Customer Reviews

Lodge 5-Piece Cast-Iron Cookware Starter Set

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I was looking into cast iron for a long time, and couldn't get past the prices. I had been learning the steady lesson in cookware that "you get what you pay for." I bought cheap pans, and threw them out after a year. So I was wary about the prices of Lodge cookware. But after listening to Alton Brown expound upon their greatness, and watching the myriad things he was able to do with his skillet, I decided to take the plunge. I wanted a skillet and a Dutch oven. I found this set, and said "perfect!" I get 2 skillets, the dutch oven (with the lid that fits one of the skillets too), and a griddle, for the price of a skillet and a dutch oven.
The only piece in this set I could do without is the griddle. I own a larger griddle/grill that I use far more frequently because of its more convenient size, but even so, I don't feel cheated because it was basically like a free gift at this price. And I use both skillets and the dutch oven so frequently, the meager investment isn't even a consideration.
About the cookware itself: yes, cast iron has a small upkeep. You can't clean it like you clean every other pan. You have to coat it with oil after EVERY cleaning. You MUST season the pans. BUT, this stuff is impossible to stick to after a cure has been worked in. Also, it's bulletproof. No more worrying about using those metal tongs in your teflon pan...you can scrape and jab and cut and bang, and that cure stays put. The only thing you can't do is soap it. But nothing sticks to it, so cleanup isn't really that big an issue.
PLUS it imparts natural iron to foods that are cooked in it.
So to sum up: affordable, needs maintenance, bulletproof, naturally non-stick, and makes foods a little more nutritious. What are you waiting for??

Lodge is the only cast-iron cookware company still operating in the US, and the pans are terrific. In this set you will find two skillets, a Dutch oven with cover, and a griddle. You also receive instructions on seasoning the pans, which must handwashed rather than placing them in the dishwasher, but nothing cooks like cast iron -- they hold and distribute heat marvelously -- cooking up mouthwatering steaks and frying chicken like nobody's business, Contrary to another reviewer, these pans are not expensive, and they will last forever. I have an old skillet that was my great-grandmother's, and they just get better and better with age. Also, if you simmer stews or sauces in there for a while, it is a source of dietery iron.

Terrific pans! Buy American!

What a wonderful way to cook. We have never has food taste so good. Easy to clean! and a must to have. Thank you Lodge for making great cast iron cookwear.

These are great pots and pans for someone just starting out. Not too expensive and are great for the college student who doesn't have a lot of money to spend on a set of pots and pans. I would recommend this cookware set for anyone.

Down south, we know, and have known for years... nothing cooks as well, or cleans as easily, as well seasoned cast iron. Like so many good things of the past, all the small foundries have been forced by unremitting government regulation to cease production. Wagner, Dixie, Griswold and all the furnaces of Rome, Georgia, Birmingham, Alabama, and the steel corridor of the north now burn cold. Fear not, for one bright light burns on. Lodge is there, blazing the way for a new generation of cooks to experience the glory of cast iron. It matter not one whit, if you are competing with the Iron Chef or the talented Boy Scout next door, you will improve your chances with cast iron... and nobody pouring steel in America today does cookware like Lodge of Tennessee... America come home, out of the heartland greatness still runs, and as is so often the case, Tennessee points the way. Try it and establish a base line by which all other cooking will be measured... You just cannot beat cast iron and pig parts...<GRIN> Y'all come ya hear... South Carolina --- still too big to be an asylum and too small to be a nation