Is cast iron a meme or is there actually any benefit to having

Great piece of cookware that can last a lifetime. Great for steaks and you can throw it in the oven. Just don't expect it to be magical non stick, iron infusing, end all be all pan as the internet would lead you to believe as late. That said, I love mine and use it every weekend

>>9084554
>Is cast iron an element of a culture or system of behaviour passed from one individual to another by imitation or other non-genetic means?
Cretin.

i'm too lazy for them, but the nice thing is you can get a good sear and then toss that shit in the oven.

>>9084554
They've only been around for 3000 years so of course they're a recent meme and only used by hipster numales who barely have the strength to lift them.

>>9084554
There are a lot of benefits to using one. For one, higher iron content in the food you eat. You can always use more iron. A well seasoned pan will also be nonstick, and you can always redo it if you mess it up. The iron holds heat better than a thin piece of steel, so while it does take longer to heat up, the food will cook better. You can throw it directly into an oven at whatever temp you want.

Also, it's very heavy and fun to swing around a just a bit.

>>9084554
cast iron is overrated; lead is where it's at. adds a little sweet flavor to the food, too.

>>9084564
>Too lazy for a pan you never wash

Ooooook

>>9084554
They are good for steak because they retain heat very well and make a nice crust. They are a great way to make deep dish pizza. They are dirt cheap

But other than that they are a pain to take care of

>>9084554
They don't warp like modern pans. They'll stay perfectly flat no matter how much you abuse them, it makes them great for pancakes and eggs.

>>9084554
>Cast iron
>Meme

People have been cooking on cast iron for long as fuck it's not a meme don't be retarded

a cast iron skillet will outlive you

Its a piece of cookware you'd want to have. Tortillas come out nice everytime, great for steaks, bacon, etc. Just be mindful that you have to wash it differently than most cookware or you'll rust the shit out of it.

>>9086040
Induction stove will warp them but that's a pretty rare use case

>>9084560
You know what he meant you retard.

carbon steel >> cast iron

>>9084554
to some extent

There's nothing magical about them, but they have some properties that you may find useful. As you bring up searing steak: they retain more heat than most pans and disperse the retained heat slowly, but evenly, making them a good solution to trying to sear things when using an electric heating element because the element will cycle on and off, providing uneven heat to the pan.
There are plenty of other reasons people might like them, and some reasons people won't like them.

The meme really comes in the form of people obsessing over the seasoning and care of the pans.

>>9086332
Unfortunately it seems that all carbon steel pans have this massive stupid handle that juts up and out, longer than the pan is wide. What the fuck? Now I want to get into metal working just so that I can saw off and machine this stupid fucking handle.

>>9084554
cast iron is a meme, anyone who buys cast iron is even more of a meme

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>>9086512
I can't really see the disadvantage of a longer pan handle here, apart from maybe causing issues when you want to put them in the oven.
If anything many cast iron handles look way too short for me. Especially considering they're rather heavy.

Maybe get a paella?

>>9084554

I do pretty much all of my pan cooking in a cast iron. After playing around with teflon, ceramic, and steel pans, I have found cast iron to be the best, most durable, and most non-stick pan I have used. Good for oven use too, I make quiches in my cast iron all the time.

>>9084554
They are good you can cook anything you want them put the pan in the dishwasher

>>9086602
By definition a person cannot be a meme.
Idiot.

nothing is a 'meme' you fucking idiots. Speak english for once.

>>9084782
Your a female

>>9088124
i find if i put my cast iron in the dishwasher it not only cleans it but pre-heats it so i can cook my tomato soup in it without having to wait for it to heat up.

>>9088107

They are short because they need to fit in ovens and a long handle just makes it even heavier, unless you use two hands to carry, moving down a long handle away from a heavy cast iron pan would only make it harder to carry. A short handle forces you to choke up on it which is better for handling the weight.

>>9086055
Wot? It never warped mine.

>>9086055
>>9088198

It can warp a thinner older one. Just don't crank it to 10 right from the start.

Nowadays it just makes the factory seasoning flake off.

>>9084554
>doesn't own a cast iron pan yet
you have to go back

They have good heat emissivity

cast iron is necessary for baking the best bread. It's the most reliable way to replicate a good steam oven in a residential oven.

>>9088140
Why do you think that?

Got a lodge pan and got too scared at all the different, conflicting ways to season it I read online. Ended up doing nothing with it, pls send help

>>9088295
coat with a thin layer of oil
bake upsidedown at 450 degrees for an hour
turn off the oven and leave it in there to cool. if you just use it for bread, you don't really need to worry about the season.

other than that just for daily usage, wipe it /wash it out and heat it up on the stove top, then put a little oil (just enough to coat the surface) in it and call it a day.

>>9088124
>>9088153
Obvious samefag

>>9088295
New loge pans come with factory seasoning. Just was with soap and water and then use it.

>>9084554
It's cheap thermal mass. That's it.

>>9088439
its all you need senpai

>>9088127
nice meme, you meme

so its a pan
except you cant wash it properly

>>9088811
You must be 18+ to post here, son.

>>9088875
right back at you, meme

is it true that you shouldn't make omelettes on them because it might stick?

Just get it enameled.

Then you can wash it with soap.

Fuck le creuset, get there is no need to spend much with cast iron, even on enameled. Get a discount cuisinart for example.

>>9088897

Never heard that before.

>>9088897
Eggs stick to pans like few other foods and a coating of oil doesn't really help. Nonstick aluminum pans are the easiest to clean when eggs stick to the inside.

>>9088855
That's what a chainmail scrubber is for. Or a roaring campfire.

>>9084554
I like it.
It's my generic pan I use when I need to sauté or fry.
I find it to be more forgiving then a regular non-stick when it comes to cooking large quantities of ingredients and getting a good, even cook on all the pieces.

>>9088902

I got a used 10 inch skillet le creuset and its fantastic, pretty cheap too and considering its going to last me for the rest of my life it was worth the extra 10 bucks off ebay

>>9088897

If you want to make an omelette in cast iron, follow these tips.

>Preheat your oven to 350 or so
>Begin heating up pan on burner, low flame/heat
>Use coconut oil or butter to minimize sticking, bacon grease if you're a champ
>Whisk your eggs and other ingredients, toss in hot pan on hot oil/fat
>Give it a few moments to cook on the bottom
>Pop the entire pan in the oven for another several minutes

Boom it's now cooked through and won't stick. Toss in your toppings and slide onto a plate, fold over.

>>9088124
Just in case the uncultured retards of /ck/ don't know, don't wash your cast iron pans. You'll ruin potential generations of flavor development built into the pan. When you need to clean it scrub the pan with salt and a paper towel to absorb the grease and any stuck on food.

I am not memeing here. Look it up.

>>9090485
Or salt and a paper towel

>>9090664
what you mean is that i should use a non-stick pan, got it. thanks for your answer

Makes awesome cornbread.

iron pans end up pissing away ions as soon as you put something like tomatoes in it. Use ceramic coated cast iron, stainless with a fat billot or just shitty PTFE if you need pans.

>>9088293
Not him, but "you can always use more iron" and saying that it's fun to swing around kind of hints at it. Mostly the iron bit. Men don't need extra iron.

>>9091739
I'm a man, but my family is all women and my dad is a vegetarian, so they're always low on iron.

And you don't think swinging around an empty pan is a good time?

How do restaurants like chili's and Fridays wash the skillets they serve the sizzling dishes in?

They retain heat way better than most cookware, so they're really good at frying or searing stuff. It won't dip down in temperature when you put cold food in it. (To a certain extent, of course)

what's the consensus on seasoning with semen?

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>>9092464

Use ceramic coated cast iron. Sooo much better.

Personally, I prefer ceramic. I've had a couple of cast irons pans but ceramic handles high searing of fillet steak better and can also be used for reductions which would murder a cast iron patina.

>>9092458
They dont wash them.