Jun 19 2015
I wasted a lot of money buying skillets over the 40 years I have been cooking. Non-stick Teflon was popular and I used them but had to buy new every year or two. My Mother-in-law gave me one of her old cast iron skillets. I used it for a few years but then everything started sticking, not sure if I gave it away or threw it out. I tried re-seasoning it but probably didn’t do it right.
I paid $90 US for a scan pan coated with ceramic. It did a great job for a few years then started sticking more. My next one was a Green-Pan and the same thing it started sticking. Then they had one called Orgreenic that was advertised on TV. My wife asked if I wanted one and I said no. Then she came home with one and said it was only $17 so got it for you. To my surprise it was nonstick and have been using it for over 3 years and it still looks new. We use it mostly for frying a quick egg for breakfast.
I had a cast iron Dutch oven and a bean pot I used a lot and liked them. I then got a Lodge 10 inch pre-seasoned and started using it a lot and really got to love cooking in it. I had a large 12 inch old Lodge skillet that I didn’t use much and gave it to my neighbor to use; he let his daughter and husband use it for camping.
After he died his wife asked if I wanted it back so took it. It was dirty and in bad shape so I read up on how to clean and re-season CI. I cleaned it in my electric oven on self-cleaning mode and it came out like new. I did a six step seasoning on it and came out great. I only use it for outdoor cooking. I then bought and old Wapak hallow ware skillet. I had wanted one for a long time since they were made here in Wapakoneta. It was a little over a pound lighter than my new Lodge skillet. I cleaned and re-seasoned it and it came out like new. It has a slight bow in the bottom so I don’t use it on my glass top stove. I save it for baking cornbread.
Then Lodge came out with some carbon steel skillets. I bought a 10 and 12 inch one; they were pre-seasoned and love them. They are my everyday skillets that I use a lot.
A lot of the members of LTBBQ forum were buying De Buyers mineral B carbon steel skillets. They are not cheap so I held out for a while but finally had to have one. I got a 10 inch skillet for $60. They recommend just one seasoning on the stove top before using so that’s the way I did it.
The only minus thing is it is heavy and the older I get that becomes an important factor. It is a pound lighter than my Lodge 10 inch CI and a pound heavier than my Lodge 10 inch CS skillets. I do like that it is deeper than my Lodge CS. One other thing is my chief bottle washer, my wife, cannot handle them to clean so I have to clean them! They all clean up pretty easy, a quick brushing under hot water and a final scrub with a Scotch blue pad. Just lately I discovered a chain mail for cleaning stuck on food.
The De Buyer skillet is a thing of beauty; well made. It did not take on much color after seasoning. I used it for the first time; I did three batches of jowl bacon in it and then sautéed some onions and garlic. It cooked great and was easy to clean up. I was surprised it did not take on much more color. It looks like it will take a while to develop a nice color and may never get the nice black color of CI.
New Skillet
After seasoning
L to R Lodge CI at 5.25 Lbs., De Buyer CS at 4.25 pounds, Lodge CS at 3.25 pounds
First cooking
Cleaned after the first cook
Smokin Don
