My girlfriend moved into a new apartment with an induction stove. A lot of her pots and pans just don't work. But what does work is my old cast iron camping gear. Unbelieveable how fast it heats up, and how hot it gets.
An immediate hit with her was my
Stansport Cast Iron Wok. It has made the best stir fry and fried rice that I've ever tasted. Bamboo steamers fit right on top just like what you would see at a dim sum parlor. Eggs fry perfectly. We even use the wok for pasta. And the wok is the perfect pot for making cioppino.
But instead of simply taking my old stuff, she insisted that she get a brand new set. She is just one of those girls that insist on having her own, and she wants it brand new.
So off to
Harbor Freight I go, for their
cast iron frying pans.
Okay. First of all, my main motive here was price. I figured that it would be a passing fad, and that she would grow tired of the weight. And if she doesn't take care of them properly, she could ruin a very expensive set of Lodge pans. So this made for a perfect experimental starter set.
These pans are not seasoned. But that is not a problem.
I remember my first pan that I got as a kid. Don't ask me why I got a pan as a kid. One day the old man handed me a frying pan and said that it was mine. Then whenever we went camping, or cooked in the back yard with the bbq, we used my pan. Nothing fancy. All that we ever did was cook on it. First time out, we filled it with water and put the pan over an open flame. The water boiled and evaporated. Then we flipped the pan upside down and fired up the inside. The pan got hot and we flipped it back right side up. We threw in some bacon, then cooked cooked eggs in the bacon grease. Afterwards, we took a piece of newspaper and rubbed the leftover bacon grease into the pan (inside and out), and then stuck the pan back in the fire. Just remember to do this outdoors.
In the kitchen, we did something similar. We boiled water in the brand new pans. The pans came with a sort of waxy coating, and this helped melt it off. Then under running hot water, we scrubbed them with a ball of steel wool. We heated the pans back up on the stove and cooked some bacon. With a paper towel, we rubbed the bacon grease into the pans (indide and out). Then we placed the greased pans into the oven at 350, and let them bake for a few hours (although 1 would probably do). The cast iron heats up and the pores open, which allows it to absorb the bacon fat. When the pans cool off, and the pores constrict, they are "seasoned" and ready for use. We have been using them ever since without any problems. And with each use, you can see the pan get darker and the patina develope.
Save your money. Get the Harbor Freight and season it yourself. They are well made, conduct heat perfectly, go from stovetop to oven, and even work as a serving dish. Toss some fresh mussels in olive oil, fresh herbs, salt & pepper, then roast them in the pan. Use the pan for roasting chickens or standing prime ribeye roast. Pan roast a crab with butter, garlic, and nuoc mam. Everything taste better when you use cast iron.