/ck/ - Food & Cooking

>>14459782
the only cast iron I use is my le creuset enameled dutch oven. cast iron pans are a meme.

>>14459786
Tell that to your great ancestors. They'd beat your ass with it

gonna make bacon in it for thr first time ever soon
any tips for soft bacon and seasoning a cast iron with bacon fat?

>>14459797
my grandma threw out her cast iron

>>14459798
Soft bacon on cast iron is counter-intuitive because soft bacon preserves the fat on bacon. My guess is that you just need to cook it just before it gets crispy.

Also you only need a small amount (like a tablespoon or 10ml) of fat to season the pan. Preserve the rest if you can.

>>14459836
I see, ill go for medium done, I like chewy bacon more than crispy bacon
do I put it in the oven or leave it on thr stove to season it?

>>14459854
ideally bacon should be crispy while retaining its malleability, pure soft bacon is just eating salted rubber.

>>14459864
ok ty. I don't eat bacon usually. my people consider it unclean but I'm going to try it out for the cast iron pan im pretty excited. I'm going with uncured bacon as well

>>14459880
it's considered unclean because before modern agriculture methods, pork was full of parasites and you'd get parasites if not properly cooked. that's not an issue anymore unless you live in a shithole like kazakhstan or something

>>14459880
Dont forget to start cooking bacon with a cold pan.
>>14459864
I prefer crunchy bacon over the one you described. For some reason it has a saltier taste which is what I'm looking for when I add it to the main dish.

I'd like one, but they're so damn heavy and difficult to work with.

Are there any lighter cast irons available?

>>14459920
it's saltier because more of the fat is rendered, you can achieve the same thing without frying it into a plank.

>>14459907
It's considered unclean because pigs eat flesh, they eat anything really even shit. That being said I like me some bacon.

>>14459953
protip: cows and chickens both readily eat flesh, chickens being strict omnivores that regularly eat bugs, mice, frogs, etc. pigs being unclean definitely comes from the connection of people regularly getting goddamn diseases and parasites from improperly prepared flesh; that they roll around in mud definitely helped with the correlation though.

>>14459923
The weight has to do with the composition of the pan and its purpose, being high heat retention nearest to the heat source, while sacrificing heat dispersion.

I seasoned mine so well it looks like a mirror check this out

>>14460002

That wasn't the question.

>>14460050
You cant have a light cast iron because it would defeat the purpose of a cast iron.

>>14460078

They're a thing and have their own applications. Don't dismiss them.

https://healthy-cookware.com/basics-about-lightweight-cast-iron-cookware/#:~:text=Lightweight%20cast%20iron%20pan%20won,than%20traditional%20cast%20iron%20cookware.

>>14460115
>Drawbacks
>The heat retention capability of cast iron cookware is proportional to its weight. Lightweight cast iron pan won’t hold heat as long as a thicker one.
>Due to lower heat retention capability, lightweight cast-iron pans cook less evenly than their thicker counterparts.
>Lightweight cast iron cookware is more fragile than traditional cast iron cookware. It is prone to damage such as cracking and splitting.
They may have their own applications but a cast iron alternative is not one of them.

>>14460132

>cast iron isn't a cast iron alternative

>>14459782
Remember that absolute faggot with the 8 pour spouts? Pepperidge farm does

Are cast iron and stainless steel the only two metals that won't fuck your shit up?

>>14460316
Carbon steel. Carbon steel and cast iron are the only two pans you should ever buy.

>>14460329
>the only two pans you should ever buy are ungainly nightmares that need to be coddled like babies just to cook an egg.

i bake deepdish pizza and chilequiles in mine all the time.

>>14460329
>Carbon steel cookware doesn’t heat as evenly as stainless steel, it requires seasoning, it’s susceptible to rust, and it reacts to acidic food.

literally what is the point

test

>>14460619
kitchens use it because it's cheap and heats up really fast, that's it. it serves no purpose in a home kitchen.

>>14460619
>I'm too stupid to successfully season a pan
K? How is that my problem? So, keep using your retard pans I guess?

>>14460615
Why would you have to coddle it? Just wipe it out when you're done using it and you're done.

>>14460656
why would I use a pan that is objectively worse than fucking stainless steel, with the only pros being that it heats up faster and it's cheaper? it's all the drawbacks of cast iron with literally none of the positives. the only reasons to own it is if you're running a tight budget at a restaurant, or are autistic and get off to maintaining cookware.

I've heard it's best to avoid seasoning with bacon fat, as it's more likely to go rancid. The generally accepted wisdom is that you should use more highly refined, high smoke point, neutral tasting oils.

>>14460742
You only need to season it once. To clean simply wipe out with a paper towel while it's still warm it's much quicker and easier to maintain than stainless steel which can't be seasoned at all and is too sticky. CS and CI are the only pans which allow a decent frond AND quick and easy clean up. The reason why restaurants use CS is because it is superior in every way to stainless steel.

>>14460882
actually low smoke point it's better since seasoning consists in polymerizing fats which it's done by bringing them above their smoke point for a certain period of time. the lower the smoke point the easier this is, grape seed oil it's good for seasoning for this reason. Canola it's good too.

>>14459798
Put bacon in cold skillet (if on stovetop), but you can just as easily throw it in the oven. Typically, low and slow heat gives you more evenly cooked bacon, and lets you decide how much fat to render out. Higher heat gives you the part crispy/part soft texture. Me, I like to do it in the oven, low and slow, but I let the bacon cool in the pan. This makes the bacon draw back in some of the fat. You can expect a little sticking on a newish pan because you can only polymerize oils in a smoking hot pan (which makes the bacon shit)

To use the rendered fat for seasoning, dump it into another container and spoon out clear fat from the top. You don't want the crunchies. Pour a drizzle into the pan, then wipe it out with a paper towel. You only want a thin coat of oil per coat. Heat up the pan either on the stove or in the oven very hot (450ºF). When it stops smoking, that coat is done. After it cools, repeat 2-4 more times. There will be smoke. You need to open a window.

>>14460890
>frond
I use cast iron and stainless exclusively. I prefer stainless for a frond, the entire point of stainless is it's sticky and is great for browning meats then deglazing. Cast iron and carbon are inferior for this technique because the seasoning can be affected by the deglazing process. I use cast iron when I dont want my food to stick, like building up a crust on a steak or a burger. I also use stainless for acidic sauces.

>>14459975
nowadays its best to eat in moderation because most pork is fed a soy diet and that makes for more omega 6 fats than omega 3s so it can harden the arteries n shit if eaten too much

>>14459923
Just get carbon steel cookware.

>>14459782
>completely give up maintaining my cast iron pan
>a year later and it cooks exactly the same as it ever did

>>14460329
What do you have against stainless steel?

i use one because i dont have anything else
ive never tried seasoning, it sounds like a massive meme

>>14459782
my 'ron skillet is the tits for pizza

>>14459975
Cows also roll around in shit. A cow will lay down and eat and shit all over itself at the same time. Goats and sheep are the only livestock that don't and that's only because their poop is pellets

Any good tips of videos of how to season an old rusty pan?

>>14463827
Videos? No. I recently salvaged one from my parents backyard tho. I used a bunch of commercial food grade rust and lime scale remover from a restaurant supply store and soaked it outside for a a day or so in a bin and then used a steel brush to take off any stubborn spots (the remover did a REALLY good job tho) and then I washed and dried the pan. Heated up my oven to like 375°. I used canola oil and dipped a folded paper towel held by tongs in the oil and then used the soaked paper towel to apply a thin, no drip layer of oil all around the pan. I put a baking tray on the rack underneath just in case any drips happen and I put the skillet in the oven for 4 hours. After 4 hours I turned off the oven and left the pan to slowly cool down with the oven.

>>14463855
Wa la

>>14463827

>>14463855
Thanks. The one I have is not too bad. I got it at a garage sale and it looks like it has been sitting in someone's camping gear for years.
I have never restored one before, but it doesn't seem too difficult

>>14459782

>>14463936
it's super easy. the easiest method is to put it in a trash bag and buy spray oven cleaner and just spray a bunch in then tie it off and leave it for a few days. after scrub it in the sink and everything should just come off.

>>14463772
Looks delicious if that's yours desu

>>14463729
Seasoning is only necessary if you cook things without a lot of fat in it, like fish or eggs or chicken breast. Pork, steak, and lamb usually work out well.

I too love my /r/BuyItForLife cast iron! An updoot to you sirs. As long as i season it properly, never cook acidic food in it and fill it with oil it's just as non stick as a dry Teflon pan!

>>14460036
Got a chuckle out of me

>>14463772
Recipie, plox.