I am a cast iron hunter plain and simple. I look for it everywhere I go and I get pretty lucky sometimes.

I hope you might have caught my two part A Wok To Remember Part One and A Wok To Remember Part Two.

Although I believe that the diminutive

carbon steel wok is the best all rounder when it comes to versatility, adaptability, survivability, hillbillity and more, I do love and value many other types of cookware.

My prized collection of Zwilling

double Henckel stainless steel pots and pans are a pure joy to cook with. They will give nearly anything in the world a run for its money for any truly challenging chef task, and almost nothing will caramelize better. My stainless steel collection is my goto when I really want a terrific, hassle free cooking experience.

I will likely not be able to stop myself from doing a stainless steel post or two at some point. They really do serve a wonderful niche and I would consider them the mainstream champ when space isn’t a factor. And stainless steel has one other major advantage when it comes to high quality cookware. It is the pound for pound, or ounce for ounce champ in the quality to weight ratio war.

One could argue that nonstick is a winner in many ways and they would have a very valid point. An argument can be made that non-stick coatings are unhealthy and dangerous. The point I would focus on with non-stick in general is their lack of durability. Newer coatings being screamed from the infomercial rooftops claim newer and tougher non stick coatings that steel utensils will not harm. I’ll be looking more into that in the future simply because it interests me greatly and I am no shrinking violet when it comes to embracing and adapting to new tech. I only ask that it survive my personal gauntlet of tests and measures so to speak.

But!

Today, we are going to talk about the star of the show.

Cast iron. And my love, and obsession with finding and liberating old cast iron pans. Like the Island of Misfit Toys, I find cast iron. I restore it to the best of my limited ability (I don’t have a cast iron electrolysis set up) using common methods. I give these cast iron treasures a new home and a new lease on life. There is something so magical for me about the process. I got one cast iron pot from a guy for two bucks that was so rusty, it looked like a rusted out brake drum off a 50 year old transport truck left in the rain. In England. That’s a lot of rain, and a ton of rust. But, some patience and TLC and a lot of vinegar baths and elbow grease. Voila, it’s like a pretty woman makeover.

I also love trying to find out about where it was manufactured and any historical information I can dig up. If any inanimate object had a soul, my first thought would be my guitar. I have bled blood into the fretboard of my guitar and it has resonated my joy and pain more than any friend has ever been there for me. It has never judged me, hurt or insulted me. It has been a companion with unconditional love and acceptance like having a pet. It doesn’t say much until I pick it up, but then wow, it has a lot to say. The wood resonating against my chest and arms brings a reassuring comfort that is familiar, constant and provides a depth of understanding as deep as the ocean or space.

Having said that, cast iron comes in

at a close second to musical instruments for me. Here is something that cannot have a meaningful existence without care. Left unattended and uncared for it will quickly rust and become unusable for its intended purpose. But if you take care of cast iron, it will last a dozen lifetimes and more and will be a faithful companion for life.

Like any good relationship, there are boundaries and rules. Don’t boil water in me. Don’t make dishes with a lot of acidic ingredients like spaghetti sauces and other pasta dishes. The food that comes off of a cast iron pan, for me, has a life of its own. The meal itself is life giving, but if an inanimate object could experience joy, it would be when a cast iron pan has made a beautiful meal for its owner.

Cast iron, when used for its intended purpose,

will provide some of the best meals possible. There is an indescribable nuance with cast iron cooked food. It is strange to say that the food feels hotter, more cooked through, more consistently heated, tastier and just wow overall. I believe that it is impossible to have a better pan fried burger than in a cast iron pan.

You also need to have faith.

When you put meat in a hot cast iron pan, the immediate reaction is to try to move it around or flip it to keep it from sticking. Have faith. Let go and let cast. With a little patience and some self control, and a lot of faith, the meat will be released from the pan’s grip in a few minutes.

The treasure I want to share with you today

was a find in Cobourg, Ontario Canada. It was sold by weight and I got it for $3.50 Canadian which is about 22 cents USD. Well, not quite lol. Typically a medium/small cast iron pan is going to go for 10-50 bucks depending on make etc. This little treasure features double pour spouts and was painstakingly manufactured in Japan. The finish on it is just wonderful. I gave it a lovely vinegar/water (50/50) bath for a few days. I lightly scrubbed it with soap and water and stainless steel scrubber until it looked almost like the day it was made.

Don’t worry too much about the stainless steel scrubber. Some people use wire brushes on a drill to clean up cast iron. It’s pretty tough to hurt it. Unless you neglect it, then it will become forlorn.

Blurry cell phone pic alert!! But you can see how the cast has come to a nice, restored silver colour and is ready to be seasoned.

Eventually I gave it one last wash

and a very quick dry (rust forms almost instantly) and I applied some flaxseed oil. A super thin coat. Not a single drop running. Barely a sheen. Then I baked it for a few hours at about 450 degrees fahrenheit or 230C. Flax oil has an interesting property that turns it into a type of baked on enamel/polymer. If you repeat this 5 or 6 times you will have a wonderfully serviceable pan that will last forever.

I re-season my pan after every use by rinsing it with very hot tap water while the pan is still hot. A very light scrub will clean it right up then back on the heat until it’s good and hot and a very light coating of olive oil and it’s good to go again. I like olive oil the best for ongoing maintenance because it doesn’t easily go rancid when in contact with air. If you seasoned with bacon fat, for example, it would go rancid within a day or three very likely and the pan would be unhealthy and would need to be stripped and redone.

I would very much love to hear about your cast iron or other cookware stories.