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How to cook with cast-iron pans – Old fashion way to cook fat-free
You can use a cast-iron skillet for just about any cooking task:
Bake a cake, sear a filet, roast or fry a chicken, fry potatoes, stir-fry vegetables, etc. One skillet is all you need, but because cast-iron cooking is lot of fun and makes the food you cook taste great. You will probably want more than one cast-iron pan.
Important tips to remember:
Always preheat your cast-iron pan before adding the food you want to cook.
With a cast iron pan, you can begin your recipe on the stove top, and then move it to the oven to finish.
Do not use a cast-iron pan in your microwave. If you do, you will ruin your pan and also your microwave oven. The fireworks display that will result will not be worth the cleanup and replacement cost.
The first most common mistake of why people do not like cast iron is that they say everything sticks. If food sticks to your cast-iron pan, your pan is NOT seasoned right and you need to re-season it. Cast iron is a natural non-stick surface and if your pan is seasoned correctly it WILL NOT stick!
Check out my web page on restoring and seasoning Cast-Iron Pots and Pans.
Remember – Every time you cook in your cast-iron pan, you are actually seasoning it again by filling in the microscopic pores and valleys that are part of the cast-iron surface. The more you cook, the smoother the surface becomes!
Cast Iron Dutch Ovens
Before anyone ever thought of a crock pot, there was the cast-iron Dutch oven. Dutch ovens have been used for hundreds of years. Nothing will hold a good, even temperature better than the heavy metal of this monster pot, and it can go from stove top to oven to campfire without missing a beat.
Check out this very interesting and informative article on Dutch Oven Camp Cooking.
Iron Griddles
Want to make the greatest pancakes you’ve ever eaten? Want your French toast to have that crispy edge so prized at breakfast time? You need to get a cast-iron griddle pan and get it good and hot on the stove top.
They work fine on electric or gas ranges, or over a campfire if you are so inclined.
Cast-Iron Pans and Skillets
Choose the size most comfortable for you. I recommend the 10-inch cast iron frying pan as it is the best trade off of size and weight.
Personally, I own 10- and 12-inch models because on occasion, I am called on to feed large groups of people.
Recipes Using Cast-Iron Skillets, Pans, and Dutch Ovens:
Desserts:
4th of July Bursting Blueberry Pie
Apple Bake
Burst Vanilla Apples
Blackberry Cobbler
Blackberry Upside-Down Cake
Cherry Clafouti
Dutch Oven Baked Caramel Apples
Honeycomb Toffee – Sponge Candy
Pineapple Upside-Down Cake
Soups, Stews and Gumbo:
Beef Stew
Beef Stew with Parsley Dumplings
Bell Pepper Soup with Sour Cream and Dill
Cioppino
Chicken Booyah
Brazilian Black Bean Soup
Georgia Brunswick Stew
Goulash Soup
New Mexican Spicy Beef Stew
Seafood Gumbo – New Orleans Style
Shrimp Jambalaya
Cottage Vegetable Soup and Golden Cornbread
Chili:
Linda’s Chili Con Carne
Not so Homemade Chili and Cornbread;
Arnold’s “Old Leatherthroat” Chili Con Carne
Pedernales River Chili
Chili H. Allen Smith
Tolbert’s Original Bowl of Red
Beef and Wild Game:
Cabernet-Cherry Filet Mignon
Cabernet Filet Mignon
Chicken-Fried Steak
Cooking the Perfect Steak
Country-Fried Venison Steak
Country-Fried Steak
Dutch Oven Swiss Steak
Breakfast or Brunch:
Apple Pancake
French Toast
German Pancakes – Dutch Baby Pancakes
Johnnycakes
Lace Hoe Cake Cornbread
Sourdough Pancakes
Yam Hash Browns with Baked Eggs
Lamb:
Seared Lamb Chops with Cracked Pepperand Rosemary
Main Dishes:
Dutch Oven Baked Pizza
Linda’s Macaroni and Cheese
Tomato Spanish Rice
Skillet-Baked Tomato Cobbler
Pork:
Dutch Oven Beer n’ Sausage
Pork Carnitas
Sandwiches:
Grilled Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese Sandwich
Fish & Seafood:
Northwest Fried Razor Clams
Pan-Fried Catfish
Pan Fried Oysters
Salmon:
Roast Salmon with Lime Salsa
Roast Salmon Steaks with Pinot Noir Syrup
Tuna:
Madiera Tuna
Pan-Seared Moroccan-Style Tuna
Pan-Seared Orange Tuna with White Beans
Pan-Seared Tuna with Lime Pepper Crust
Pecan Crusted Fish
(Pescados Cortezudos de la Pacana)
Seared Ahi Tuna with Lavender-Pepper Crust
Seared Tuna with Gingered Plum Ragout
Poultry:
Roasted Whole Chicken and Vegetables
Boneless Chicken Breast with Crushed Peanut Crust
Outdoor Turkey Pit Cooking Recipe – Turkey In the Hole
This style of pit cooking is also know as “Bean Hold Cooking.” If you have the time and place to cook your holiday turkey in an outdoor pit, wouldn’t this make a great Thanksgiving or Christmas turkey dinner. A pit barbecue is an exercise in turning a hole in the ground into an oven with hot coals provide the heat.
Vegetables and Nuts:
Sarah’s Rosemary Potatoes
Pan Roasted Brussels Sprouts
Pin Cakes
Skillet-Baked Tomato Cobbler
Related Recipes
Categories:
Cast-Iron Cooking Recipes Cast-Iron Pans