Cast Iron Cookware from Lodge

This is part of a series of posts on tools that have made my life in the kitchen easier and more productive.

Cast Iron cookware isn't anything new, it's been around for hundreds of years. The Lodge company, makes of cast iron cookware, have aren't new either. They have been around since 1896, making them one of the oldest companies in the United States. If you are looking for classic, all-American cast iron cookware that is reliable and won't empty your wallet, then Lodge is the way to go. But first, why would you even want some cast iron? It's not easy to clean and if you don't take care of it, it can rust up on you. Well my reasons are that cast iron is excellent at heat rention as well as diffusing that heat. I can grill a steak on cast iron and have it taste almost like one grilled on a grill. I can cook some soup and it will stay warm in the pot for a long time. I also like cast iron in that I can go from stovetop to oven without a second thought. One more advantage to cast iron is that it actually adds iron to your food which can be beneficial for those that are in need of more iron in their diet.

Below are the pieces of cast iron that I own from the Lodge company:

1. Dutch Oven

I use my dutch oven to make soups, salisbury steaks, and pot roast. I like that I can brown my meat in that same thing that I am going to use to cook it in (save time on washing dishes).

2. Grill Pan

I use my grill pan to grill anything from steaks to chicken, to even asparagus. I also have used my grill pan inside my oven with the broiler setting on to grill up some eye of round steaks (see my post on how to cook an eye of round steak).

3. Griddle

I use my griddle to cook hamburgers, make tortillas, and english muffins. The griddle has really short edges, making it easy to flip what I am cooking with a spatula.

These are only a few of the cast iron products from Lodge. They also make many other type of dutch ovens, different size and shaped grill pans and griddles, skillets of various sizes, and more!