Get your cook on
For most chefs and serious cooks, a heavy, sharp chef knife is at the absolute top of the list of favorite kitchen tools. Until you start getting serious about your cuisine, you’ll be fine with any moderately sharp, non-serrated blade. Good quality knives tend to be pricey, so don’t worry about those yet.
So on what kitchen tool should you spend your cherished cash? Why, the 10-inch cast-iron skillet! Let me casually convince you.
1. It’s cheap. You can find a 10-inch skillet on Amazon or at Target for less than $20. I wholeheartedly think it’s worth the investment because…
2. It will last forever. That is not sarcasm. Unlike cheap non-stick pans, cast-iron pans will not only never scratch or warp, but they actually get better with age. My dad has had his skillet for 30 years and uses it for almost every meal.
3. It is naturally non-stick. Once the pan has been “seasoned” or “cured” properly, nothing will stick to it. If you play your proverbial cards right, you can even scramble a batch of eggs sans sticking.
4. It conducts heat evenly. Because these skillets are so heavy and require five minutes of slow preheating before cooking, food cooks evenly.
So how does all of this black magic and succulent sorcery work? I’ll do my best to explain.
When you season a cast-iron pan, you coat the entire thing with oil (or sometimes animal fat) and let it bake in the oven or heat on the stove. When the oil smokes, it somehow reacts with the iron pan and forms a slick coating. As long as this coating exists and there is a thin layer of oil on the outside, the pan will not rust and food will not stick.
Most cast-iron pans that you buy will come preseasoned, but it never hurts to reseason. You can find videos and explanations of the process all over the Internet.
Here are a few easy but very important tips on maintaining your new 10-inch cast-iron skillet.
Never wash it with soap, ever. This is crucial. Just like soap takes grease off of your hands, it will take some of the oil-based coating off of your pan. Don’t soak it in water either. Do your best to clean it using only a little warm water and a completely soap-free brush or sponge. If that doesn’t work, use a handful of salt as an abrasive.
Coat the pan with oil from time to time. Because the non-stick, non-rust coating is made of oil, wiping the pan with an oil-damp paper towel never hurts. An oily looking skillet is a happy skillet.
Preheat on medium before you cook. It will take about five minutes. Because these pans heat so evenly and retain heat so well, you will almost never have to cook with high heat. Medium or medium-high is almost always perfect.
Use the pan for searing, sauteing, frying, and egg-cooking. I don’t recommend these pans for long, wet cooking methods, like boiling a tomato sauce. As you’ve probably picked up by now, cast-iron skillets are happiest when oily.
