For someone who is thinking about switching from non-stick pans, the cast iron skillet is one of the best options in terms of performance. The great thing about this utensil is that it lasts for a very long time. Additionally, unlike the Teflon or ceramic coated pans that lose their non-stickiness over time, this type of cookware is just getting better and better with every use.

Regarding the safety of cast iron people claim about the significant methal leaking. I will go into more detail about this topic in some of the upcoming posts. However, if you avoid the preparation of acidic dishes(e.g. tomato sauce, vinegar, fruit sauces.) you will have a highly safe tool for your kitchen. Furthermore, adding a little vinegar or a squeeze of lemon won’t make any problems.

People are often intimidated by cast iron, thinking it’s very hard to deal with it or it is hard to clean. It’s actually quite easy, you just have to know what you are looking for. Once you do it a few times you will like yourself a question: “Why I have ever thought that this will be so difficult?” (Find additional guidelines in the “Best maintaining practices“ tab below)

The Lodge is one of the oldest companies in the world producing the cast iron skillets. The company dates all away from 1896. when it is established in Tennessee in 1896. The long history and experience made this company one of the best cast iron producers in the world.

It is really amazing to which details this company goes when it comes to transparency of its production process.  For instance, every year during the National Cornbread Festival, Lodge opens our foundries to the public. During that time people are able to see where the utensils are made and get to know the dedicated people who make Loofge production facility run throughout the year.

The company is selling its products to the EU, including Germany and France which secures their compliance with very high standards. (Find more info about cookware production standards and compliance with the Safetouseit criteria here )

Take a look at the “Best to cook“ And “Best maintaining practices“ sections to find more info about Lodge cast iron practical tips and notices. Furthermore, look here and find thousands of reviews and great experiences of people with this iconic piece of cookware. 

If you like to join the Lodge owner’s family, be sure that you will enjoy your cookware for a long time. Even Lodge lodge doesn’t give an official warranty, cast iron cookware is something that will last you for a lifetime.

Looking overall Safetouseit uses cookware’s long durability as a cut-off criterion for utensils recommendation. The idea is to present cookware that here can last much more than several years, which gives value to the money and effort you make to buy it. Finally, it contributes to sustainability and less waste on this planet.

Before the first use

Cast iron is one of the materials that should be seasoned before the first use.
For ones who have not familiar with the term of seasoning of cookware from before, it is the process of coating utensils using oil and heat. This makes your pan non-stick and resistant to rust.

When it comes to oil structure it is comprised of long-chain molecules. When you heat up the oil enough on the surface of a pan these long oil chains start to interconnect. Such interaction produces a net that covers the pan surface on a microscopic level. These tiny layers of oil-derived coating are called a “patina.”

 As your pan’s coating develops through this process, it’ll become more nonstick!.

Even it can have such a great impact on your pan, seasoning is quite a simple process.

In a short version, it goes like this: Use some of the high unsaturated fatty acid oils like flaxseed, sunflower, or canola. Unsaturated fatty acids can create more bands within each other, unlike saturated ones. Put a few tablespoons of oil on your pan and wipe it with a paper towel all around, including the handle. Make it shiny. Use another paper towel to remove the excess oil.

 Lastly, put your pan in the oven on 250C turned upside down for 1 hour. Turn the heat off and let the pan cools down. Now you are finished, and your pan is ready. You can find a great explanation of these steps on the Lodge cast iron 101 web page.

The lodge cast iron come already preseasoned. But, what I prefer to do with any new cookware is to wash well with the soap and reseason it again. In this way, I am ensuring that cookware is perfectly clean and prepared for use.

Acidic food

Acidic ingredients will affect your seasoning. A few tablespoons of tomato sauce, a small squeeze of lemon, or a teaspoon of soy sauce won’t make a problem from time to time. However cooking the dishes with higher amounts of acidic ingredients, with larger content of liquid, and during a prolonged amount of time can make problems. This both breaks the patina on your cookware and enhances the release of metal ions in significant amounts.

Cooking temperatures

 No limitations in cooking temperatures. It can be even used on the grill or open flame. Cast iron is a quite resilient material. The only practice that I advise you to avoid is exposing the hot pan directly to water. This can damage the patina (non-stick layer) formed on the pan.

Washing

The key of washing cast iron is to immediately deal with it when you’re done, when when the pan is still hot. When everything cools down it is harder to remove the fats.

So the first step is to drop out the fat/oil from the casserole bottom. Secondly, take the paper towel and wipe the excess of the greasiness.

Next, wash your pan with hot water.

Additionally: If there are some food remainings tightly stick to the bottom, scrub them with a wooden spatula. If some pieces really stick hardly, boil some water on the bottom of the pan and use the spatula again.

Now one final important step in cleaning. Take a certain amount of large-grained slat(e.g. Kosher) and cover the bottom of your (a few tens of grams should work well). Put a few drops off the water. Finally, take a sponge and scrub the pan with salt.

Fo the finish rinse the pan with hot water and put it on the stovetop for a min or two to dry out. Remember the water and cast iron doesn’t mix so it is important to dry it up. Once the pan is dried turn off the heat, add a little oil(it’s good to use high smoke point oils like canola), and wipe the pan with a paper towel. Oil protects the steel from rust.

And that’s it, your pan is clean and ready for storage.

If you ever find rust spots on your cast iron pan, it happens. Just take a scrubbing wire, hot water, and a little soap and scrub all of the rusted surfaces(inner and outer). After the wash dries the pan on the cooktop.  After this apply the seasoning again so that your pan is ready for the next challenge.

Additional tips

If you find out that your pan si leaving dark residues on the paper towel when you wipe, or you find such residues on your meal, have in mind that it comes from carbonized food or non-appropriate seasoning. However, small pieces of carbon won’t affect your health. Remember that people ingest active carbon, for medical purposes.

The remaining carbonized residues can happen because of several reasons.  Maybe you have used a lower smoking point oil while seasoning which has been carbonized during the seasoning process. Maybe a piece of the food left from the previous uses.

 Finally, some manufacturers coat their cast iron cookware(It is not the case with Lodge) with protective wax(usually clearly stated on the product) which you possibly haven’t removed fully.

All these causes can be solved with one good cleaning and reseasoning of your pan(like it is explained above).

Looking overall cast iron is amazingly universal. Unlike the non-stick pans, it isn’t limited to medium heat iron is ideal for high-temperature cooking applications.

Meat searing frequently associates people with this iconic utensil. And, looking overall, you won’t find the better piece of cookware for such a purpose. It is not ideal for dishes like pancakes if you want to lift your pan from time to time.  However, making common meals like scrambled eggs is something that people really enjoy when it comes to Lodges Cast iron.

Since it can go directly from the stovetop to the oven it gives you a variety of possibilities.  From skillet gnocchi to your famous variation of frittata. Additionally, unlike the non-stick pans which are often temperature limited and sometimes oven non-compatible cast iron is ideal for baking.

Seasoning gives really good non-stick properties to this pan. So If you plan to bake your favorite cake down, lasagna, or skillet pizza you will enjoy this durable skillet even more.