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Cast iron leet

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Re: Cast iron leet

#181

Post by arcticbull »

jstx1 wrote: post #31

In general I find that cast iron is very overrated. > Here's a list of myths about cast iron skillets: (...) You can't cook with acidic foods (e.g. tomatoes) because it'll destroy the seasoning You might not destroy the seasoning but you will get metallic tastes in your food. I don't get why anyone would pick cast iron over stainless steel for an acidic sauce that needs to be cooked for a longer period of time. Also…

> Also not mentioned downside of cast iron - you need to dry it perfectly every time or it rusts very easily.

I mean, yeah, you have to use tools the way they're meant to be used for them to be effective. But dry isn't the goal really, just leave a thin coat of oil on it and it'll never rust.

They're cheap, rock-solid, non-stick (and you're welcome to use metal tools against them) - and if you abuse them enough, you can just re-season them in a couple of hours and they'll be back in factory condition.

I personally have a few pieces of stainless cookware and a cast iron skillet. I use the skillet for probably 75% of my cooking. Its ability to retain heat is lovely. I can't really order steak at restaurants anymore because I can do it at home for half the price with a beautiful crust and sear, perfect mid-rare inside. Once you grease it up and heat it up, nothing will stick to it. You can cook at high temp, brown things, sear things, finish them in the oven - all with a natural non-stick finish. Cleanup just involves at most a scrub down with sea salt and a little water, and a thin coat of oil.

You could still cook acidic food acidic food on it if for a short period of time if you've got a good season - and not too acidic - but no, it's not the tool for every job.

Getting the skillet was definitely a step change for my cooking. It's pretty hard to beat a 10.25" Lodge skillet for $20, delivered, from Amazon.

Re: Cast iron leet

#182

Post by westcort »

happyopossum wrote: post #154
westcort wrote: post #109

Tupperware MicroPro with the eterna coating has been great for me. I can make a roast in 20 minutes, lasagna from scratch in 15 minutes, etc. The coating is a lot more durable than conventional coatings and there is no indoor air pollution, like with my gas stove. The technology is better than the old way of cooking. It is so much more convenient, in fact, that I wonder if there was a campaign against microwave cooki…

> I can make a roast in 20 minutes No. No you cannot. You can cook a cut of meat commonly called a ‘roast’, but you sure as heck aren’t actually getting all of the culinary results of roasting.

You are mistaken! Here is the proof: https://locserendipity.com/MicroPro.html

Re: Cast iron leet

#183

Post by bayindirh »

rich_sasha wrote: post #162
ta988 wrote: post #118

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Python is the best second choice for everything.

Data science, ML at least it is the uncontested #1. R and Julia are making strides but are second or third fiddle. Webpage programming with Django, you might not like it (?) but for many people it's the top choice.

However, for ML and Data Science, it’s just an abstraction layer for C/C++/FORTRAN code.

All underlying stuff is implemented in !Python.

Re: Cast iron leet

#184

Post by dwohnitmok »

moogly wrote: post #172

I used to be a cast iron fanboy. Seasoning, polymerization, yadda yadda and all that jazz. Then I got an induction stove. I now consider cast iron to be overrated. The heat retention makes an induction stove pretty pointless (apart from the energy efficiency I suppose) with cast iron. I'm getting old and my wrists aren't as good as they used to be, so slinging around cast iron pans and pots really hurts after a while…

> Might look into carbon steel, but I'm a bit wary of how it's going to be to clean.

If you have experience maintaining cast iron, the process is the same for carbon steel, both when it comes to cleaning and seasoning. They're very similar. I basically just treat carbon steel as a thinner and lighter version of cast iron (and the thinness changes certain attributes such as heat retention)

Re: Cast iron leet

#185

Post by poulsbohemian »

I haven't seen a whole lot said in the thread below about ceramic coatings. While I like and use cast iron and stainless steel in my kitchen, I've been very pleasantly surprised by some of the "non-commercial" grade ceramic pans I've encountered recently. Especially for those times when I just want to fry an egg and I'm not doing soufflé or omelets, there's a lot to be said for reaching for a generic ceramic pan. Conducts heat uniformly, doesn't stick, cleans up beautifully, and as far as I can tell doesn't contain any kind of harmful chemicals. For a beginning cook in particular, I'd really recommend this path over some of these other options that take a bit more effort in both cooking and clean / care.

Re: Cast iron leet

#186

Post by poulsbohemian »

twawaaay wrote: post #30
taywrobel wrote: post #13

This does miss one huge drawback of cast iron for cooking some dishes - heat control. Cast iron retains heat like crazy and doesn’t change quickly. Get that thing up to a searing temperature and it’ll be 10-15 minutes before you can get an egg anywhere near it for example. A thinner steel pan will heat up and cool down much rapidly allowing for a lot more control. Luckily there’s a fantastic non-nonstick option for t…

Carbon steel wok is only viable on a powerful gas stove. Right now where I live there is a campaign to get rid of gas stoves. And the existing ones are far, far from being powerful enough to use wok properly.

> where I live there is a campaign to get rid of gas stoves.

I'd be very interested to hear from the serious home cooks on this issue, as well as the perspective of professional chefs. While I consider myself an advanced home cook, I've come to the conclusion that I'm not limited by going electric only - it's the heat, not the flame that matters for most of what I do.

For those cases where I really do need flame (roasting peppers or something maybe?), I can always go outside to my grill.

Again, would be very interested in other perspectives on this.

Re: Cast iron leet

#188

Post by allset_ »

poulsbohemian wrote: post #186
twawaaay wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Carbon steel wok is only viable on a powerful gas stove. Right now where I live there is a campaign to get rid of gas stoves. And the existing ones are far, far from being powerful enough to use wok properly.

> where I live there is a campaign to get rid of gas stoves. I'd be very interested to hear from the serious home cooks on this issue, as well as the perspective of professional chefs. While I consider myself an advanced home cook, I've come to the conclusion that I'm not limited by going electric only - it's the heat, not the flame that matters for most of what I do. For those cases where I really do need flame (roa…

> I can always go outside to my grill.

That's a privilege a lot of people in cities don't have. I would love to have a gas cook top, but my building is electric only.

Edit: I'm also in the "advanced home cook" category, not a pro.

Re: Cast iron leet

#189

Post by throwaway892238 »

nicexe wrote: post #7

Cast iron is far from perfect. I use it for steaks because they are hard to sear in other cookware. The cleanup and seasoning processes make cast iron hard to use for anything else. I plan to get a ceramic one (with iron core) but even if it solves the seasoning process and the cleanup process, it isn't the best to sear steaks in it. My point is that each tool has its use and in this specific case, cast iron is not t…

> they are hard to sear in other cookware

To sear steak in any pan (not Teflon):

Pat steak dry with paper towel. Brush with thin layer of high-heat oil. Season with coarse salt & fresh cracked pepper. Heat any pan (except Teflon) until Leidenfrost effect occurs. Put steak on pan, wait about 1 minute per 3 oz. Afterward, gently nudge steak with tongs; if it moves freely it's ready to flip, if not leave it on longer. Higher heat will result in more intense charring/crust, but will accelerate the process (will not have a significant effect on cooking of inner meat). After you flip, either reduce the heat halfway through cooking (won't work with cast iron) or plan to remove meat about 3/4 way through cook time. Remove to cutting board and rest 10 minutes [per lb]. Serve.

A dry surface + oil + very hot pan + wait until there's a crust is the secret to never getting the steak stuck. The oil ensures uniform heating and good heat transfer which will result in a more uniform crust and less sticking. You can go without oil but it can still stick if the steak wasn't dry enough or your pan wasn't hot enough or the surface is scratched. You could use butter but it'll burn.

Re: Cast iron leet

#190

Post by qbasic_forever »

throwaway892238 wrote: post #187

Anodized aluminum is non-stick, non-reactive, lightweight, can be cleaned as normal, requires no seasoning, is scratch-resistant, and heats very quickly.

Aluminum, even anodized, will definitely stick to food. Most anodized pots are treated with a teflon nonstick interior though and its color is very similar to the grey color of the anodization.

You do have to be careful about scratching anodized stuff too. The anodization will scratch and flake off if hit with hard material like steel. But again it's usually not anodized material directly in contact with the cooking surface since they put nonstick there.

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