I personally like the weight of my cast iron, if you don't use your muscles you lose them. I also have a storage issue for my collection. If I see a vintage piece in a thrift store I generally buy it.
All spot on Mike. Only other thing I can think of is if you have a glass top or induction stove, wouldn't hurt to smooth up the heat contact ring on the bottom of your cast iron to prevent scratches. 😉
Might also try a diffuser plate between the pan and glass top to protect the surface. I use them with my bigger skillets on my gas stove for better heat distribution.
My biggest gripe with new cast iron is its rough texture and thickness/weight. I make spatulas with new iron and other than that we don't use it. Our daily user in an unmarked #9 Erie with four shelves of cast iron in the pan cave. Erie made some fine cookware from 1880-1907 and still among the best today. We like the old pieces that are slick and light weight.
Great video Mike! I'm a minimalist, I only have 3 CI, 1 carbon steel, I only cook for myself so 10" are just right. I also just splurged and got a Victoria Dutch Oven Combo for making breads, I really am a fan of this particular brand, outstanding CI. My biggest problem with CI is my diet and the larger amounts of oils used in cooking with these wonderful pieces, only use once or twice a week, but at least it's not that non stick stuff! 😁
Have you tried a 9 inch, #6? Most of my life #8s, 10 1/4" were my workhorses but now, I like my #6s. You use less oil in a smaller pan and if you try using less oil than you usually do, you might be surprised with how little you can get by with.
All good points, Mike! Modern multi-layer pots and pans shouldn't go in the dishwasher either. The aluminum core corrodes and washes out from between the stainless layers. All-Clad is currently in court over this. My biggest cast iron problem is the damn weight. My Lodge CI skillets are the ones with the stainless handles and assist handles riveted onto the thick CI skillet. Nearly 10lbs empty for the 12 incher. They look incredible, but it's hard to hold onto them when removing them from a hot oven wearing oven mitts. On the other hand...I am really enjoying my Lodge CombCooker for baking bread. The bread turns out perfect and the ComboCooker never needs to be cleaned as there is a sheet of parchment under the bread when it bakes. Plus, one month of use has turned them an incredible black color like they are 100 years old due to the 450F baking temps for the bread.
Mike my biggest problem with CI is that I don't have enough bandages for my head when Rhonda hits me with all the new CI that I buy. LOL other than that its all awesome.
My largest problem, …enough is never enough..also trying to keep everything in rotation…storage space is a premium, having 2 homes, sometimes the RIGHT piece is ALWAYS at the other place😆😆😆
I kind of tried the rotation thing but, I have found I like using the ones I have out (quick count that's 9 pieces either on my range or within 3 feet). What might be really odd, I don't have my top 4 favorites out and it's not that I don't use them. I can cook just as well on my worst as I can my best. I like owning my favorites more and seeing them once in a while.
@jerrym3261 Dang DITTTTO!!@ Right on babe. It's all in da wrist. I CONCUR!!! I can cook on my worst as well as my best. Either you Can or CANNOT cook. Well said new friend.😂😂😂
Prices can definitely get high, but you can find fair deals out there! Or hit a few flea markets and buy ones that need attention and restore them yourself to save some money! 🍳
If you spend enough time shopping you can find some deals. The unfortunate thing is it's pretty much always something you don't need but, it's so cheap you can't pass it up. Here, I see a lot for sale that is listed for weeks and nobody buys it so, I think prices are coming down. I also think all of the new premium cast iron is competing with the vintage stuff. I watched a video recently where a guy bought a bunch of stuff because that's what he does but, this time he kept up with how much time and money he put into "restoring" it. He was surprised how much he had in things by the time they were finished and how many times he had pieces with flaws he didn't see until he stripped them down and they were a waste.
I use one of those chrome wire racks. Probably about 75 pieces of cast iron on it. I guess my biggest problem is the reconditioning of old stuff. Even though I do electrolysis and it's probably the quickest it's still a lot of work
Slow to heat and slow to cool down enough to able to clean it and then reheat to dry it, IT just takes a bit more time, Can understand the weight issue with older people once you get around 12 inch skillets they get fairly heavy to handle.
The biggest problem with cast iron is that it is made of cast iron! 😂 okay I actually own it too and want to learn, hard to pick it up and cleaning are my problems. Thank you!
@@MrCastIron thank you very much, I follow your channel. I bought a cast iron Dutch Oven for camping/zombie apocalypse. I wish more people would take interest in them. I also wish my 59 year old wrists were in better shape. I found stainless mail chain is good for cleaning, Amazon. Thank you again!
I don't need the help to pick up cast iron but, I do have a silicon pot holder (they have them at Dollar Tree which should be dollar and a quarter tree). You don't have to worry about them getting wet, greasy or catching afire and it feels like they grip better. While you're at Dollar Tree, that's where I get what I use for tough cleans on cast iron, stainless steel scouring pads.
Yep, my only problem is #6. I honestly worry that if I put all of my cast iron in one place, it would cause a problem with my house; break through the floor, warp floor joists, cause settling. I have found that if I have too much in one place, I realize I have a problem (being obsessive with cast iron). I find things on FB Marketplace and it's not because I need them, I got past needing anything long ago but, it's cheap. People put up dirty stuff and nobody wants to deal with that. For me, 2 minutes to build a fire just big enough is all it takes. I realize that is wrong but, I bet it doesn't get much hotter than a self cleaning oven and all the smoke and stink is outside. I haven't figured out how people get rust on their cast iron. Evidently I'm doing something right without realizing it.
@@MrCastIron Do you think storing skillets nested one inside the other causes them to crack on the outside part? I see people stack pans that way. I've never ruined a piece of cast iron cracking it or otherwise but, I stopped putting same size in another long ago. They take up a lot more room that way but, I'd hate to break one and it's always going to be your most precious that you'll break.
@@jerrym3261Don't think you can crack cast iron by stacking them that way. Cracking is a lot more common from dropping onto hard floor ... or thermal shock.
Not knowing whether or not I'm being too gruff in how I get food particles free. But all of your listed problems I have varying degrees of issues with. But I'm learning or trying to.
I use the spray for cooking, but not seasoning. Most of the sprays contain soy lecithin as a non stick agent. And non refined olive oil (like EVOO) can have substances left in the oil from the cold pressing etc process that aren't conducive to good seasoning.
I don't think that's right. Well it's technically right. I have put warmed up cast iron in a paper sack, wrapped a blanket around it and taken it to bed with me, didn't store it there
My biggest problem with cast iron is that the recipes I most enjoy cooking which require long cooking & simmering, e.g. braising or acidic ingredients, e.g. tomato or wine based sauces. Cast iron is not the best cooking vessel for those types of recipes.
I think the video below gets close to what my 60+ years of cooking with cast iron has taught me. I will add that if you watch videos on seasoning cast iron and you read the comments, a lot of people have problems AFTER they seasoned. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-W3wVlL0PxjU.html&ab_channel=Mr.CastIron
I am not a fan of cooking with cast iron on a glass top electric range. If I could have a gas stove I would have that in a heart beat. I would rather have a coil top stove before a glass top. Other than that I love collecting cast iron.
You know how a lot of people don't like cast iron because they can't wash them in a dishwasher, right? Truth be told, it's not good to wash any cookware in a dishwasher.
