Garden Furniture and Accessories

Cast Iron

Cast Iron Skillets -- Cooking Advantages With Traditional Cookware

Not all good things come with a hefty price tag! Whichis very apt when we talk about the cast iron skillets.  Often quality skillets can be found discarded at a swap meet or Garage Sale.  And you can find new products at good retailers both on line and at the local mall.  However, these new products can have a hefty price associated with them.

You can buy expensive modern cookware made of lighter metals and alloys, but the advantages of cast iron are uniques compared to other cookware. Be it durability, versitility, heat distribution or heat retention, cast iron cookware is definitely the best choice for some applications.

Although it sounds Old Fashioned, cast iron skillets and Dutch ovens are important kitchen tools. Some of the advantages of using cast iron are as follows:

? Even Distribution of Heat
One of the advantages of using a cast iron is that, while it may take a bit longer to get up to temperature, when it reached the desired temperature the heat is evenly distributed throughout the entire utensil. Also, once heated, it retains heat for some time unlike aluminum and other cookware metals. Cooking in a cast iron skillet or pans would great choices for braising or browning, would provide constant temperature for soups, stews or thick sauces and would be superb for recipes that mix vegetables with roasts for slower cooking. The results would also be tastier meals.

? Durable and long lasting
The durability of cast iron skillets and cookware is yet another advantage. Cast iron cookware has been known to be passed down from generation to generation. With proper care, it will continue to perform well for many more decades. Newer versions include enamel coated cast iron which has the same durability but adds fashion colors along with different shapes and sizes.

? Easy maintenance.
In contrast to general belief, cast iron skillet is fairly easy to maintain. Reconditioning can be done in your oven. After heating to a high temperature for several hours followed by cleaning with baking powder or other biodegradable scrubbing powder, rinse thoroughly and then apply a coating of fat or oil on the surface and allow the oil to fill in the porous surface of the pan. After each use, apply a thin coat of oil to the clean surface. This will create a barrier for protecting the surface.

? Non-stick properties
While aged and conditioned cast iron is not truly non-stick, traditional cast iron does obtain a sheen and finish that has characteristics similar to non-stick.

? Wide variety
Cast iron skillets are available in many types. You can find different sizes of frying pan, griddles, Dutch ovens and roasting pans. The enamel alternatives add an array of colors as well. The versatility of this cookware is unmatched by any other style. Roasting, stewing, grilling and baking are just some of the options possible. Since cast iron can go from stove to oven to table to refrigerator with no special handling needed, you are limited only by imagination

? Health Benefits.
Cooking in cast iron adds marginal amounts of iron into the food. For most people this is a positive result. When compared to some other alternatives, according to many reports, cast iron is a safer alternative.

? Cheap and affordable price.
While it may be possible to find traditional cast iron cookware that is pretty inexpensive, newer versions are no longer really cheap option. Enamel cookware can be expensive as demonstrated by Le Creseut and Lodge. There are other quality brands that are not quite as expensive such as <a href="http://www.yoursmartkitchen.com/store-categories-Cast-Iron_3242608.html"Chasseur</a> a French manufacture or Color Cast a US producer.

Even though there are multiple benefits of using cast iron skillets, there is one common myth, which needs to be resolved. The myth that says do not use soap to clean your cast iron cookware at it can damage or corrode it, but this is not the case. A mild antibacterial soap and baking soda can be used to clean your cast iron cookware easily.

The effectiveness of cast iron cookware is surely going to continue far into the future. New metals and engineering will continue evolve and cookware will change but cast iron will remain a mainstay in kitchens well into the future no matter what new alternatives are developed.

About the Author

Chasseur and Color Cast are available at Your Smart Kitchen, the place for quality cookware, cutlery, appliances and related. All at reasonable prices. Specializing in Paderno, Mauviel, Fissler, Clay Bakers, and other quality manufacturers. Customer satisfaction guaranteed. Terry Retter

How do you clean and season Cast Iron?

I have several cast iron pans that are dirty. I tried seasoning them, but they got sticky, food sticks to it, I can't get them clean. They're definately not seasoned right.

How do I clean them to their original state and season them properly?

Never use soap on them. And defintely never put them in the dishwasher.

You can eiter coat them down in cooking oil and bake them in the oven at a low teperature for a few hours...

Or use them to bake fatty things like whole chikens.

Either way, the grease will penetrate the iron and keep them from rusting.

Remember...no soap...ever!!! Just use hot water, scrap them if needed with a spatula, scrub them with a scouring pad, and rinse them out.

You can always re-coat them with a few drops of oil before storing them.

EDIT: I can't believe the amount of folks using soap/chemicals on the pans. If you never use soap and clean them immediately after your meal, you will never have problems with them.

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