The Cast Iron Clad Kitchen

Amidst all the concern we as parents have about the utensils, bottles, and bowls that our children use, there is another area that we sometimes forget about: our daily pots and pans. I suppose most people don't really think about what they're cooking their food in, but it is just as important as the things you serve your food in. There was an article that I read many years ago about the growing health concerns surrounding the use of Teflon, so much so that the author of the article said that he threw away all of his Teflon pans as his wife, a lawyer, was involved in too many Teflon-related illness court cases. 

This brings me to one of the loves of my kitchen life: cast iron pans. I have used them for longer than I prefer to say (cuz it gives away my age) and they are even more beautiful as they were years ago (maybe I should say I want to age like cast iron and not fine wine?!!). Cast iron pans are the iron-clad champion in my kitchen, and I find nothing creates a golden crust or saute to perfection like these black beauties. Not to mention the price! I think I bought my entire 5 pan set for about $50. I don't think you can even buy a Teflon pan for that price! 

With cast iron,  you skip the negative health side effects of Teflon - cast iron even have positive health effects, by contributing a small amount of iron to the foods cooked in the pans. My love letter of cast iron's positive attributes goes on and on.....

Of course with all good things there are a *few* minor setbacks: you can't cook acidic foods like tomatoes or citrus in them (they impart a really weird flavor to them), and the old-fashioned (translation: cheap!) cast iron pans don't come "seasoned" so you have to invest a bit of time to have them last a lifetime. The payoffs are well worth it, and I have included here an easy way to season the pans so that you don't have any excuse not to try them. But you can always cheat and buy the pre-seasoned pans!

Ingredients

cast iron pans

paper towels

lard (traditional fat used) or coconut oil, vegetable shortening or margarine

Directions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

Wash new cast iron cookware with warm soapy water and promptly towel dry. Generously coat cookware with fat of choice (lard, margarine, oil, etc). Bake in oven for 1 hour.

Remove skillet from oven and rub again to redistribute oil. Place in the oven and bake again for 1 hour. Remove from oven. Wipe excess oil off with paper towels, then allow to cool before storing. Store in a cool, dry place, with paper towels below and on top of skillet to protect shelves and skillet.

Comments

[Christine]

Great article! You have convinced me. Once I have a kitchen again I will start a collection of cast iron. Thanks for the seasoning tips too.
Christine