Cast Iron Skillets

[D_Mac 9,222]

I'm going to try Maple Bacon Bourbon Cornbread. Thanks

[8ntruck 7,441]

Used our Wagner 5 qt Dutch oven to roast our eye of round roast today.  The electric oven made the process easy.   

 

That got me to thinking how I would cook the same roast in our 3 footed, rimmed lid Dutch oven in a camp setting.  The trick there would be getting the proper amount of coals on the lid and under the oven - no thermostat to set and forget outside.

 

I also noticed that the Dutch oven and our 10" Wagner fry pan needed reseasoning today.  I gave them rundown with Crisco, popped them into the oven at 300 for about 15 minutes, then shut the oven off to cool.

 

As I was rubbing the Dutch oven, I noticed that seasoning instructions were cast into the bottom.  Wagner reccommeded using coconut oil.

 

I've always had good luck with Crisco.  What are the rest of you using as a seasoning oil on your oil cook ware?

[WHX?? 50,856]

Olive oil here. 

[D_Mac 9,222]

I always use canola oil to season all mine. I also set oven to 450 for an hour. You want the temp higher then the smoke point of the oil you use. Polymerization is baking that layer of oil into the pan. Gives it its non-stick and nice black finish. You just need a small amount of oil. To much makes it sticky.

 

Also when I get a pan at an estate or garage sale I clean them with oven cleaner. Spray them with the oven cleaner and put then in a garbage bag for a day. Wash them off. Then season them 3 times or more.

 

Before and after of my square pan.

[D_Mac 9,222]

Edited December 26, 2023 by D_Mac

[Razorback 1,073]

On 12/1/2023 at 9:31 AM, Razorback said:

I kick myself for not "discovering" cast iron cooking earlier.... just never really thought about it..... Until....... I was watching a video by Kent Rollins where he was showing how to make "cowboy coffee" (try it, if you have never... basically a boiled, smoooooooth coffee.... a wonderful substance!!)..... got me to browsing his other videos, which include cast iron refurbishing, care, and cooking. He is also an outstanding, honest-to-goodness chuck wagon cook! Once I saw his cast iron video(s), it made me think of the crusty "bean pot" my mom had given me several years ago. This "bean pot" is the old Griswold dutch oven I mentioned...... using his method of stripping it via a self-clean cycle in the oven, then reseasoning it, that made that old "bean pot" look like it was brand new! Since then, I mainly use it for making chuck roast dinners. I have refurbished ALL of my non-new iron this way, and it works really nice!

Otherwise, we too use our cast iron daily..... usually the skillets or a flat, round griddle with a handle that is perfect for grilling a sandwich. 

Just yesterday, I used the waffle iron (you really should check out Appalachian Cast Iron Co.! They make some high-quality stuff, and Tony the owner is a really great guy) and the Griswold Square Egg Skillet to make breakfast. (Look on YouTube.... there is a really funny video of a guy who found one of these skillets.... blows his mind about "square eggs".... I think he is from Minnesota?).

The waffle iron is the only piece that I have spent "good money" for.... but it was worth it! 

(on edit: If you'd like a really tasty pancake/waffle mix, look up War Eagle Mill that is here in NW Arkansas... a real, functioning grist mill. Their Pecan Cinnamon Pancake mix is really nice. They also have lots of other flours and meals, all organic if I am not mistaken. And, if you order $60 or more worth of stuff, they ship FREE!)

I wanted to update one thing..... they have dropped the amount down to $21.95 for free shipping... cannot beat that with a stick!

[adsm08 2,752]

Cast iron is dangerous.

[Beap52 1,219]

On 12/1/2023 at 9:31 AM, Razorback said:

I kick myself for not "discovering" cast iron cooking earlier.... just never really thought about it..... Until....... I was watching a video by Kent Rollins where he was showing how to make "cowboy coffee" (try it, if you have never... basically a boiled, smoooooooth coffee.... a wonderful substance!!)..... got me to browsing his other videos, which include cast iron refurbishing, care, and cooking. He is also an outstanding, honest-to-goodness chuck wagon cook! Once I saw his cast iron video(s), it made me think of the crusty "bean pot" my mom had given me several years ago. This "bean pot" is the old Griswold dutch oven I mentioned...... using his method of stripping it via a self-clean cycle in the oven, then reseasoning it, that made that old "bean pot" look like it was brand new! Since then, I mainly use it for making chuck roast dinners. I have refurbished ALL of my non-new iron this way, and it works really nice!

Otherwise, we too use our cast iron daily..... usually the skillets or a flat, round griddle with a handle that is perfect for grilling a sandwich. 

Just yesterday, I used the waffle iron (you really should check out Appalachian Cast Iron Co.! They make some high-quality stuff, and Tony the owner is a really great guy) and the Griswold Square Egg Skillet to make breakfast. (Look on YouTube.... there is a really funny video of a guy who found one of these skillets.... blows his mind about "square eggs".... I think he is from Minnesota?).

The waffle iron is the only piece that I have spent "good money" for.... but it was worth it! 

(on edit: If you'd like a really tasty pancake/waffle mix, look up War Eagle Mill that is here in NW Arkansas... a real, functioning grist mill. Their Pecan Cinnamon Pancake mix is really nice. They also have lots of other flours and meals, all organic if I am not mistaken. And, if you order $60 or more worth of stuff, they ship FREE!)

After years of trying new-fangled non-stick frying pans, we returned to cast iron.  We have them in the house,  in the camper and I keep one in the shop. Where I cook fish, mushrooms and the like.  I've got a cast iron deep pan-something like a dutch oven that I fry fish in on my Coleman gas cook stove. The heavy cast iron seems to hold heat really well. For the past two or three years we've been using the three legged dutch oven. Below is zucchini bread we baked last year.  I think it's better than zucchini bread baked in the electric oven.

 

Kent Rollins is a hoot.  I've watched a bunch of his videos. His little "dances" at the end are--uh unique.  I see that from time to time he and his sidekick/camera woman wife come to Silver Dollar City near Branson, Mo and do their shows.  I never been but would be interesting. 

 

First time we visited War Eagle was in the '80's.  Pam, I, our two kids and some friends brought our motor homes and stayed there.  It seem we just parked in a grassy area. We had a generator and the others didn't so we parked in the middle and ran extension cords to power their lights.  Back then it wasn't the huge gathering that has grown into.  During the fall show, it can be difficult finding camping at Roaring RIver State Park.  The men stay and fish and the womenfolk head to War Eagle.  I agree with you about the goods that are sold at War Eagle.  We visited there a couple of years ago and bought some biscuit mix.  Good Eats!

 

[Beap52 1,219]

On 12/25/2023 at 6:41 PM, 8ntruck said:

Used our Wagner 5 qt Dutch oven to roast our eye of round roast today.  The electric oven made the process easy.   

 

That got me to thinking how I would cook the same roast in our 3 footed, rimmed lid Dutch oven in a camp setting.  The trick there would be getting the proper amount of coals on the lid and under the oven - no thermostat to set and forget outside.

 

 

There are Dutch Oven temperature chart and guides available on-line that I have printed out.   One thing I have learned is not to leave what I bake in Dutch Oven in the Dutch Oven once it is done cooking.  One time on  camping trip we baked brownies.  Left them in the Dutch Oven to "keep warm" until we were ready to eat them.  Shoot!  They continued cooking from residual heat in the cast iron that I don't think even soaking them in milk would have softened them enough to eat with taking a chance of cracking dentures.   Below is fresh blackberry pie cooked last summer.  I make my own crust. (If I can re-wire a 9 pin on a 520H, I can certainly build a crust for a pie!) I lay the crust in the Dutch Oven, put the filling in, the fold the crust over the top of the filling.  I'm going for taste not looks.

[HyperPete 601]

I'm down the road a piece from John Wright's.  This thread made me think of them.

They produce primarily hardware, but I see the do sell a few cookware pieces.

The grapeseed oil info sounds interesting.

 

https://jwright.com/product-category/hearth-holiday/cookware/

[Beap52 1,219]

46 minutes ago, adsm08 said:

Cast iron is dangerous.

HUH? I guess it could be if I dropped it on the wife's glass top stove.  I always figured it was better to cook in than a "non-stick" aluminum whereas half of the non-stick is stuck to something other than the pan.

[Achto 28,892]

50 minutes ago, adsm08 said:

Cast iron is dangerous.

 

Only if your wife starts swinging it at you. 

[8ntruck 7,441]

@Beap52 - That pie sure looks good to me.

[Achto 28,892]

Teflon pans are much better for you. 

 

https://www.earthisland.org/journal/index.php/articles/entry/dupont_and_chemours_settle_teflon_toxin_lawsuit_for_up_to_921m/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=paid&utm_campaign=tfd_dsa&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjwy46_BhDOARIsAIvmcwMxNRF0pqPKoVJEk0OVDyiXMdX55XuDUySrogD4GsZS-mMjcnctWOUaAsW3EALw_wcB

 

https://ohiocapitaljournal.com/2023/12/04/dupont-chemours-and-corteva-will-pay-ohio-110-million-in-settlement-over-forever-chemicals/

 

https://www.marinbarrettlaw.com/dupont-settlement

[WHX?? 50,856]

3 minutes ago, Achto said:

Teflon pans are much better for you

 

Nah they hurt too ... 

[D_Mac 9,222]

Since I started this post I have acquired a few more. I have a big old Lodge. It's like 15 inches across the bottom. Love making pizzas in it..... delicious. 

[JimSraj 484]

Hers a picture of the bottom of a waffle iron and a 12” skillet that are part of my collection. They both get regular use along with the 10” skillet and the Dutch oven and chicken fryer. I care for them as most of you have already described. Thanks for helping me find the maker of the 10” in the last picture. I was not aware of Birmingham Stove and Range before reading about it here. That one sees the most use. I got the 12” in a box of stuff that came with a  Vermont Castings wood stove I bought used. It was all rusty in the bottom of the box of stove stuff. Just fried up some flounder fillets last night in it. Some folks says it’s worth a couple $$$. Worth more to me as cookware. 

[Beap52 1,219]

We were at a antique store/flea market last year in central Missouri. They had a selection of vintage cast iron cookware.  I did a double take when some of the skillets were priced near $100.  I'm sure there are some "collector" cast iron cookware and it's hard telling what some folks would pay for it. 

[adsm08 2,752]

On 3/26/2025 at 8:25 PM, Achto said:

 

Only if your wife starts swinging it at you. 

 

Exactly. And mine has some upper body strength from her years as a floor nurse.

 

On 3/26/2025 at 8:54 PM, WHX?? said:

 

Nah they hurt too ... 

 

They just don't hit the same though.

[Achto 28,892]

2 hours ago, Beap52 said:

They had a selection of vintage cast iron cookware.  I did a double take when some of the skillets were priced near $100.  I'm sure there are some "collector" cast iron cookware and it's hard telling what some folks would pay for it. 

 

I prefer Griswold cast iron cookware. They were in business from 1865 - 1957 and were bought out by Wagner. Both brands were good quality had a smooth finish inside unlike the Lodge brand that is available now. Griswold & Wagner are usually higher price, but I will not shell out $100 for one. Some times you just gotta wait until you find a reasonable seller. 

Edited March 28 by Achto

[Wayne0 987]

I have an old Wagner passed down from my late brother. Two (three) things get cooked in it. Bacon, eggs, and steak. Wipe out with a paper towel to clean.

It lives on the bottom rack of the oven. Every time I use the oven, the seasoning fortifies.

Edited March 28 by Wayne0

[D_Mac 9,222]

@Achto you need to find an old Lodge Skillet. My favorite pan is my no name Lodge from the 40s - 50s. You can tell they are Lodge by the 3 notches in the heat ring. Pre 1960 because they won't say " made in usa " on the bottom either. You can get these pans cheap and they have by far a better cooking surface then newer ones. I have Lodge, Wagner, BSR, Griswold,  and the very very expensive Erie skillets, Dutch ovens, and griddle. My go to pans are these 2 cheap old Lodges #8 and #5. That being said, if you get a chance to get an Erie.... get it. 

[adsm08 2,752]

On 3/26/2025 at 8:22 PM, Beap52 said:

HUH? I guess it could be if I dropped it on the wife's glass top stove. 

 

Don't get me started on that. We cracked a glass-top last year. Fortunately I was able to find a used top and frame on e-bay for about $100. Only took three hours to replace it, mostly because nobody was helping and I was terrified of breaking the new one.