Top 10 best Iron Skillets 2022 Price and Feature Comparison

Sorry for the long review – for the short review, count the stars!I’m a bit of a purist. I always season my cast iron – new, or used (hey, I don’t know WHAT someone else used that old piece of cast iron for – maybe cleaning auto parts). I sand it down to bare metal, starting with about an 80 grit and finishing with 200.Then I season. The end result is a glossy black mirror that puts Teflon to shame. There are two mistakes people make when seasoning – not hot enough, not long enough. These mistakes give the same result – a sticky brown coating that is definitely not non-stick, and the first time they bring any real heat to the pan, clouds of smoke that they neither expected or wanted. I see several complaints here that are completely due to not knowing this.But there were a few pieces I needed (yes, needed, cast iron isn’t about want, it’s a need), and this was one of them, so I thought I’d give the Lodge pre-seasoning a try. Ordered last Friday, received this Friday – free shipping, yay!The first thing I noticed was the bumpy coating. The inside is actually rougher than the outside, and my hand was itching for the sandpaper, but that would have defeated the experiment. This time, I was going to give the Lodge pre-seasoning a chance before I broke out the sandpaper. So I scrubbed the pan out with a plastic brush and a little soapy water, rinsed well, put it on a medium burner, and waited. Cast iron tip number one – give it a little time. Then give it a little more time. Cast iron conducts heat much more slowly than aluminum, so you have to have a little patience.Then I threw in a pat of butter, and brought out the natural enemy of badly seasoned cast iron – the egg. And, sure enough, it stuck – but not badly, just in the middle. A bit of spatula work and I actually got a passable over-medium egg. Hmmm. But still not good enough. So I cleaned up the pan, and broke out the lard.I have only one justification for using lard. I don’t remember Grandma using refined hand-pressed organic flax oil, or purified extra-virgin olive oil made by real virgins. Nope, it was pretty much animal fat in her iron. A scoop of bacon grease from the mason jar beside the stove and she was ready to cook anything. Grandaddy wouldn’t eat a piece of meat that had less than a half-inch of fat around it. “Tastes like a dry old shoe.”, he’d declare if it was too lean. In the end, I’m sure their diet killed them, but they ate well in the meantime. Grandaddy was cut down at the tender age of 96, and Grandma lasted till 98. Eat what you want folks – in the end, it’s pretty much up to your genetics.So I warmed up my new pieces, and smeared a very thin layer of lard all over them – use your fingers. Towels, especially paper towels, will shed lint, and lint in your seasoning coat doesn’t help things at all. Besides, it’s kinda fun.Here’s cast iron tip number two – season at the highest temp you think you’ll ever cook at – or higher. If you don’t, you won’t get the full non-stick thing, and the first time you bring it up to that temp you’ll get clouds of smoke from the unfinished seasoning. I put my pieces in a cold oven, and set the temp for an hour at 500 degrees (F, not C). Yeah, I know, Lodge says 350. Lodge doesn’t want panicked support calls from people whose house is full of smoke. Crank the heat up.You have two choices here. You can put a fan in the kitchen window and blow smoke out of your house like the battleship Bismarck under attack by the Royal Navy, or invest in an oxygen mask. You will get smoke. You will get lots of smoke, especially if you’re doing several pieces at once, like I just did. This is a good thing – that’s smoke that won’t be jumping out to surprise you the first time you try to cook with any real heat. The goal is to heat until you don’t get smoke, and in my experience, 500 degrees for an hour does that pretty well.Let the pieces cool in the closed oven. Then re-grease and repeat. And repeat again. And don’t glop the fat on. Just enough to coat. More thin layers are better than fewer gloppy layers. I managed four layers last night without my neighbors calling the fire department.Seems like a lot of work? Look at it this way. It’s a lifetime commitment. Treat your iron well, and it will love you right back like you’ve never been loved before. And this is pretty much a one-time deal, unless you do something silly.The end result of my all-night smoking up the kitchen exercise? Dry, absolutely no stickiness, black as a coal mine at midnight and shiny – but still bumpy – could it possibly work with that rough surface?I put the skillet back on a medium burner, put a pat of butter on and tossed in a couple of eggs. After the whites had set a little, I nudged them with a spatula, and they scooted across the pan. I’ll be… it works. My wife came back from the store and wanted scrambled eggs. If there’s anything that cast iron likes less than fried eggs, it’s scrambled. But it was the same thing all over again. No stick. No cleanup. Just a quick hot water rinse with a brush in case something got left on the pan (I couldn’t see anything, but hey), then I put it on a med-hi burner till dry, put a thin coat of lard on the pan and waited until I saw smoke for a minute. Let cool and hang up. Done.So. do I like the bumpy texture of the Lodge pre-season? Nope. Does it work? Yes, and contrary to my misgivings, it works very well. My wife pointed out that even some Teflon cookware has textured patterns in it. The Lodge pre-season isn’t a perfect surface out of the box – but it does give you a big head-start. After a night’s work, my iron is ready to face anything, and you just can’t beat that.Lodge makes a great product. For the quality, durability, and versatility, you can’t beat Lodge cast iron. Plus, it’s made in America. I like that. If you’ve never experienced cast iron cooking, you’ve just been cheating yourself. Plus, the price, for a piece of lifetime cookware, is insanely cheap.And my sandpaper is still on the tool shelf.

Most reviews will say Le Creuset is the best cookware. It cleans easy. It’s classy. It looks great. It does not rust, like cast iron pans.It simmers great. It does not distribute the heat perfectly. Burgers and pancakes cook directly over the heat. If the meat or pancakes are offset, they will cook unevenly. This is probably true for all cookware. All-Clad did the same.The weight may be a problem for smaller hands. It’s good to have large hands. :)This pan gets a 4, because it needs a lid either included or as an option. The strange shape makes it impossible to cover, except with aluminum foil.The proteins and vitamins are preserved more when cooked at lower heat. These pans are best to cook, slow and low.The price:Your kid’,s kid’s will enjoy this kitchen tool. Are you worth it? Are they worth it?

VERY heavy. Lots of TLC required. Versatile. Multi-generational. Reasonably priced. Lodge seasoned CI-made in USA.First of all, for those of you who care about country of origin, rest assured that Lodge seasoned cast iron is made in the USA (the enameled Lodge cast iron however, is made in China).Before I delve into the review of this LCI, let me just warn my readers that CI is rather heavy! If you have arthritis or a weak arm and had, you may want to consider a lighter-weight cookware.Now on to the “meat” (pun intended) portions of this review…Cast iron is a forgiving but high maintenance mistress! She will forgive almost anything (even allowing her to rust!!!), but she does require a little TLC before, during, and after each use. The TLC she needs is:1. Before using: season CI1) Cast iron must be seasoned before any use; luckily, Lodge double seasons its cast iron so that customers may use the product right out of the box, but if you need to re-season the cast iron product, follow these steps:i) Scrub CI well in hot soapy water.ii) Dry thoroughly.iii) Spread a thin layer of oil (I like avocado oil, but vegetable or canola will suffice) over the CI (interior, exterior, handle, all parts).iv) Place CI upside down on a middle oven rack and turn on the oven and allow to heat to 550°. (PLEASE refrain from placing the CI into an already heated oven; the CI heat gradually in the oven as the oven works its way up to 550 degrees F)(1) ***NOTE: temperature depends on the oil being used to season (AO has a high smoking point, but VO and CO have lower smoking points; this means that if you are using VO or CO, you need to set the oven to 400 degrees instead of 550).v) Place foil on a lower rack to catch drips.vi) Once the oven temperature reaches 550 degrees, “bake” the CI for 50-90 minutes.vii) Turn off the oven and allow the CI to cool inside the oven.***Reminder: temperature depends on the oil being used to season (AO has a high smoking point, but VO and CO have lower smoking points; this means that if you are using VO or CO, you need to set the oven to 400 degrees instead of 550).2. During usage: use a “fatty food” the first time you use the CI implement.a. Personally, I love any excuse to fry bacon, so I always “break-in” my CI with bacon slices; however, there are many amongst you who are unable to partake in bacon for religious, moral and ethical, or environmental reasons. For those amongst you who cannot use bacon, cook a food that requires deep frying.b. Pre-heat the CI before using (every single time) or your food will stick and crumblei. NOTE: Although I ALWAYS pre-heat my CI for cooking, I rarely do so for cake-baking; for cake-baking I used a very liberal amount of my home-made pan release “goo” to fully coat the pan, and I pour the cake batter right into the pan; works every time!3. After using: wash and re-season (NO, not the detailed steps mentioned above)a. After using the CI, and while it is still hot, wash using scorching (wear heat resistant gloves as to not burn your hands) water and salt (refrain from using chemical cleaners)i. NEVER wash in a dishwasher (OMG)b. Dry completely and thoroughlyc. Spread a thin layer of oil over the CI (interior, exterior, handle, all parts) and place the CI on the stove top to heat for about 10 minutesd. Store CI in a moisture free environmenti. NEVER store food in CIii. NEVER store CI in fridge or freezerSo that is the TLC required for a CI pan or pot, but there are still several things to keep in mind:A. NOT everything should be cooked in cast iron!(1) Avoid cooking acidic foods in CI (yes, it is okay to finish the dish with a small squeeze of lemon (not when skillet is hot) or a few drops of vinegar, it is okay to add tomatoes and tomato paste to the dish you are cooking, but it is NEVER okay to stew tomato prolonged periods, deglaze with vinegar, or lemon juice to foods while they were still hot on the skillet)(2) Avoid (at least in the beginning when your cast iron is still getting TLC) sticky foods (fried eggs, omelets, pancakes, scrambled eggs, fried rice, crepes, etc.) as they will definitely stick to your CI; this is not to say that you will not eventually be able to fry eggs or make crepes on your CI, I do all the time, but you will need to have reused and reasoned you CI many times before it becomes fully non-stick.(3) Avoid cooking delicate fish (flounder, tilapia, etc.) In CI because the delicate fish will not tolerate the heat retained by the CI (an asset when searing steak) and will fall apart when flipped.(4) Avoid (particularly before your CI becomes super well-seasoned) using the same pan for savory and sweet as the CI does retain flavors; in other words, using the CI to bake a vanilla cake immediately the day after using it to make garlic chicken may make your vanilla a tad too garlicky!(5) Avoid using CI to cook foods that require lengthy periods of simmering, boiling, or steaming as the lengthy simmering, boiling, or steaming will strip your CI of its hard-earned seasoning.Are you still reading? If after reading the previous portions of this review, you are concerned about the TLC necessary to maintain CI, then I really recommend you consider other cookware options. (Caphlan non-stick is a viable alternative); if on the other hand, you are still reading, then you are not dissuaded from investing in CI cookware, and I am glad of that!There are numerous benefits to cooking and baking in CI:1) Cast iron is extremely sturdy and is very difficult to ruin. (If you do ruin a CI pan, you can restore and reclaim it!).2) Cast iron heats up evenly and retains heat incredibly well, which makes CI excellent for searing meat, baking corn bread, making pies, baking crusty bread, etc., and for keeping food warm as you serve it!3) Cast iron is healthy; yes, that is true! During the cooking process a trace amount of iron is absorbed into the foods, and when the foods are consumed by you, you are getting some iron into your system (a healthy by-product of CI cooking).4) Cast iron is quite versatile. You may use CI for almost everything (you make slow cook a lamb leg to perfect or make a three-layer birthday cake for your daughter in CI). Additionally, CI goes from cupboard, to stove-top, to oven, to camp-fire, and to dinner table! Talk about versatility!5) Cast iron is of heirloom status; it lasts for generations! I personally have a huge collection, and I plan to bequest my CI to my daughter (it shall be written in my will-not kidding).So, to re-cap:CI is a rather heavy type of cookware that offers great versatility, heats evenly, retains heat well, requires pre-seasoning and re-seasoning, and is multi-generational. And, of course, Lodge is an excellent CI brand. Lodge was founded in 1896 and is one of the very few remaining companies that still produce seasoned CI in the US (in the Lodge foundries in Tennessee). Lodge products are sturdy, versatile, heirloom-quality, and of course reasonably priced (as compared to the more expensive companies).I have been using CI (especially Lodge) for two and one-half decades (yes, ¼ of a century) now, and I will NEVER use anything else! A purchase of Lodge CI cookware and bakeware is a very sound investment indeed!**If you found this review of use, please “like” using the thumbs-up button below. Thank you.**If you would like to read more of my reviews (when I post reviews), please select “follow” button below. Thank you.

I use this in my Roccbox pizza oven which gets to 900 degrees. I put it in there and heat it up and cook steak and chicken in it and it comes out amazing. Also no color changes happened which im so impressed by and it still looks great

This pan is essential if you live in an apartment and don’t have the luxury of having a grill. This pan cooks meats beautifully and gives the grill marks as well. I hope it holds up because of how expensive it is.

I prefer cast iron for heat distribution and retention. This works great for searing and frying steaks, cooking vegetables, and beef stew slow cooking (watch it doesn’t go dry). I found a glass top that fits the pan and that works perfectly. I have a 10″ fry pan I also love cooking with.

Rinsed, dried, and slapped it on top of a campfire. I was cooking a cowboy breakfast in less than 20 mins from arrival (once the fire was ready). The meal turned out awesome. Did you know that a cowboy breakfast has eggs in it? Not a single bit of egg stuck to the pan! Clean up was simple…which means the pan was perfectly ‘seasoned’ ahead of time. The only thing I don’t care for the giant “Amazon” logo stamped into the bottom of the pan. But who really cares?

its a prefect old school pan, very non stick if you keep it oiled, used almost every day since arrival at my doorstep.

Very pleased with mine but make sure you want a great big fryin pan

The weight is substantial. The round shape is perfect for burgers. Teh diameter is sufficient for sandwiches.

I accidentally put my GF’s cast iron pan in a donation pile and bought this as a replacement. Not regretting my error — this pan is an upgrade as well as being a great deal.The cast iron is nice and thick which helps it distribute and hold heat well. The 12″ pan I got is heavy enough that I’m glad I didn’t get the 15″, but it’s reasonable enough and I’m liking it better than I thought I would. The preseasoning is decent. One of the first things I cooked on it was eggs over easy, no problems with sticking. I suspect the people having trouble with things adhering are using the same amount of oil they’d use in a teflon pan — you need to use more, but no need to go nuts.We have an excellent set of Calphalon pans, but I’m liking this one better and have switched every time I need a frying pan. I prefer cooking with metal utensils so it’s nice to work with something that’s basically indestructible. The surface is not as slick as teflon but plenty so for all purposes I’ve needed, and it’s easy to clean.

These reviews of people that don’t understand cast iron are hilarious and ridiculous of course things will stick it’s new cast iron you gotta work some fat into it and rust??? It’s a cast iron pan clean it and reseason it it’s not that difficult to figure out and for the love of all Gods don’t wash the damn thing in a dishwasher. you’ll have to reseason it all over again and probably buff out some rust. I don’t know why grown adults can’t understand that but here we are.

These are perfect for making pizza in, they both fit in my oven on the same shelf at the same time! The nice stubby handles are perfect and way better than the traditional long handle. If your making pizza, be sure to get the oil all the way up the sides or the pizza will not be easy to get out. I use one of those silicone barbecue brushes and brush the olive oil way up there all the way around.

only downside to the pan was that it is very heavy. alot heavier than the rest of my cast iron skillets.

I have a 10 inch lodge that’s 3 years old. Got the legend 12 inch and the surface is very rough. Smoothed it out a bit with these chains (not sure what their called) and is a bit better. After using for 5-6 month, seems to be better but I should have paid a bit more and got the lodge.