Eighteenth Century Agrarian Business: collecting - cast iron pans

by Elizabeth

I bought my first cast-iron skillet as a fledgling baker in high school, looking for a proper vessel for making pineapple upside-down cake. It was actually a completely uneducated buy; I was at the late, lamented Lakewood Antiques Show, saw a wonderful, smooth 9" cast-iron skillet for $18, and talked them down to $12 (it was a Sunday, the last day of the show, after all). I didn't know anything about seasoning the pan, and I bought it in part because, frankly, I didn't know that new cast-iron pans were still manufactured. It's turned out to be well worth its $12 price, and sits permanently on top of our stove, stacked with a number of other cast-iron pans that could double as anti-burglary implements, if it ever came to that. There are several ways you can buy cast-iron: new and unseasoned, new and pre-seasoned by the manufacturer, used and in good shape, and used and in rusty, messy, rough shape. I prefer old Griswold and Wagner pans; if they're well used and well seasoned, they tend...

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Cast Iron Skillet: How to Season and Protect Your Cast Iron

Cast Iron Skillets are the original non-stick "Teflon" coating. An iron skillet seasoned properly will keep food from sticking, is great ...

Skillet Tamale Pie with Mexican Beef Sausage in Jalapeno and Cheese Cornbread ...

08.02.11

Serves 4-6

There’s a certain romance associated with skillet cooking in American cuisine. It conjures campfires or rustic wood-fired ovens, where the cooking vessel must be sturdy enough to withstand the heat. Cast-iron pans fit that bill and more. I routinely use three cast-iron skillets of different sizes to accommodate different types of dishes: a small one for cooking up sausage samples for tasting or for frying up a couple of burgers; a medium size for cooking plate-size pancakes or a fat, juicy steak for two; and a large one for searing meats or fish fillets before finishing them in the oven or for making this skillet tamale pie.

Cast-iron skillets offer two more advantages: they are widely available anywhere that carries kitchen equipment, from hardware stores to gourmet cookware shops, and they are modestly priced. The drawback to cast iron is that it is not serviceable for dishes that include tomatoes, wine, spinach, eggplant or the like, because it turns the ingredient unpleasantly bitter.

Source: Napa Valley Register

Cast Iron Cookware

cast iron cookware Lodge Logic L10SK3 12-Inch Pre-Seasoned Skillet
Kitchen (Lodge)
(Amazon.com)

List Price: $27.50
Price: $17.99
You Save: $9.51 (35%)

Superior heat retention and even cooking
Two handles for heavy lifting
12 inches in diameter, 2 inches deep
cast iron cookware Lodge LCC3 Logic Pre-Seasoned Combo Cooker
Kitchen (Lodge)
(Amazon.com)

List Price: $41.99
Price: $34.99
You Save: $7.00 (17%)

Dual pan set with 3-quart Dutch oven complemented by 10-1/4-inch shallow skillet that doubles as lid
Pre-seasoned with vegetable oil formula and ready for immediate use
Rugged cast-iron construction heats slowly and evenly
cast iron cookware Lodge Logic L5SK3 Pre-Seasoned Cast-Iron 8-Inch Skillet
Kitchen (Lodge Logic)
(Amazon.com)

List Price: $12.99
Price: $10.16
You Save: $2.83 (22%)

Rugged cast-iron construction heats slowly and evenly
Wash with a stiff brush and hot water; lifetime warranty
Lodge Logic 8-inch skillet cooks eggs, sausage, and burgers
cast iron cookware Lodge Logic 5-Quart Double Dutch Oven and Casserole with Skillet Cover
Kitchen (Lodge)
(Amazon.com)

List Price: $50.00
Price: $34.97
You Save: $15.03 (30%)

5-quart pre-seasoned cast-iron Dutch oven and casserole with skillet cover
1-1/2-inch-deep domed lid doubles as a skillet
Sturdy, integrated side handles on base and lid for secure transport
cast iron cookware Lodge Logic L8SGP3 Pre-Seasoned Square Grill Pan
Kitchen (Lodge)
(Amazon.com)

List Price: $24.95
Price: $16.99
You Save: $7.96 (32%)

Hand wash only; oven safe to 500 degrees F
Measures 10-1/2 by 10-1/2 by 1-3/4 inches; lifetime warranty
Pre seasoned and ready to use; electrostatic spray of vegetable oil evenly baked into surface

Cast Iron Cookware- News


Cast-iron comeback: Time-honored fixture material gets modern design treatments
Las Vegas Review-Journal - Feb 23, 2011
By ARAcontent A skillet hidden away in a cabinet, or some other small piece of cookware - that's about all the cast iron you'll find in most modern homes. In the early 1900s, iron was a material of choice not just for cookware, but for many other

Skillet Tamale Pie with Mexican Beef Sausage in Jalapeno and Cheese Cornbread ...
Napa Valley Register - Feb 08, 2011
Cast-iron skillets offer two more advantages: they are widely available anywhere that carries kitchen equipment, from hardware stores to gourmet cookware shops, and they are modestly priced. The drawback to cast iron is that it is not serviceable for

Self-reliance in these tough economic times
Canada Free Press - Feb 17, 2011
In regards to cast iron cookware and Dutch ovens, we feel there is a need for both. Deb for an example, uses her cast iron skillet in making cornbread and hoe cakes. She also fries her chicken in them as well. When cleaning your cast iron pans,

Test Kitchen: Seasoning a wok is easy, pays off big
OregonLive.com - Feb 08, 2011
Turns out woks have a lot in common with cast-iron pans, and if they are treated well, they'll reward you with decades of wonderfully nonstick service. So, with the Chinese New Year festival upon us, it's a great time to dust off this quintessential

An exclusive with the artist behind Detroit's new Robocop statue
Grist Magazine - Feb 22, 2011
Get that burning, and temperatures inside the furnace tower go north of 3000 degrees F, hot enough to liquefy your cast iron cookware. Westbrook and his assistants tend the pour with little more protection than a suit of Kevlar armor and a healthy