and my wife combined.

Most of the finds I come across are the new modern pieces, once in a while I come across some old pieces. So many of the lodge pieces have been melted down in scrap drives of the past. Griswald didn't get scrapped as often so there are more of them around, and because Lodge is still being made the name just gets over looked by pickers.

As for a polished surface, I'm still on the fence as far as whether it's better or not, but that is subjective to ones own likes and dislikes. My eggs fall out of both about the same everytime, if I do my part lol

As far as hot spots via burner size and pan size, ya this can be a bugger. But I find lower heat and allowing the pan to heat up cures that. However my 14" skillet just never really heats up on my stovetop lol not to the level I want it, so it gets preheated in the oven before I sear stuff. The 14" is my braising pan and it always goes in the oven to finish anyway so no heating the oven just to preheat.

The thinner (generally) Griswald pans can get a wicked hotspot early in the pre heating, thats why lower heat and time to heat up, till the handle is almost to hot to hold, are needed to get that pan rockin not wabbling though

I have yet to find a warped CI pan but I know they are out there. Compared to a stainless pan... almost all of them seem warped, bulged, or burnt up... Hot spots are not always the culpret on warping, pouring cold liquids on a rocket hot pan does it almost everytime. I'm not talking that half cup of liquid to deglaze, I'm talking about taking the pan off the heat and running it under the faucet to wash it out... warps and cracks ...

 

[SpikeC]

When I cook bacon in my Griswold I put the bacon in cold and turn the burner on low, then put the lid on. The heat builds up gradually and the bacon comes out evenly cooked and nicely rendered without being too crispy, it still has some "tooth" to it.

 

[Shinob1]

When I cook bacon in my Griswold I put the bacon in cold and turn the burner on low, then put the lid on. The heat builds up gradually and the bacon comes out evenly cooked and nicely rendered without being too crispy, it still has some "tooth" to it.

Thanks for tip! I'll give that a try the next time I cook bacon.

 

[DwarvenChef]

I think every piece of CI I have was first tested with bacon

 

[DeepCSweede]

I have a gas stove and the burners are fairly small - that's what I think part of my problem is. I think that when I put it on a lower temp the hot spot is worse since the flame is smaller, but I may not be giving it enough time. I'll try preheating on a very low setting and see how it goes.

@Dwarven - are you buying the new lodge logic stuff at flea markets or the older lodge? I read that the older lodge CI had the polished cooking surface and therefore was similar to Griswold and Wagner. That's one of the main reasons I'm buying the Griswold, is for the smooth surface. And I think it will be nice to own a vintage piece of cookware that's older than me and my wife combined.

They make cast iron diffusers for gas stoves which may help too. I have never used one but have heard good things about them. They only work on gas though

 

[joec]

It is funny but a brand I've not seen in this thread is Wagner. Now I have several different CI pots and pans with some old and some new. My favorite cooking pan is a Wagner 12" fry pan period. It is a perfectly balance handle design so when lifting it there seems no urge to let it tilt. I've used the pan for years on gas, electric and the last year on induction and it has cooked better than my griswold or lodge pans. I also don't find smooth CI pans cook better than the later rough finished pans by Lodge and others. The one and only Wagner I can't explain other than to say it heats a bit faster, holds the heat a bit longer perhaps and is very comfortable to handle especially when hot. Other than that I notice little to know difference between the old Griswold, Wagners or Lodges and the new CI pans from Lodge and others with the rough finish. So in closing to me they all cook great and if properly seasoned they are non stick.

 

[DwarvenChef]

I just panfried a few trout in my 10" lodge pan and never had a sticking problem. I love this stuff

My wife just broke my Wagner grill pan Grrr but at least I got to get e new pan from the deal I hardly ever used it so I don't miss it much. My griddle is a Wagner and I think I have a corn bread pan that I will never give up lol.

One thing I have been playing with has been the use of different oils in these pans. I stopped using canola oil due to health reasons, nasty stuff... And have moved to peanut, olive, walnut oils and good ol' Lard when I can find a good source that hasn't been hydrogenated... Lard by far is the best performing but is so rare these days. Peanut oil is a close second as far as seasoning ease and maintainance. Olive oil works great for cooking and all but I find it weak in the seasoning department, like it just doesnt want to get in there and stay. Anyone else notice that different fats act differently in your CI cookware?

 

[SameGuy]

Wait. Canola is unhealthy now?

ETA: Ah. Nevermind. You read about it in yet another misleading chain email. Please add Snopes to your reference library. http://www.snopes.com/medical/toxins/canola.asp

[FONT=Trebuchet MS,Bookman Old Style,Arial]"This light, tasteless oil's popularity is due to the structure of its fats. It is lower in saturated fat (about 6%) than any other oil. Compare this to the high saturated fat content of peanut oil (about 18%) and palm oil (at an incredibly high 79%). It also contains more cholesterol-balancing monounsaturated fat than any oil except olive oil and has the distinction of containing Omega-3 fatty acids, a polyunsaturated fat reputed to not only lower both cholesterol and triglycerides, but also to contribute to brain growth and development.

In other words, it's a healthy oil. One shouldn't feel afraid to use it because of some Internet scare loosely based on half-truths and outright lies."[/FONT]

 

[ajhuff]

I have a Wagner and a Griswold that were my Grandmother's. At least I think it's a Wagner; it has a small 'W' cast on the bottom. Why did so many of the manufacturers not use casting marks!!! Grrrr. My mom gave them to me because she said they were worthless since they didn't have lids. I didn't even strip them. I just put a new coat of bacon grease on them and fired them outside on my gas grill. Both work like a charm. I probably use my various Lodges the most, followed by the Wagner and then the Griswold. I really can't tell much difference between them all. The Wagner and Griswold are smoother but the pebbly surface on my Lodges are so well seasoned that they work just as well. The Lodges might actually brown and sear better but that would be a tough call. I have both the earlier non-preseasoned and the preaseasoned Lodges and they look the same now. I did nothing special, just used them.

Does anybody recognize this:

The back says 10 1/2 INCH GRIDDLE MADE IN USA but no casting marks.

This was my Dad's pancake griddle and has to be at a minimum 40 years old. You can kind of see the concentric tooling marks on the cooking surface. I rarely use this pan as it is an absolute PITA to control the heat on it. I think that's why my Dad wasn't shy about giving it to me.

-AJ

 

[obtuse]

I just panfried a few trout in my 10" lodge pan and never had a sticking problem. I love this stuff

My wife just broke my Wagner grill pan Grrr but at least I got to get e new pan from the deal I hardly ever used it so I don't miss it much. My griddle is a Wagner and I think I have a corn bread pan that I will never give up lol.

One thing I have been playing with has been the use of different oils in these pans. I stopped using canola oil due to health reasons, nasty stuff... And have moved to peanut, olive, walnut oils and good ol' Lard when I can find a good source that hasn't been hydrogenated... Lard by far is the best performing but is so rare these days. Peanut oil is a close second as far as seasoning ease and maintainance. Olive oil works great for cooking and all but I find it weak in the seasoning department, like it just doesnt want to get in there and stay. Anyone else notice that different fats act differently in your CI cookware?

I agree with your observations on oil completely. I also dont use canola oil except when the health food store is out of spectrum high oleic sunflower or safflower oil. If I do buy canola oil, i always buy organic. Most of the canola grown in north america is GMO. Also, polyunsaturated fats, such as omega-3, break down at high temperatures. This is one reason flax seed oil makes a bad cooking oil. Saturated fats on the other hand and monounsaturated fats make better cooking oils. Long chain fatty acids are not directly absorbed into your blood like poly and mono unsaturated fats are. Stearic acid, which is the saturated fat found in butter and lard, is broken down into oleic acid, the mknounsaturated fat found in olive oil. It is believed that oleic acid is better for your arteries because it has a bend in its chain which prevents it from forming plac. Also, canola oil contains small amounts of erucic acid which is known to be harmful.

 

[mpukas]

I agree with your observations on oil completely. I also dont use canola oil except when the health food store is out of spectrum high oleic sunflower or safflower oil. If I do buy canola oil, i always buy organic. Most of the canola grown in north america is GMO. Also, polyunsaturated fats, such as omega-3, break down at high temperatures. This is one reason flax seed oil makes a bad cooking oil. Saturated fats on the other hand and monounsaturated fats make better cooking oils. Long chain fatty acids are not directly absorbed into your blood like poly and mono unsaturated fats are. Stearic acid, which is the saturated fat found in butter and lard, is broken down into oleic acid, the mknounsaturated fat found in olive oil. It is believed that oleic acid is better for your arteries because it has a bend in its chain which prevents it from forming plac. Also, canola oil contains small amounts of erucic acid which is known to be harmful.

Good posts f/ you and DW here. Canola is nasty stuff, but if you're gonna use it use organic, as in the US non-organic canola is GM. Canola oil is a farce - there are no "canola" plants - it's rape seed oil. It originated in Canada where they had a surpluss of it. The word "Canola" is a marketing by-product term of Canada-Oil. It was used primarily as a macherny lubricant before being marketed as a cooking oil. Rape seed is also know to be a toxic weed. Saying all that, I have found some information that states that what is now considered Canola oil has gone through a series of hybridizations (which is how almost all produce that we currently consume came to be) and is no longer considered toxic in it's most current form. I still won't use it.

I find grape seed oil to be a good alternative. It's high heat and clean. But it's funky in that as it dries it gets really sticky and gummy. Haven't heard/read anything bad about it. Also, do a little investigating about safflower oil, or any refined oil suitable for high-heat use. Safflower can be GM and can have some adverse effects, and refining any oil can make it less beneficial for human consumption. Unless one has allergies/reactions, peanut oil is still one of the best "natural" high-heat oil.

Re: seasoning cast iron, in the Jan/2011 issue of Cook's Illustrated (yeah, I get it...) there was a small article about seaosning w/ flax seed oil and how it can create an indestructible surface. Something about the type of fat that's in flax vs other oils. It involves several cycles of wiping the pan w/ flax oil, putting it in a very hot 500d oven for a time, and then turning the oven off and letting it cool, and repeat 4-5-6 times. I tried it w/ some new De Buyer carbon pans about a year ago, and it didn't work for me at all. It intially created a very black even finish but it immediately flaked off during the first cooking uses. Could be that it works for cast iron and not carbon steel pans.

FWIW, I much prefer carbon steel pans to cast iron. I have a small collection of cast iron pans that I've inherited and used for years and years, really old stuff, and I hardly use them any more becasue I like the De Buyer carbon steel pans much much better. I find the carbon steel pans offers the same benefits off weight, heat retention, non-stick, etc. w/ better handles and shapes and overall better performance.

Here's a great article on cookware. Cheers! mpp
http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?/topic/25717-understanding-stovetop-cookware/

 

[DwarvenChef]

Personally I think the dietary bits could use it's own post.

I have only used flax seed oil in salads... have to give that a try in the skillet and see what changes Nice round griddle by the way, I have a 12" lodge griddle and have the same issues with it. Been working on a temp and time line up that may get things going for this pan but untill I get it worked out the griddle that straddles two burners gets the majority of use.

 

[Shinob1]

I've read quite a bit about seasoning and it seems to be that there are those who season by using it and others who go through a lengthy process of seasoning with various oils. I tried both and I noticed for me personally, that my pan got better after cooking bacon in it several times and wiping it down with just a thin coat of oil after use.

I have been using Canola oil to wipe it down and EVOO for cooking. I think when I get my new pan I'm going to fry up a pound of bacon and see how it goes.

 

[ajhuff]

I do it even simpler. Fry Bacon. Wipe out with paper towel. Return to hot burner to cool down (electric) . No extra coatings of oil. Just use nd wipe, use nd wipe...

-AJ

 

[DwarvenChef]

Oh yaaa !! Gotta do the bacon thing I do batches of small dice bacon for bits. Dice up a pound and render it down on low, strain it and portion it out and into the freezer Filter the fat and into the fridge Waste Nothing

 

[SameGuy]

Good posts f/ you and DW here. Canola is nasty stuff, but if you're gonna use it use organic, as in the US non-organic canola is GM. Canola oil is a farce - there are no "canola" plants - it's rape seed oil. It originated in Canada where they had a surpluss of it. The word "Canola" is a marketing by-product term of Canada-Oil. It was used primarily as a macherny lubricant before being marketed as a cooking oil. Rape seed is also know to be a toxic weed.

Sorry to continue OT, but there is simply no evidence for any of the negative health claims being made against canola oil. It is perhaps the healthiest cooking oil to use, but you are free to continue consuming excesses of SFAs and TFAs thinking they are "healthier" than canola. It doesn't make the claims against canola any less false, nor the claimed "benefits" of lards, butters and high-SFA and -TFA oils any more true.

http://www.givengain.com/cgi-bin/giga.cgi?cmd=cause_dir_news_item&news_id=71485&cause_id=1056

 

[Andrew H]

Good posts f/ you and DW here. Canola is nasty stuff, but if you're gonna use it use organic, as in the US non-organic canola is GM. Canola oil is a farce - there are no "canola" plants - it's rape seed oil. It originated in Canada where they had a surpluss of it. The word "Canola" is a marketing by-product term of Canada-Oil. It was used primarily as a macherny lubricant before being marketed as a cooking oil. Rape seed is also know to be a toxic weed. Saying all that, I have found some information that states that what is now considered Canola oil has gone through a series of hybridizations (which is how almost all produce that we currently consume came to be) and is no longer considered toxic in it's most current form. I still won't use it.

Not to jump on you but I don't see how having a name change for a product is a farce. The name rapeseed just does not make you think happy thoughts, I don't see why that makes the oil any worse.

 

[obtuse]

Rape seed is high in erucic acid. It's not considered suitable for human consumption in most countries. You can find rapeseed oil used for cooking in some parts of india. I believe it has to be heated to its smoke point in order to make it palatable. I have a bottle I bought at an indian market, it's labeled external use only. Canola is rapeseed breed to be low in erucic acid. I generally dont use it because i dont like taste of it. Spectrum, on the other hand, makes good tasting canola oil.

To the poster regarding grape seed oil. Grape seed oil forms a sticky film on your pan because it's high in polyunsaturated fats. I think they tend to polymerise or plasticize easily.

Oils should be a new thread even though oil and cast iron are best friends.

Im seasoning a cast iron waffle iron right now. Im using coconut oil.

 

[DwarvenChef]

Today I watched two customers just about get into a fist fight over cleaning of Cast Iron... It was really amazing how strongly these two very civil individuals (normally) got so worked up because they saw polar oposite ideas as herasy. One was based on cleaning with a spatula and a paper towel, nothing else. The other says after reaserching where the notion of never soaping a CI pan to clean is was based on the common soaps of the time and that modern soaps where safe to use in moderation.

WOW these guys tore into each other like you wouldn't believe, is it a full moon tonight??

My point is that there are those that believe in one way so strongly that they will not be convinced of another way, ever. Personally I find that not getting into those topics with people is just for the best on all sides. I believe strongly in what I believe and others believe in what they believe, who is right and who is wrong is no longer an interest to me when all the doors close and the emotion gets hot. I just will not bite and move on to other topics. 9 times out of 10, they are both right and both wrong to some degree, there is always more than 3 sides to a story, side A, side B, and whats real.

Now back to out OP

How many here have and use various Dutch Ovens

 

[Talal]

Rape seed is high in erucic acid. It's not considered suitable for human consumption in most countries. You can find rapeseed oil used for cooking in some parts of india. I believe it has to be heated to its smoke point in order to make it palatable. I have a bottle I bought at an indian market, it's labeled external use only. Canola is rapeseed breed to be low in erucic acid. I generally dont use it because i dont like taste of it. Spectrum, on the other hand, makes good tasting canola oil.

To the poster regarding grape seed oil. Grape seed oil forms a sticky film on your pan because it's high in polyunsaturated fats. I think they tend to polymerise or plasticize easily.

Oils should be a new thread even though oil and cast iron are best friends.

Im seasoning a cast iron waffle iron right now. Im using coconut oil.

i use coconut oil in almost all my cooking. I used it also exclusively to season the pans with fantastic results!

 

[Shinob1]

I want to buy a Dutch oven but not sure if I should go enamel or not. If I do regular CI I'll probably buy a Lodge. However I read that their enamel products are not very good. A Le creuset is so expensive, I am not sure I'm ready to drop 300$ on one.

Today I watched two customers just about get into a fist fight over cleaning of Cast Iron... It was really amazing how strongly these two very civil individuals (normally) got so worked up because they saw polar oposite ideas as herasy. One was based on cleaning with a spatula and a paper towel, nothing else. The other says after reaserching where the notion of never soaping a CI pan to clean is was based on the common soaps of the time and that modern soaps where safe to use in moderation.

WOW these guys tore into each other like you wouldn't believe, is it a full moon tonight??

My point is that there are those that believe in one way so strongly that they will not be convinced of another way, ever. Personally I find that not getting into those topics with people is just for the best on all sides. I believe strongly in what I believe and others believe in what they believe, who is right and who is wrong is no longer an interest to me when all the doors close and the emotion gets hot. I just will not bite and move on to other topics. 9 times out of 10, they are both right and both wrong to some degree, there is always more than 3 sides to a story, side A, side B, and whats real.

Now back to out OP

How many here have and use various Dutch Ovens

 

[Deckhand]

I have a Staub Boulliabaisse pot and Staub mussel pot both in blue and love them.

 

[heirkb]

Le Creuset outlets are your friend.

I'm generally creeped out by nonstick (because of how it needs babying), so I looked to enameled CI as a replacement. Once you figure the enameled pans out, they're really nice to cook in. Just don't put food in a cold pan enameled CI pan--unless you're trying to render the fat in a duck breast or something like that.