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Lodge 7QT Dutch Oven & Wagner #10 Skillet

I'm addicted to these two hunks of cast iron.

I've got a family of four, and between the modern Lodge dutch oven and the vintage Wagner skillet I think if I had to, I could almost get by with just these two. Throw in a 12qt stockpot, and it's all covered.

My nonstick pans get very little use anymore.

Any other cast iron fans here?
 
We used to use those Dutch ovens in Scouts to make cobbler. At home, I use enameled cast iron. A cast iron skillet, though is a "must have" in any kitchen. Do you clean your stuff with only salt and paper towels? I know that is the preferred way, but its very difficult to get baked-on gunk off without a good scrubbing.
 
I'll use kosher salt and paper towels for light cleaning, but for the really gunky crud, I'll

  • Use warm water and a mild dish soap. I always dry with heat afterwords, then apply a light coat of bacon grease.
  • Scrape with a metal spatula.
  • Do both.

I've yet to screw up the seasoning doing this. The one time I stripped the seosoning on cast iron was when cooking tomatoes on the Lodge factory seasoning. I cussed a little, got over it and re-seasoned. No problems since.

The way I figure it, cast iron cookware and wetshaving kind of belong together.:smile:
 
I scrub the heck out of mine with steel wool and warm water, then towel dry, wipe with a little cooking oil and set it back in the oven at 350 degrees for at least 10 min.
 
I do pretty much the same...though purists sometimes claim anything other than salt will screw up the seasoning. I've never been able to eliminate good old soap and water.
 
If anything, salt can actually help create the seasoning. I witnessed that happening with aluminum sheet pans in the restaurant. Those pans stayed shiny for years until we added baked potatoes to the menu. The potatoes were oiled and sprinkled with kosher salt. The sheet pans that they were cooked on soon developed that black seasoning coating on them that was so tough that it took pretty much a sander to remove it. It didn't happen to pans that had oily foods on them, it was those salted potatoes that created the coating.

I have some cast iron that I use regularly. A 10 inch Lodge skillet, and #6 Wagoner skillet. Of unknown makes there is also a 4qt iron pot with lid and a pancake skillet.
 
Teflon has no place in my kitchen any more.

We only use cast iron, enamel coated cast iron, aluminum, and stainless.

We really love the lodge dutch oven, and the Le Creuset Doufeu.
 
5 qt lodge dutch oven (no legs or charcoal lip)
2 12" Lodge Skillets

and a 10" Griswold Skillet, very nice antique, much thinner/lighter than the lodge pans.
 
Absolutely! How else could I prepare authentic gumbo and jambalaya? Non stick is equivalent to mach x/quattro whatever in my kitchen.


marty
 
I have #4 ,#6, #8, #10 and a #12 that are 70+ years old, A Dutch oven over 85 years old and cornbread stick pans that over 100 years old.

Thanks to my Grandmothers who thinned out their Cast Iron collection abou 3 years ago. :001_smile
 
Nice to know I'm not the only cast iron junkie here.

Very cool to hear about the vintage stuff. I think this calls for a pineapple upsidedown cake in the #10 skillet tommorow...:tongue_sm
 
Teflon always ended up flaking off the pans. Newer non-stick surfaces are far better. I have a good non-stick skillet. They have their uses.
 
With the exception of a couple of small pots cast iron is all I use. I never use soap just a stiff nylon scrub brush and hot water, dry and heat the iron and a light coat of veg oil. For heavy cleaning or after making something with a distinct odor I will boil water in it then scrub.
 
My best cast iron skillet is an old ring-bottomed Wagner. It's over 75 years old. It's black as coal and slicker than snot inside. Cooking bacon does wonders to cast iron.
 
I have a fairly large dutch oven for about 25 years. Its got a #10 and D, made in the USA on the bottom. Been to more than a few deer camps and camping trips as well as the cook top at Casa del Goose. Its an old friend, a more recent acquisition is a 12" steel pan.
 
I too amaddicted to cast iron for some reason & use it almost exclusively. Some cast iron pans and a steel wok are about all you'll ever need.
 
I clean cast iron only with water and a stiff brush, never soap. Then, coat in cooking spray and wipe with a paper towel. The older the pan, the better flavor it imparts to food and the more non-stick it becomes. Soap depletes those benefits.
 
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I love my Lodge 9 Quart Dutch that I got several months back for both stovetop and outdoor cooking. I've also used 3 sizes of skillets (#6 I think, #10 and #12) for many happy years.

Well-cared for cast iron gives up very little to those grossly flaking and probably carcinogenic non-stick coatings that ephemeral cookware touts.

Roger
 
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