Cooking in cast iron

nhusa

nhusa

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I don’t see where this has been previously talked about.
It surprises me so I probably missed it.
In any case how many of you cook in cast iron pots, pans, etc and where do you get them?
We switched to cast iron, except for a few stainless steel pots, a few years ago.
Some were enameled cast iron because we got them at a good price and my wife wanted red pots in the kitchen but they have been replaced with black pre-seasoned cookware due to chipping.
Most were made by Lodge but there are a couple others.

Our next purchase is a 12+ quart Dutch oven. It looks like the prices are running about $170-200 for 18 -20 quart cast iron camp pots with feet but I think I found 16 qt flat bottom pot for about $100… we don’t want one with feet

what is your experience? Where do you get them?
 
I’ve got a thread somewhere on seasoning them.

If you go to thrift and antique stores you can find the older and much better quality cast iron.

Back then they cast and then milled them smooth making it far easier to have a non stick surface.

My advice, if you buy lodge, is to strip the awful factory seasoning off. Then use an orbital sander to smooth the surface down as good as you can and then put a good oil season on them.

I’ve got a few lodge pans and that’s what I did.

I have switched to using avocado oil for seasoning pans and it works really well.
 
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We have a lot of cast iron, frying pans, dutch oven, casserole dish, pie pan, loaf pans, cake pan, pizza plater, etc. A lot of it is Lodge brand, old and new. Some of the new Lodge frying pans, I sanded the insides to get them smooth.

There is a Lodge store over near Concord Mills Mall and they have factory seconds for about 1/2 price of first quality. If you are down toward Concord, check them out. I think we paid less than $20 for my 6 qt dutch oven and lid.

8656 Concord Mills Blvd
Concord, NC 28027
(980) 949-6047

I just looked at the Lodge website and it looks like the biggest dutch oven without feet, is 9 qt.
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If you find cast iron at a flea market/yard sale type place look on the bottom. Name brand stuff is always best but no name can be good too. If it has a country of origin on it then it was made after 1968. I'd not it was made before then and will likely be better than newer stuff unless it is really expensive.
 
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hp468 said:
Smithey Ironware, North Charleston SC.

We have some Lodge as well but it doesn’t get used much.
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I don't need any more Cast Iron but I think I found what is going on my birthday or Christmas list. Their Cast Iron and Carbon pans are really nice.
 
Most of mine are from thrift stores or bought used of FB. Just make sure your pans are square. Old cast iron is thinner and can warp if it was used over fire.
 
chiefjason said:
Most of mine are from thrift stores or bought used of FB. Just make sure your pans are square. Old cast iron is thinner and can warp if it was used over fire.
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My relatives used to strip the seasoning from their cast iron in a bed of charcoal in the yard.
 
I have an assortment and cook a lot in cast iron. I have older and newer items - once you get a newer pan (say from lodge) well seasoned- they work quite well.
Just got back from Pigeon Forge and while there I picked up 2 more pans - a “pro” series with a more modern profile Pan with sloped sides and a 10” pan.
If you buy used pans make sure you test for lead
 
I have a stash I bought on ebay and from various antique shops. Older is good, but hard to find these days and prices have gone up, up, up. I have a very nice 100 year old or so Dutch oven that is very nice. I also have an 8“ chef‘s pan from Smithey Forge and a 12” Finex. New fancy stuff is nice, but if you can find older pans they are just as good and can be less money. And Finex is heavy. Your wife own’t like that. I’ve been told by my wife I am not allowed to buy more cast iron. My favorite piece is a small piece we found in my inlaws crawl space. It’s a Piqua Ware that has a surface like glass.

I bought a huge pan/lid from Cabelas. Cheap Chinese crap. Sanded it down to bare metal and seasoned 7 times. Then cooked nothing but bacon and burgers for a few years. It is now a decent pan. Patience is key. You can buy junk and make it good if you want to work at it.

@Diablos used to be a highly knowledgeable cast iron guy.
 
I've got 4 skillets of different sizes from 5" to 14".
The 3 larger ones are Griswold, the 5" is a no name that was my dads.
Also have a Dutch oven that mom used camping.
Found a waffle maker at a antique shop, have not used it yet.
 
hp468 said:
My relatives used to strip the seasoning from their cast iron in a bed of charcoal in the yard.
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Please tell me these were in-laws.

That will work but it’s a close thing between stripping and ruining a pan so it will never hold a season again.

Which is the only reason I can think of to be stripping one.

Unless you bought a preseasoned lodge.

But even if you buy an old pan with questionable seasoning you can easily strip it with oven off and a plastic bag followed buy a couple cycles in a dishwasher.
 
nhusa said:
I don’t see where this has been previously talked about.
It surprises me so I probably missed it.
In any case how many of you cook in cast iron pots, pans, etc and where do you get them?
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All the time.

Some I have bought and modified as mentioned previously…others were handed down. Personally, I don’t believe you can beat cast iron for cooking.

Tell ya what I will not use…bare aluminum cookware. If it’s taken care of and washed/dried right after you use it, you’ll probably be alright. Thing is, aluminum does oxidize and you do not want to be ingesting that stuff.
 
CZfool68 said:
I have a stash I bought on ebay and from various antique shops. Older is good, but hard to find these days and prices have gone up, up, up. I have a very nice 100 year old or so Dutch oven that is very nice. I also have an 8“ chef‘s pan from Smithey Forge and a 12” Finex. New fancy stuff is nice, but if you can find older pans they are just as good and can be less money. And Finex is heavy. Your wife own’t like that. I’ve been told by my wife I am not allowed to buy more cast iron. My favorite piece is a small piece we found in my inlaws crawl space. It’s a Piqua Ware that has a surface like glass.

I bought a huge pan/lid from Cabelas. Cheap Chinese crap. Sanded it down to bare metal and seasoned 7 times. Then cooked nothing but bacon and burgers for a few years. It is now a decent pan. Patience is key. You can buy junk and make it good if you want to work at it.

@Diablos used to be a highly knowledgeable cast iron guy.
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Wife said if i buy any more she'd beat me with them. I always look for old pans though, but you're right, prices have gone sky high.
 
Chdamn said:
Please tell me these were in-laws.

That will work but it’s a close thing between stripping and ruining a pan so it will never hold a season again.

Which is the only reason I can think of to be stripping one.

Unless you bought a preseasoned lodge.

But even if you buy an old pan with questionable seasoning you can easily strip it with oven off and a plastic bag followed buy a couple cycles in a dishwasher.
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These were dirt poor dirt farmers and folks barely getting by, living in the country, 60+ years ago. It’s just how it was done here back then, or so my 70+ year old relatives tell me anyway.

They didn’t have “oven off” and avocado oil. 🤣
 
I get all excited when we start talking about iron, and cooking.. and fooooooood🤤 just look at them scrambled eggs just slide around in there😉

My Lodge stuff does just fine though! Definitely gotta sand that coarse garbage factory seasoning flat or all the way off or you're not sliding eggs around like this one and it also makes cleaning a little more of a chore if ya don't.
I steam clean with hot skillet and HOT water so it dont crack and run a brush around the inside. I reseason with avocado oil every time. I prefer avocado because it seems to bond to the iron well. Same with grapeseed and flax seed oils.

I'll use high wall stainless skillets for stuff like tomato sauces and hamburger helper. Boiling water/noodles/starches. Iron for just about everything else that uses oil or grease, frying.. gravies, roux etc.

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Chdamn said:
I’ve got a thread somewhere on seasoning them.

If you go to thrift and antique stores you can find the older and much better quality cast iron.

Back then they cast and then milled them smooth making it far easier to have a non stick surface.

My advice, if you buy lodge, is to strip the awful factory seasoning off. Then use an orbital sander to smooth the surface down as good as you can and then put a good oil season on them.

I’ve got a few lodge pans and that’s what I did.

I have switched to using avocado oil for seasoning pans and it works really well.
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How come avocado oil? I thought for seasoning it was better (easier) to use an oil with a lower smoke point.
 
BowWow said:
How come avocado oil? I thought for seasoning it was better (easier) to use an oil with a lower smoke point.
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I can run it on a higher heat for things like searing steaks without overheating and risk flaking off my seasoning. Had that happen before by accident running my favorite pan too hot😭 so decided I'd just stick with the high temp stuff like avocado. I've never had a problem starting the seasoning process from bare iron with avocado though.
Here is a string of pics after a fresh sand going through reseason using avocado.

I developed my iron program from watching Cowboy Kent Rollins, and just do some of my own little touches. For the most part, it's everything he does.
Once he said something like "If its smokin too bad, you're losing some non-stick capability by burning off your oil and risk damaging your seasoning" so I'd imagine it might be a bit easier to damage a pans seasoning that's been built up using something low smoke, like olive oil. Especially if ya crank it up to get a good sear or just accidentally get it too hot like I did🙄 I'm not sure though, I've not scientifically tested any of that but it's some solid theory in my mind.

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RSKYBSNS said:
I can run it on a higher heat for things like searing steaks without overheating and risk flaking off my seasoning. Had that happen before by accident running my favorite pan too hot😭 so decided I'd just stick with the high temp stuff like avocado. I've never had a problem starting the seasoning process from bare iron with avocado though.
Here is a string of pics after a fresh sand going through reseason using avocado.

I developed my iron program from watching Cowboy Kent Rollins, and just do some of my own little touches. For the most part, it's everything he does.
Once he said something like "If its smokin too bad, you're losing some non-stick capability by burning off your oil and risk damaging your seasoning" so I'd imagine it might be a bit easier to damage a pans seasoning that's been built up using something low smoke, like olive oil. Especially if ya crank it up to get a good sear or just accidentally get it too hot like I did🙄 I'm not sure though, I've not scientifically tested any of that but it's some solid theory in my mind.

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Exactly.

Using a lower smoke point oil is easier to season with. It’s also easier to lose the season.

Whatever the smoke point of the oil is, that’s really the safe operating range of the pan afterward.

Higher the smoke point the harder to season but the longest lasting.
 
Love cast iron pans and such but as far as buying them at flea markets and yard sales, I think back to my Grandfather using a big old pan to melt lead for birdshot and bullets. All of mine I bought new and seasoned, clean them with salt or baking soda and never look back.
 
I've got a few Lodge items that I have used and gotten seasoned well over the past 10 years. I bought a stargazer frying pan last year and it is much better quality than the lodge. I use the stargazer almost daily for cooking my eggs at breakfast. I have a lodge 12 inch pan that has a good seasoning in it and we use that for the tomatoes sauces and such. The wife roasted a duck in it a few weeks ago and wow that really made that pan slicker.

I bought a lodge flat bottom Dutch oven 2 years ago. I did not know that I needed one until i got it. We cook in that thing weekly. The wife loves to use it in the oven. Its easy cleanup and just makes things taste better.
 
Average Joe said:
How would one go about testing for lead?
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You can pick up lead surface test kits at ACE hardware. Pretty sure Lowes has them as well
Pretty common to melt lead and zinc for fishing weights , and lead for casting bullets

I’m careful buying old stuff from garage sales and auctions - I have bought items that test positive for lead
 
BrettB said:
You can pick up lead surface test kits at ACE hardware. Pretty sure Lowes has them as well
Pretty common to melt lead and zinc for fishing weights , and lead for casting bullets

I’m careful buying old stuff from garage sales and auctions - I have bought items that test positive for lead
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Lately I am told chocolate is testing positive for lead.
 
@nhusa, I forgot to mention that Agri Supply has a pretty good selection of cast iron and there is one over in Garner.
 
BrettB said:
You can pick up lead surface test kits at ACE hardware. Pretty sure Lowes has them as well
Pretty common to melt lead and zinc for fishing weights , and lead for casting bullets

I’m careful buying old stuff from garage sales and auctions - I have bought items that test positive for lead
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Thank you. I have never seen those before. But, I haven’t looked either. You are right about melting lead in them. My uncle used an old Dutch oven for the same.
 
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