I bought my Le Creuset at the outlet in Woodburn, OR. They have a sale every 6 months or so, and they have an email announcement. Might be worth looking into it.
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Thanks Danno. I do most of that. Haven't baked it as the pan said it was pre-seasoned and I shouldn't have to. I'll keep trying.
But that list of steps kind of begs the question- why (besides the pan lasting 250 years)? I have 5 year old cheap non-stick that I just wash lightly and stick on the dish rack. Literally less than one minute of cleaning/maintenance.
Kitchen cred man. You never know when Bobby Flay will roll through and judge your cookware hard.
They are around $15, although I find my cheap silicone one works just fine, but perhaps not as stylish.
https://www.amazon.com/Panhandle-Pot...56V5TDV6ZGC0PY
As for cast iron, I keep a very well seasoned one on the stove pretty much full time. I have a couple, but I was one of the first funders of this, and it works brilliantly. Don't see myself outlasting it.
https://fieldcompany.com/
There’s a whole cast iron thread....
The Le Crueset stuff is nice. I have a Dutch oven and a big lasagna pan.
My old Corning Ware and Pyrex stuff are also great.
To get off cast iron for a minute (although those Field pans look sweet), back when i started this thread I mentioned I had bought my last wallet. Well it was a good wallet, I still have it, but it's not my last one, I bought one of these things maybe 8 months ago and it is the shit.
https://cdn3.thegrommet.com/media/ca...-S-101_BST.jpg
It' s a front-pocket wallet, it's made in fucking maine of fucking moosehide, and I dig it. the front-pocket design is great, it works perfect. And the thing seems indestructible. And it was only like $50.
https://www.rogue-industries.com
Looks like they fit in ski pants too.
Walmart has some knock off Crueset stuff (pioneer woman, ha!) that works just as good and doesn't break the bank.
A few days ago I had a decade plus old pyrex baking dish explode on me in a million pieces when I was taking it out of the oven. I am so thankful I was wearing my glasses. It would have put both eye's out. Sounded just like a gunshot. Cleanup was a bitch, but I at least had eyes to see all the pieces.
You skipped the most important step, seasoning it to start. They lie about it being preseasoned (it still needs it).
As for why, those instructions sound more involved but it's not much more than 2-3 minutes of maintenance for a pan that will last a lifetime, performs well, can go in the oven, and can always be salvaged even if you screw up and let it rust. Your non-stick pan will start putting little bits of teflon in your food soon; I've had my pans for 25 years and they're better than they've ever been.
They should be about perfect by the time you die.
Not that soon, I don't think.
iceman embeds pictures in jeans.
I got a front pocket wallet, different one, some time ago. Not quite as custom as ^that one but it was kind of life-changing, for an accessory anyway. It qualifies as an EoL purchase, the blurb reads “They’ll fight over it when you’re dead.”
https://saddlebackleather.com/leathe...-pocket-wallet
People's biggest mistake with cast iron and steel is overthinking it. If stuff is sticking, re-season. Unless you take it down to bare metal, a pan can be re-seasoned on the stove top in a few minutes. Coveting a seasoning is weird and highly limiting.
I hate you. :D
I love enameled cast iron, but it's worth mentioning that it's not non-stick. I think its a bit better than stainless or aluminum, but not tremendously.
The answer to why go through the small hassle that it is is because of HOW it cooks (and, versatility). Lots of heat retaining material underneath the cooking surface means that the temperature doesn't drop nearly as much as thinner pans when you put room temperature food on to it. This makes it easier to get a great sear on meats. There are fancy ways to achieve this, and, then there is cast iron, an elegantly simple and time-tested solution. FWIW, mine is never really as truly "non-stick" as say a brand new teflon pan. I just use a coat of oil before cooking whatever. Got the same issue with a nice Debyer (sp?) carbon steel crepe pan. Non-stick as long as you use oil. I probably haven't seasoned either exactly properly.
The carbon steel does a pretty good job of holding heat too, but doesn't really overcome any of the maintenance issues of the cast iron except, what, it won't rust? Seems like they both need oil over time.
Also, the leather handle cover for lodge looks cool, I haven't seen that. There is a silicone one available from them to and that works well.
Here's some blaspheme. I look at my ski gear purchases as if I expect them to last through the end of my skiing career.. probably another 20 years. Boots may be an exception.. but since I ski less than 15 days a season now and have about a dozen skiable pairs that I like to ski it's possible to get 20 years out of ski days out of the combined quiver as long as the bindings don't blow up. Bindings are mostly Salomon 900 series and some 700-800 all metal, I do have some Look/Rossi pivots on a couple pairs I'm not that sure about.