Anyone use cast iron cookware?

[Gawen]

I'm really debating getting some. I'd like your thoughts on cast iron cookware...

Such as
Do you or anyone you know use it?
Thoughts on purchasing used cast iron.
How to season rusted cast iron.
How do YOU season it?
What are the best pieces to get.
Which piece do you use most?
etc

[Crow]

I own a big cast iron cooking pot which I cook almost everything in. It was passed down to me so I have never bought any myself (certainly intend to in the future) so can't really help there. It is easily the best piece of cookware I have ever owned and would highly recommend purchasing some.

For seasoning them I found this little tutorial a while back that works wonders.
http://theredspoonblog.com/howto/2010/06/28/how-to-season-a-cast-iron-skillet/

[Sandra Craft]

For seasoning them I found this little tutorial a while back that works wonders.
http://theredspoonblog.com/howto/2010/06/28/how-to-season-a-cast-iron-skillet/

Thanks for that link, I have a number of cast iron skillets and one huge soup pot and had no idea what the proper treatment for them was.  I just avoided cleaning them with water as much as possible and, when I had to wash them I'd rub them down with veg oil after drying them and then put them in the oven overnight.  Worked well enough.

To answer Gawen, I use the skillets the most tho when it comes to soups and stews I prefer my cast iron pot over anything else, including the slow cooker.  It may be my imagination, but the flavor seems better.

[KingPhilip]

I used a cast iron skillet for a while, it was absolutely fantastic. By far the best I've ever used. To season just cook bacon at least twice a week, keeps it well seasoned. I swear it's like the flavor just seeps into it.

[Whitney]

I have a cast iron griddle that I have yet to season because it said to season it with lard and that's just not something I think to buy when I'm at the store.

Can I season it with olive oil?  I have plenty of that.

[Recusant]

I have a cast iron griddle that I have yet to season because it said to season it with lard and that's just not something I think to buy when I'm at the store.

Can I season it with olive oil?  I have plenty of that.

It really depends on what type of olive oil. Personally, I wouldn't use olive oil, but it's not like you'll ruin your griddle if you use it. It's my opinion that a higher smoke-point oil is better for curing cast iron. Also, the method described in the tutorial linked above is not the way I learned to cure cast iron. Actually, it seems to be specifically for restoring cast iron that has already been cured, but maybe I'm wrong. Anyway, this page gives the technique that I learned, and it has served me well. I use a good (refined) peanut oil for curing, but other fairly high smoke-point oils work too, and the "Southern Recipes" page that I linked suggests melted Crisco. (I guess a consideration might be if you know anyone with a peanut allergy.) This page has a nice table which will serve as a rough guide to smoke points for various cooking oils.

[Gawen]

Excellent. I've been wanting to throw away my Teflon junk. I do use the pots that have the copper looking bottom...can't remember what it's called. Revere ware? Whatever. I'll continue using those because they are durable, but will look into a couple CI pots. I've been thinking of getting a large CI Dutch oven, but holy crap, it's more than $80!! And a couple of CI frying pans as well.

Those of you that cook, don't you think it would be cool to make bread in a Dutch oven in or on a wood stove?

Thanks for all the advice!!

[Tank]

Excellent. I've been wanting to throw away my Teflon junk. I do use the pots that have the copper looking bottom...can't remember what it's called. Revere ware? Whatever. I'll continue using those because they are durable, but will look into a couple CI pots. I've been thinking of getting a large CI Dutch oven, but holy crap, it's more than $80!! And a couple of CI frying pans as well.

Those of you that cook, don't you think it would be cool to make bread in a Dutch oven in or on a wood stove?

Thanks for all the advice!!

I hope you're not like my wife, who buys cooking fads! Such as a bread maker. She wanted one for Christmas a few years ago, so I dutifully got her one (glad I didn't have to think about what to buy her). But I bet her she wouldn't use it more than 10 times. I was right it got used 6 times before it ended up in the garage, later to be donated to our younger daughter who makes good use of it.

[hismikeness]

I used to love when mom cooked with the cast iron skillet because I was specifically told I couldn't wash it. Now, my wife has a small pan that is cast iron. Use away... I don't have to clean it.

[Whitney]

how do you keep cast iron sanitary if you can't wash it....can you at least rinse it out without soap?

[hismikeness]

how do you keep cast iron sanitary if you can't wash it....can you at least rinse it out without soap?

Soap is a no-no. I think it's supposed to be treated with oil and heated up to sanitize it.

Soap and scrubbing with coarse instruments are deadly for cast iron, I guess.

[Recusant]

When I have to I will use hot water with salt as an abrasive to clean cast iron. After that I make sure that it's thoroughly dried, then I wipe it down with a paper towel with a touch of cooking oil and maybe put it on the stove on low heat for a couple of minutes (though that isn't really necessary). I agree that soap is not good for cast iron.

[Gawen]

Excellent. I've been wanting to throw away my Teflon junk. I do use the pots that have the copper looking bottom...can't remember what it's called. Revere ware? Whatever. I'll continue using those because they are durable, but will look into a couple CI pots. I've been thinking of getting a large CI Dutch oven, but holy crap, it's more than $80!! And a couple of CI frying pans as well.

Those of you that cook, don't you think it would be cool to make bread in a Dutch oven in or on a wood stove?

Thanks for all the advice!!

I hope you're not like my wife, who buys cooking fads! Such as a bread maker. She wanted one for Christmas a few years ago, so I dutifully got her one (glad I didn't have to think about what to buy her). But I bet her she wouldn't use it more than 10 times. I was right it got used 6 times before it ended up in the garage, later to be donated to our younger daughter who makes good use of it.

No, I'm not like that at all. When we got married, my wife and I struck a deal. She hated to cook and didn't know how and I hated washing dishes. Actually, her first meal she cooked was scrambled eggs....you could eat em with a straw. I had been cooking on my own for a few years, so we had an accord -  I'd cook and she would wash the dishes. Been working beautifully for the past 31 years!

I really love homemade bread and haven't baked any in a long time. While researching cast iron, I ran across a youtube video of some guy that made bread in a dutch oven he would put in a pot-bellied stove.  With a dutch oven, you can cook a lot of stuff over an open fire, as in camping.

[Gawen]

Everything I've heard about cleaning cast iron is just wash it with hot water and use a good stiff scrub brush. Once it's been cured, it basically stays that way for quite a while.

After that I make sure that it's thoroughly dried, then I wipe it down with a paper towel with a touch of cooking oil and maybe put it on the stove on low heat for a couple of minutes (though that isn't really necessary). I agree that soap is not good for cast iron.

What he said.