Long story short, I destroyed a non stick coat skillet pan last night cooking some chicken burgers and I am looking out there for a replacement. I've read some good and bad things about non stick coatings. Also, I have read some things about cast iron pans. Any insight on which to go with?
Looking intently, despise PTFE and seeking an alternative.
Smooth cast iron is amazing as long as you follow simple guidelines. Season it properly, don't clean with soap. Check around goodwill and other thrift stores for some old stuff, it's even better.
Ceramic is a great nonstick alternative. Stick resistant, cheap, no problems being cleaned with steel wool if necessary, takes a good amount of heat without problems.
The only thing I really suggest staying away from are the cast iron pans with textured bottoms. they're a royal pain to clean, and don't cook very evenly.
I've gone through a few ceramic non-stick pans. They work really well, but the coating is somewhat short-lived in my experience. Spending a little more to get a better one may help with that.
I use cast iron for pretty much anything but eggs.
In reply to RevRico:
X1000 on all counts, well said
This could come in handy. I thought I also put up a seasoning how to, but I can't find the link at the moment.
I've got a couple of Le Creuset smooth enamel-over-cast-iron pans that I really like. Sticking is rarely an issue if you heat them a little before adding butter or oil. They can be cleaned pretty aggressively when required. They're nice and heavy so they cook really evenly, too. Not cheap - really not cheap - but there are less expensive alternatives as well.
I also like hard anodized aluminum for smaller utility pots and pans.
I've got this cast iron skillet I bought for something like $12-15 in college that's my go to for everything - bacon, eggs, burgers, stir fry, sauces, baking, home defense...I think for a couple years I probably did 95%+ of my cooking on it. Can't go wrong with cast iron.
I use cast iron for everything but my wife doesn't, she prefers buying a nonstick every few years. She doesn't want to bother to learn how to use and clean it.
Cast Iron good: last literally forever. Great nonstick surface once seasoned. Adds iron to your diet. easy cleaning. Very even heating. Nice for ovens and grills too. bad: heavy. gets hot slowly and cools down even slower. Watch the hot handle! Must be seasoned before use.
I have an old cast iron pan from my grandmother. It has something burned in a ring around the inside (like someone burned baked beans or something). I've tried numerous things to get it out with little success, including oven cleaner, which made a little progress but not much (it had no seasoning left by the time I got it so I knew I would need to reseason anyway). Anybody have any secret methods that google doesn't know about?
In reply to slowride:
Another plus 1 for Ceramic. I found a good 4pc set at Homegoods, sold under the Palm Restaurant name brand. Apparently, Palm may only be a Homegoods brand (TJ Max and Marshalls are the same retailer). Its lasted almost 6 years, and the large skillet (which I use most) is starting to lose some of its non-stickiness. But, as long as I dont get the food too hot, its still easily cleaned up. Great cookware - would buy again
That said, my cast iron griddle (basically, a 10x22" flat cast iron plate) is by far my favorite item to cook on - nothing tastes as good as eggs over easy, cooked in the still spattering grease left after cooking bacon on cast iron. Its proof that God loves us, and wants us to be happy.
In reply to fasted58:
What he said. Make sure you clean it well afterward to get all the bits of metal out.
We took a gamble on William Sonoma's house brand non-stick skillets. We bought the 2 piece set, a 9" and 11" (I think) skillet, no lids. They're made by Scanpan, in fact I bought a Scanpan lid off Amazon for the larger pan.
The pans are ceramic coated, not Teflon, advertised as dishwasher and metal utensil safe. I haven't stuck them in the dishwasher, they're super easy to clean thanks to the no-stickiness, even burnt cheese comes off with ease. I have sparingly used metal utensils a few times, but I normally use wood, plastic, or silicone coated utensils in everything anyway.
They'll be a year old in January, so far they're my go to, have been used a lot, and look good as new.
Another +1 for cast iron. I clean mine with hot water (no soap!) and a little chainmail washcloth I got from Amazon, then I put it back on heat for a few minutes to dry it out and kill any leftover bacteria or anything. Works like a charm, and the seasoning stays.
The cast iron stuff is great!
Other than a few cast iron pieces, all our kitchen pots and pans are stainless steel. Easy cleanup with a scouring pad or steel wool pad (Brillo). You can season them too! We acquired several stainless steel skillets over the years at places like TJ Maxx, Ross, and closeout stores.
I would not recommend aluminum. There are long term health concerns associated with the use of aluminum cookware.
Cast iron. My wife has one she inherited from her grandmother. It was rumored to have seen covered wagon days.
Clean them however you want, soap, whatever, then rinse, put on the stove, put some oil on them and heat them up. Worst case stain/gunk, bead blast it and start over.
I have a set of lightweight, smooth, cast iron skillets that I use on the stovetop. They are outstanding for everything except eggs. They are easy to use and easy to clean once you understand how to cook with them. For eggs, I use one of two nonstick pans.
I have tried ceramic pans twice, from two different manufacturers. Neither one was very durable.
All of our pots are SS.
I do cook eggs in my Lodge cast iron skillet, but I make the bacon in it first, pour off the excess grease, then put the eggs in. There's still enough bacon grease to keep the eggs from sticking that way.
In reply to fasted58:
Thanks! I figured it was going to come to that.
I've got a combination of different pans for different jobs. Im yet to find one particular type that does it all.
I've got a few pieces of circulon commercial non stick that get alot of general use and have stood up well, but I have found that sugary marinades and really high temp searing don't agree with them much.
I have some stainless Steel Pots wth copper bottoms for boiling, blanching and stuff that doesn't have a tendency to stick, wih the exception of sugary stuff. because if it does stick I can scrub with impunity.
I also have a few cast iron pieces, some enameled, some not. The enameled stuff is pretty non stick and doesn't tend hold flavours from whatever was last cooked, they're great for stews, curries, casseroles etc. The raw cast iron stuf is used solely for savory stuff like cooking steak, burgers, chicken breasts etc. Again, I avoid heavy marinades in the raw cast.
The heat source and how easily it is controlled can make alot of difference to how any cookware performs. I've used gas, electric and induction cooktop/hobs over the years, and gas is by far the easiest to control the way you want it
You can find the Le Creuset brand pans at TJ Max/Homegoods on sale sometimes if you go there enough.
The Lodge Brand is made in Tennessee and are pretty cheap at Wally-World.
I manage to get by with just stainless and cast iron. The trick with the modern rough cast stuff is to strip the "pre season" crap off right off the bat and buy a flexible stainless spatula, which you should use aggressively to wear the bumps down. A cold day, a 400*F oven, and very light coats of crisco (apply to the hot pan, don't forget the bottom) is how I get a new one started.
RevRico wrote: Quick cast iron cleaning This could come in handy. I thought I also put up a seasoning how to, but I can't find the link at the moment.
Salt works, but you seriously cannot wash the seasoning out of a properly seasoned cast pan unless maybe you're using soap nasty enough to give you chemical burns. I've put tons of dawn through mine and eggs will skate in it on a good day, just don't put it in the dishwasher or go at it with an angle grinder and you'll be fine.
92dxman wrote: Long story short, I destroyed a non stick coat skillet pan last night cooking some chicken burgers and I am looking out there for a replacement. I've read some good and bad things about non stick coatings. Also, I have read some things about cast iron pans. Any insight on which to go with?
I have two from Finex an 8 inch and a 12 inch. Yes they are more expensive than Lodge however the bottoms are prefinished with a CNC, the shape allows for easy pouring and (the big one for me) the handle actually allows you to grip and control the pan and cools quickly. Bonus points: 100% made in the USA and look really good.
It'll outlive me and I'm a big fan of buying things once so I didn't mind spending the money.
I love my cast iron pans. I use them every day on my induction cook top. Fabulous combination.
Mine are nothing special, just the same Lodge Brand that you can get just about anywhere. I've had them for 10+ years (actually, that could be closer to 20 years).
I have one large round and one small round that is perfect for making a two egg omelet.
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