Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

The 12-inch Lodge skillet is the bomb! I've acquired a lot of Lodge stuff (it's cheap, after all), but this is the one I use constantly. I live alone and cook mostly for myself, so it's a bit large for some of my cooking; and if I cooked for a family of four, it might be too small; but this is the one that lives on my stovetop. If you're going to get only one piece of Lodge cast iron, get this one (and the GC12 glass lid too -- you'll need it). How to make your Lodge ironware (almost) non-stick: A) Season your cast iron: 1) Scrub the cooking surface thoroughly with Brillo or S.O.S, and hot water. If the finish is damaged, sand it with coarse sandpaper, then use Brillo. Scrub the non-cooking surfaces with soap and hot water. Dry completely, and never use soap again. 2) Rub the inside of pan with a light coating of solid vegetable shortening (Crisco). Remove excess. 3) Put upside-down on the top rack of a cold oven. Put foil on the bottom rack to catch any drippings. 4) Turn on oven to 500°. When oven reaches temperature, set timer for 90 minutes. If it smells funny, don’t worry, turn on a fan. 5) When time is up, turn oven off, and let pan cool completely in the oven. 6) Repeat steps 2 - 5 three more times, for a total of 4 treatments. Yes, it’ll take two days, but believe me – it’s worth it! 8) When you’re all done (if it’s a new pan, it’ll be a beautiful glossy black), rub in a little vegetable oil, and you’re good to go. B) Using your cast iron: 1) Preheat the pan (except for bacon). Medium-low is right for almost everything; don't turn it above medium except to sear meat. If you see smoke, it's too hot. For bacon, start with a cold pan, and cook on medium-low. 2) Cook with a little olive oil – it’s good for you. If you use butter, keep the heat low -- butter can scorch and leave a residue. A newly seasoned pan needs a little extra oil the first few times. Use a flexible metal spatula with a thin straight edge, and scrape the pan as you turn the food. Do NOT use a nylon or plastic spatula -- it'll melt and get in your food, yuck! 3) Clean while still warm – use running hot water and a stiff brush. A scratchy pad or a chain-mail scrubber work OK, but the brush gets most everything. For hardcore dried-on stuff, boil water for 10 minutes or so, and scrape with the spatula while boiling. If you’ve done all of the above, however, this will almost never happen -- the only time I have to do it is when I forget to clean the pan before it cools. I read that adding salt to the boiling water helps. Dry thoroughly, rub in just a little oil, wipe clean with a paper towel, and you’re ready for next time. Backstory: I wrecked the finish on both pieces of my Lodge combo-cooker (LCC3) – I thought I could make a smooth hard surface by seasoning them with the pan right-side-up in the oven, with extra shortening. WRONG! What I got resembled the surface of Mars, and it was sticky, so I had to sand. I have several Lodge pieces, and I have sanded only the two damaged combo pans. Brillo works fine on everything else. It may not even be necessary to season it four times, but it’s what I do. I fry up potatoes, onions and garlic with half a tablespoon of oil, and when they’re cooked I throw on eggs and shredded cheese – no sticking. Same deal with eggs-over-easy – a little dab of butter for flavor (or none at all), no sticking. Cornbread in the small frypan, chili or rice & beans in the Dutch oven, chicken or steak on the grill pan – doesn’t matter, very little sticks to the pan, and nothing that doesn’t come off with hot water and a quick scrub. Tomato-based stuff (chili) will degrade the finish, so you may have to re-season that pot from time to time. I love my Lodge cast iron, and I use it for practically everything. About the only time I use my stainless is to cook pasta or rice, or to heat up soup or sauce. My favorite veggies are the ones I sauté on the cast iron – fresh spinach with a little olive oil and some lemon pepper, yeah baby! Cook up a complete summer meal in 15 minutes in one pan: cubed red potato for 5 or 6 minutes; then add onion, garlic, and red bell pepper for about 3 minutes; then thin-sliced summer squash; then a handful of raw cashews and some mushrooms. When everything’s cooked, stir in fresh diced tomatoes. Add shredded cheese if you want. Whoa! I’m a cast-iron cook and proud of it. Food tastes better, and it looks better, too – every time I cook something, I want to take a picture. I leave the 12-inch on my stove (I use it almost every time I cook), and everyone who comes in my kitchen asks about it. I’ve even made a convert or two –Teflon kills parrots, after all (Google it), so how can it be anything but bad for us? Rock on, Lodge, and thank you. My grandchildren are going to squabble over who gets Pop-pop’s cast iron!