Cast Iron Cookware

[sailingdog]

There are a few non-stick coatings that don't exhibit this behavior IIRC.

Originally Posted by miatapaul

The problem with teflon and other non sticks are that they release poisonus gas at around 500 degrees. This temp is very easy to reach. This is one of the first things you learn when you get a bird. No non stick as it can kill them. Now add a small cabin, very unhealthy. personally i like all clad LTD or cast iron.

[lastconch]

For those who think Cast Iron rusts away to quickly to be of use as cookware on a vessel, consider the Florida Keys light houses built in the 1800's of "Cast Iron" which are still standing tall and strong after 150 years of service. Unlike all the steel bridges.

[Joesaila]

I'm getting a cast iron Dutch Oven and as the directions Bubb suggests, I'm seasoning the inside and the outside... But I do like the idea of leaving the cast iron off the boat while its moored and just bringing it along for 'trips' where fresh bread will taste sooo good. Great Post!

[ADMTROX]

I love my SS nesting cookware, but I also have a Swiss Diamond breakfast pan that is great for cooking omlets, warming flatbreads, cooking flour tortillas and the like. The Swiss Diamond was a gift, they are pricey but the non stick is very durable. It is small and heavy enough that I have also used it to hold my charts down in a brisk breeze!

Swiss Diamond

[Kakkerlak]

My saucepans are stainless, as is my pressure cooker, but the skillet that is used every day is a cast iron Lodge 9" that I inherited with the boat.

This winter it went unused for a couple of months and I found fuzzy green mold growing in it ! I wiped out the mold, heated it up, wiped it down with olive oil: good as new.

My approach is that seldom-used items need to be the most corrosion-resistant. My daily skillet (and daily knife) are cast iron and carbon steel, but my through-hulls and stock pot are bronze and stainless.

[hellosailor]

K-
FWIW I was taught that after every use of cast iron, you wipe it down with fresh oil and reheat it (to build the coating) AND lat of all you SALT THE PAN all over. Salt prevents things from growing in that oil glazing.

Some folks wahs cast iron pans after use, some never let water touch them. That's a whole other choice. I'd rather wash, even if that means the glazing wears down more.

[ardoin]

Nothing makes corn bread like a #5 cast iron skillet! If seasoned properly it is covered with a black carbon coating that is nonstick and will take heat better than most others.
I have lots of SS pans, but they have to be scrubbed after use, the cast iron pans only have to be wiped and properly dried over heat. I have not problems with rust on properly cured pots and pans, but you have to dry them properly over a hot fire and then oil them lightly before storing. Cast iron is just like steel knives, they sharpen easy but you have to care for them or they rust.

Drop a cast iron, SS, or Alum on your foot and it will hurt!