Lodge Seasoned Cast Iron Skillet - 12 Inch Ergonomic Frying Pan with Assist Handle, black

After I learned to season it quick like 7 times, and started using a bush and cup with a dap of oil on the side I kept around to wipe with oil when done, and learned to due to size I needed to have rag on edge of sink when dumping out water, and then I often but not always heat up water in electric kettle to pour in when done cooking in order to not shock it. I find after all this that I actually do basically no scrubbing, just a bit of scraping with the metal spatula while the hot water is in it. And then I use a silicone handle on one side I had gotten and I want to get the other side for the silicone side to hold but I just use a pot holder for the other side, thicker one. But I find now that this is an ideal pan to cook everything and anything and many things. I just leave it on top of my stove for daily use. And the weight, for the same reason a mechanics arms are big while not lifting, their muscles are big purely due to making the same motion every day repetitively with the wrench. It’s called a hermetic stressor, the same way weight session (more stressful obviously) and a hot sauna, cold plunge, run, etc, are all good forms of stress that cause adaptation, So to does this just cause you to lift a heavier pot a few times a day as you cook. For vast majority of us it’s nothing. But I told my mom for instance that she should use it and she complained how heavy it was, and my brutal honest response was “that’s exactly why you need to be using it because it’s not like you are working out”. It won’t make you buff, just a bit heavier than a similiar size pan, but for the older crowd who find it important to get their exercises in at the pool and such, this is no different. Plus, once I learned to clean efficiently and season a couple times, it’s a god send of a pan. I love it. I just want to put that “it’s too heavy” criticisism that comes with cast iron in a new light. Your body adapts, allow it too gradually. I will at some point be adding a top to this, I just haven’t decided if I need to get the lodge glass one which would be nice or a silicone one for this, or just a cast iron one to keep the theme and look and durability forever. (Glass and silicone could both break in different ways). I do love this pan as I will admit, one of the reason I got this pan, being some one who can be hard on things by temperment, after knowing roughly how to care for this pan, I also have a lisence to absolutely abuse it and can’t scratch it or anything. Because once you have researched a couple of ways to take rust off and to totally reseason and recondition an old used on for instance, you have the confidence to own this the rest of your life and not ever feel like your going to rune it. I’m also strategically lazy, I call efficient, my mom thinks different, lol, but anyway, the fastest way to clean any pan is with hot water right when done cooking as it burns and melts stuff right off, I can do that with this without worrying how it affects coatings or anything and I can do that to kingdom come. I just try to throw water from kettle on it ideally but not always. Again, the point of these pans is the amazing non stick coating that develops after use and learning to season a few more times your self, but that you can absolutely abuse these pans and know they will last. There is a certain security that’s nice to feel with knowing that. The fact that it has a great non stick that develops after some use and is durable Af, I’m in love.Plus ever seen those videos on YouTube about how baking/pizza steel beats baking/pizza stones every time because of how the metal works vs the ceramic of the stone. It just hit me that this pan is also big enough to make a 15 inch pizza, and when making one for one to a few people depending how thick it is, that’s a good size to use as a pizza steel in the oven. I do even ti ally want a baking steel as I even learned you can leave those in your oven as it helps regulate the temperature in oven by functioning as a ballast in your oven. Don’t even have to clean those. Just let the oven burn stuff off. None the less, till then this will work as a great pizza steel surface too.++. I don’t have much sense of smell, a bit impulsive so I tottally would put it on “HIGH” on the stove every time. Might turn it down at times but it always creates smoke which didn’t matter to me, but got my mom has the higher disgust sensitivity (these two traits in the house do not get along well) anyway, I out of impatience realized I had a habit of heating it up quickly on high, Then I realized I tested how long it takes to smoke with the oil I was using to season it after each cook. I timed how long on high, waited till room temp, tested how long on medium, etc. Did this for any cast iron and carbon steel pans I have too. And in this one I can get away on our gas burner stove on high:High Canola 400°-450° 4m 34sMedium Canola 400°-450° 6m 43s400°-450°=smoke point at which smoke appears as the oil is actually starting to burn (note health wise causing this isn’t healthy so avoid normally by following these instructions). You can do the same test on your stove with your seasoning pans. And now I just run it for 3mins on high but then turn to medium or lower. Could probably get away with 3:30 duration on high. But this way you can cook at medium or a tad lower after.

I bought this... a few years ago when I moved out. First pan I ever had, long before I began wrangling non-sticks for pasta, eggs, etc. Lodge is made in the USA, so hooray for that, and next... it shows up pre-seasoned. Initially, I didn't know how to maintain that seasoning. Please wash your cast iron and dry it off, then do a fine coating of oil on the pan before letting it dry. I really like cooking bacon in this thing, as the grease settles into the metal and then a bit of oil helps seal everything in and adds another layer of seasoning.I saw someone in the reviews said the pan exploded in the oven. That has never happened to me. To me, that reads as user error and probably using it beyond its melting point. Any pan can react badly to a sudden change of temperature, so when I get done using this pan, I let it sit before I use the warm water and dish soap on it.The pan is heavy, as it's cast iron. That said, despite the weight, it is a manageable size and I have the 10 inch. I can store this pan in my cupboards without much fussing. The handle gets hot in the oven. I did buy one of the protectors for that so I can reach in with that to help get the pan out of the oven. This is an essential for any kitchen, I think. Yes, food sticks to the pan, so use a bit of oil if that's an issue. For bacon, the grease helps it not stick as much, same for sausage. I think I used olive oil when I cooked ground turkey for spaghetti once. Plus, beyond the pan being awesome, Lodge is a good company, makes its products in the US, and they are affordable. Get this pan!

I’ve been missing out! For such a great price, I had to get two, one for my stove and one for campfires.I cook on a 1200W electric stove, and I’ve always struggled to get fries and fish crispy. It usually takes forever, and the food ends up oily. But with this cast iron pan, everything changed. I tested it with frozen fries, and for the first time, the oil stayed hot even after adding them. They cooked super fast, came out perfectly crispy, and tasted amazing I was shocked!I’m so glad I bought two. Because cast iron retains heat so well and distributes it evenly, everything cooks faster and hotter. I even had to turn the heat down on my other cooking for the first time. I own a lot of pans, including professional grade ones and even a Gordon Ramsay pan, but none of them get as hot as this cast iron. And the crazy part? It’s the cheapest pan I’ve ever bought!I also made Moroccan harsha (cornbread) on it, and it turned out perfect. Now, I’ve just ordered a cast iron Dutch oven because I’ve seen so many people baking bread in them effortlessly. I can’t wait to try it!Imagine watching MasterChef and realizing that in many seasons, contestants used this exact same pan to go from stovetop to oven. It’s just that good!

I always liked cooking certain things in a cast iron skillet. When I moved a left my grandmother’s skillets behind I found I really needed my skillet for a pineapple upside down cake so I searched for a heavy true cast iron skillet and I believe this is the perfect skillet Although it is pre seasoned I did it again before using. It made the best burgers. Fast cooking and no burning It cleaned up well and I oiled it after drying I also bought the glass top to fit the pan. It is very heavy and pot holder is needed because the handle gets too hot to handle. Pan has a perfectly flat bottom with no warping