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Cast Iron Purchase

YEMTrey
YEMTrey Posts: 6,829
edited September 2012 in EggHead Forum
Eggers,

I'm gonna be buying some cast iron for use in my XL Egg.  I know what I want/need right now as:

1. Some sort of cast iron dish for cornbread.
2. Deeper/larger pot or pan for chili.
3. Some type of pan for grilling veggies.

Any other item am I missing?  These are my main priorities right now, but if I'm missing something that y'all know I'll need in the near future I'm open to suggestions.

As always, thanks!
Steve 
XL, Mini Max, and a 22" Blackstone in Cincinnati, Ohio

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Comments

  • Lit
    Lit Posts: 9,053
    I would get like a 12" skillet it will work for corn bread and veggies. For chilli you'll want an enameled cast iron Dutch oven as regular cast iron reacts to the acids in tomato based dishes. Costco has a 8qt oval enameled Dutch oven with lid for $79 which is a great deal.
  • The Lodge pizza stone is great.

    Steve 

    Caledon, ON

     

  • Aviator
    Aviator Posts: 1,757
    There is a Lodge "outlet" store near gatlinburg. We always stop there and its like a candy store. Every imaginable thing in CI. Maybe there are others around the country.

    ______________________________________________ 

    Large and Small BGE, Blackstone 36 and a baby black Kub.

    Chattanooga, TN.

     

  • I just bought the Lodge Pro Logic Cast Iron 14" Pizza Pan.  I bought it so I can get up early on Sunday mornings this fall and fix breakfast outside.  I fixed sausage and french toast on this past Sunday, it worked great.  It was about $35 from Amazon.

    _________________________________________________________________________________________

    Johnson, Navin R... Sounds like a typical bastard.

     

    Belmont, NC

  • I love my cast iron frying pans (several sizes), Dutch oven, and griddle. There may be a Lodge outlet store at Pigeon Forge. Lately, I just get my stuff at Academy Sports.

    Tim
  • YEMTrey
    YEMTrey Posts: 6,829
    Aviator said:
    There is a Lodge "outlet" store near gatlinburg. We always stop there and its like a candy store. Every imaginable thing in CI. Maybe there are others around the country.
    This is exactly my plan.  Heading to Pigeon Forge next month and there's a Lodge outlet there that I plan on hitting up for everything I need.
    Steve 
    XL, Mini Max, and a 22" Blackstone in Cincinnati, Ohio

  • YEMTrey
    YEMTrey Posts: 6,829
    Was also kicking around the idea of mini loaf pans for individual corn bread servings.  These would seem easier to move around the grid and allow for more space/placing.
    Steve 
    XL, Mini Max, and a 22" Blackstone in Cincinnati, Ohio

  • nolaegghead
    nolaegghead Posts: 42,102
    Or you can do what travistrick did and hit a flea market.  He scored a huge mother load of cast iron pans for $30.
    ______________________________________________
    I love lamp..
  • yzzi
    yzzi Posts: 1,843
    edited September 2012
    I have a pitted, warped wagner #8 that I use for the egg since I don't care if it sits flat on a grate. Perfect for searing steaks, vegetables, or whatever. I paid $1 or $2. Can't remember. Anyone else have trouble cleaning the soot of enameled cast iron. Took me forever to clean my dutch oven last time I used it in the grill. I was thinking just coating the outside with pam or something. I used to coat pans with a layer of soap on the outside when cooking on camp fires for easy cleanup. Not so sure if I want to do that in the egg.
    Dunedin, FL
  • Focker
    Focker Posts: 8,364
    edited September 2012

    No problems with chili in a Lodge #12 with legs if seasoned properly.  The key is to transfer the chili to a bowl when off the egg and cool.  The acidic ingredients will start to strip the seasoning if left in the fridge.  Learned by experience on this one.  The #12 Lodge is probably the best DO for a large egg.  Could also be used traditionally with briquettes when camping.  Cost is around $50-60.

    My favorite eggin' piece is below.  A huge chunk of old Griswold, a #16 large slant logo griddle.

    Griddles are versatile.  Loved it so much I found an identical #12 for the small.

    Brandon
    Quad Cities
    "If yer gonna denigrate, familiarity with the subject is helpful."

  • Do yourself a favor and shop around eBay and flea markets for some old Griswold or Wagner. It's beyond comparison with the Lodge stuff.

    Find some you like and ask the forum if it's a deal until you get a feel for what's good.
    Be careful, man! I've got a beverage here.
  • Lit said:

    I would get like a 12" skillet it will work for corn bread and veggies. For chilli you'll want an enameled cast iron Dutch oven as regular cast iron reacts to the acids in tomato based dishes. Costco has a 8qt oval enameled Dutch oven with lid for $79 which is a great deal.

    Can you elaborate on why a reg cast iron Dutch oven is not good for tomato based dishes (ex. chili)?
  • @Lowflyer the acid from the tomatoes will "remove" the seasoning from the cast iron. I buy Lodge cast iron. It is still made in the USA.
  • Eggcelsior
    Eggcelsior Posts: 14,414

    @Lowflyer the acid from the tomatoes will "remove" the seasoning from the cast iron.
    I buy Lodge cast iron. It is still made in the USA.

    In addition, acidic foods react with certain cookware(cast iron, aluminum, copper) which can give a metallic taste to your food. But hey, as far as cast iron is concerned: a little extra iron in our diet can't hurt, right?
  • Duganboy
    Duganboy Posts: 1,118
    @Lowflyer the acid from the tomatoes will "remove" the seasoning from the cast iron. I buy Lodge cast iron. It is still made in the USA.
    I have used the Lodge Dutch oven for chili for years and have never noticed any problems with the pan or the taste of the chili.
  • Duganboy said:



    @Lowflyer the acid from the tomatoes will "remove" the seasoning from the cast iron.
    I buy Lodge cast iron. It is still made in the USA.

    I have used the Lodge Dutch oven for chili for years and have never noticed any problems with the pan or the taste of the chili.

    So a Lodge (cast iron) Dutch oven is ok for chili??
  • Lit
    Lit Posts: 9,053
    I have read numerous threads about the metallic taste and also the seasoning coming off during the cook and leaving the seasoning remenants in the meal. I have a Griswold DO but I only use it for cooks like pulled beef. I have 2 kitchenaid enameled DO that I use for acidic cooks.
  • This is why I like this forum.  I learn things and there are some differences of opinion to make it interesting.  I never thought about the acidity harming the seasoning.  I cook chili in an enameled DO.
    Flint, Michigan
  • Aviator
    Aviator Posts: 1,757

    Guys, go look for the pre seasoned Lodge CI cookware. You cant hurt the damn thing with a nuclear reaction in it. No need to season, no reaction to acid, blah balh blah.

    Made in USA.

    Check it out. I have a bunch of them and have not lost even one. Do not buy Chinese knokoffs. My mother did and it rusted out in 2 days. She could not cook in it at all and now sit ouside with plants in it. :) No kidding!

    I have heard enamel come off CI, It was not intended to be there in the first place. IMHO.

    CI is supposed to be black and "ugly".

     

    ______________________________________________ 

    Large and Small BGE, Blackstone 36 and a baby black Kub.

    Chattanooga, TN.

     

  • YEMTrey said:
    Eggers,

    ...
    Any other item am I missing?  These are my main priorities right now, but if I'm missing something that y'all know I'll need in the near future I'm open to suggestions.
    ...


    What I've been using more than I expected was the little Lodge 2"x5" or so pans for sauteed mushrooms and brussels and such...  Very easy to add on the side in the Egg and delicious results for those little sides you might like..

    Large BGE and Medium BGE
    36" Blackstone - Greensboro!


  • YEMTrey
    YEMTrey Posts: 6,829
    Great discussion.  This forum never fails.  Thanks for the input and keep it coming.
    Steve 
    XL, Mini Max, and a 22" Blackstone in Cincinnati, Ohio

  • Bjorg
    Bjorg Posts: 241
    I recently bought this Lodge 17 inch monster skillet for the XL. Couldnt be happyer. Did potatoes, fajitas, even a giant cookie!



    Quebec - Canada
  • Lit
    Lit Posts: 9,053
    Aviator said:

    Guys, go look for the pre seasoned Lodge CI cookware. You cant hurt the damn thing with a nuclear reaction in it. No need to season, no reaction to acid, blah balh blah.

    Made in USA.

    Check it out. I have a bunch of them and have not lost even one. Do not buy Chinese knokoffs. My mother did and it rusted out in 2 days. She could not cook in it at all and now sit ouside with plants in it. :) No kidding!

    I have heard enamel come off CI, It was not intended to be there in the first place. IMHO.

    CI is supposed to be black and "ugly".

     

    What is the difference between enamel and the "seasoning" they are putting on the lodge cast iron? If it can't come off then its not really seasoning its some other synthetic material they put on it.

    Something else I got as a present that is great for cast iron users to clean their pans without removing any seasoning http://www.cmscrubber.com/

  • Lit
    Lit Posts: 9,053

    Here's my favorite skillet I have it's a #9 large slant logo with a heat ring with a full writing lid. Also some of my other skillets in the 2nd pic. Made pizza cornbreadimagedimage.image

  • @Lit I'm a little jealous.
    Be careful, man! I've got a beverage here.
  • I needed a CI skillet for the small.  We bought a new Lodge CI and cut off the handle.  There was no way that I was going destroy the ones from my mother, grandmother, and great aunt.
    Large, small and mini now Egging in Rowlett Tx
  • Eggcelsior
    Eggcelsior Posts: 14,414
    Lit said:
    Aviator said:

    Guys, go look for the pre seasoned Lodge CI cookware. You cant hurt the damn thing with a nuclear reaction in it. No need to season, no reaction to acid, blah balh blah.

    Made in USA.

    Check it out. I have a bunch of them and have not lost even one. Do not buy Chinese knokoffs. My mother did and it rusted out in 2 days. She could not cook in it at all and now sit ouside with plants in it. :) No kidding!

    I have heard enamel come off CI, It was not intended to be there in the first place. IMHO.

    CI is supposed to be black and "ugly".

     

    What is the difference between enamel and the "seasoning" they are putting on the lodge cast iron? If it can't come off then its not really seasoning its some other synthetic material they put on it.

    Something else I got as a present that is great for cast iron users to clean their pans without removing any seasoning http://www.cmscrubber.com/

    The enamel is basically powdered glass. It can come off, via chipping or heating the pan to around 1500 degrees.
  • Aviator
    Aviator Posts: 1,757
    The enamel coating defeats the purpose of CI, which relies on its porosity for a non stick surface over time. Every time you heat the CI, oil comes to the surface and prevents anything from sticking to it. And, as it cools, the oil is drawn back into it. So now you cover the surface with enamel. What have you just done?

    ______________________________________________ 

    Large and Small BGE, Blackstone 36 and a baby black Kub.

    Chattanooga, TN.

     

  • Eggcelsior
    Eggcelsior Posts: 14,414
    By coating the surface with an enamel, you have created a permanent smooth surface that won't rust or need seasoning. It retains all the heating properties of cast iron but does lose the non-stick ability. However, "non-stick" is not the main purpose of cast iron. Heat retention is. Non-stick surface is just a benefit. The ability to release food does not give corn bread the deep golden crust in cast iron, the color and weight of the pan absorbs more heat and holds it in, leading to this crust.

    Lastly, enameled cast iron has a purpose: low and slow cooking or baking. Since it is non-reactive, one can cook with acidic foods(tomato, vinegar, wine) without worry. Naked cast iron can be used for this and for searing under higher heat but naked cast iron is a reactive metal. If properly seasoned, there is not a real worry for leaching of iron but it can eat away at the seasoning(put some Bar Keeper's friend in your CI and see what starts to happen after some scrubbing). I can cook chili in my Le Crueset then let it cool and place it in the refrigerator overnight, allowing flavors to develop. I wouldn't do this in any of my Wagner's or 12-inch Lodge. I would never fry an egg in my Le Crueset, but I do that religiously in my skillets.

    All in all, whatever it is that one uses to put smiles on the faces of those that they serve: more power to them.   
  • To those that use enameled cast iron in your egg, how much of a pain is it to clean the soot off the outside of the cookware?