Customer Reviews

Lodge Original Finish 13-1/4-Inch Cast Iron Skillet

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

After all the fancy All-Clad pots I own, this one is becoming my new favorite. For some things like searing meat, only cast iron does such a fine job. The only thing I'd point out to buyers is that this pan is bigger than it looks. If I'd bothered to measure first, I would have gone with the 10 inch skillet instead of this one, but that's my own fault! This one is big and VERY heavy, but after seasoning it, it's awesome for cooking. Try a fajita or a nice seared steak!

As Grandmother and any great cook knows, cast iron is the best for cooking and this is not only a well priced item the fact it will last for years and is easy to cook in and clean up makes it a must own for any well stocked kitchen. Le Creuset and Lodge are the two brands of cooking items I own.

Interesting facts about cast iron. No, it doesn't have to rust when washed IF you remember to read the simple instructions on how to "season" or prepare for use, and if you rinse out and wipe clean after each use and NEVER use steel wool or any abrasive cleaner that will destroy the "seasoning" that you have made.

For frying chicken you simply need to make sure the skillet is hot and as the rule says "Hot oil Hot skillet food won't stick". The skillet like all cast iron holds and distributes the heat evenly and you get trace iron in your diet which is healthy because cast iron emits trace iron into the food you cook.

Heck we even lug this on back pack trips because we KNOW that it can be use to cook up anything we are having for a meal. You can do pancakes to stew in in, and it is nice because you can use it to hit a bad guy over the head if he tries to hurt you. (joking). Although I do advise if you use one often that you switch hands on occasion since this will build up muscles due to its weight.

I have been cooking on cast iron cookware for about 35 years,it is what I was taught to cook on. My Great aunt and MOM used only cast iron. I have about 30 different pieces most were handed down from them. It is the longest lasting of any cook ware made. Once it is seasoned I never wash with soap just plain steel wool and hot water,the into the oven set on 250degrees to dry and season more! IT IS THE BEST!

I like to cook in a variety of ways: stovetop, oven, grill and campfire. There is only one type of pan that answers the call under all of these conditions: cast iron. I have a set of high quality non-stick cookware that has served me well. BUT...you can't use metal utensils, place it in the oven and heaven forbid..put it on the grill. One of my colleagues gave me an old cast iron skillet a few years ago and it had that beautiful black patina characteristic of well-seasoned iron pans. I was hooked! I have greatly expanded my collection of cast iron pans, all from Lodge, and in spite of their weight, they consistently produce superior results. This pan is large and heavy but has no hot spots, thus heating uniformly. These pans require some special treatment: proper seasoning, NO SOAP and a thin wipe with shortening after each use, but you will have a pan that will be your culinary companion for life

This skillet is great. However, I would caution people that it's a little too big for most electric-coil burners, and so the outer ring of the skillet doesn't get hot and food won't cook right. My 12" Lodge skillet gets much more stovetop use. This one mainly gets used for roasting meat in the oven. Of course if you have an especially large burner on your stove, then enjoy! I would also recommend buying the pre-seasoned skillet for the same price, if it's available to you; it's not hard to season a skillet, but it's nice to not have the trouble.

I'm single, but I nevertheless bought this 13" diameter Lodge cast iron pan (and lid) rather than the 12" or 10" because I knew the cooking surface would be huge! It's so large that I can cook 3 separate dishes separately, at the same time. My favorite meal includes pan seared salmon, wilted spinach,and diced potatoes -- all cooking at the same time, but for varying lengths of time, within different parts of the pan! It's a great pan! And so is the very large size!

What can you really say about a frying pan? This is my first Cast Iron Skillet. It's TRUE that it becomes nonstick the more you use (season) it. 13 inches is huge for a frying pan and it's very VERY heavy. I've almost punched a hold in my backsplash a few times while trying to agitate the food. I'm a firm believer in "you get what you pay for". Cooking with Cast Iron is the exception. This one pan has replaced my collection of Anodized Aluminum pans. Wish I knew about Cast Iron before spending the dough.

This just gets better with each use. I have had mine for three years now and it is BETTER than when I bought it. This is in contrast with just about every other kitchen item I own. I seasoned it according to directions, and give it a light spray of cooking oil after cleaning with just hot water and "elbow grease." Now that the dangers of Teflon are known, (you can read about it at length on Cooks Illustrated) it's great to cook with something that won't make me sick and, some claim, even improve the nutritional content of food made in it (supposedly cast iron imparts trace amounts of iron to food cooked in it). Note: there are limits as a cook you should know about when it comes to cooking with uncoated cast iron (highly acidic foods can take on an off taste when cooked in cast iron; as well, it takes a long time to get to get to the same heat level compared to a stainless steel pan; as well, cast iron holds heat longer, so you need to adjust times recipes when switching to different heat levels in recipes - i.e. if it says cook for 5 minutes at high then switch to medium, turn it to medium at 2-3 minutes instead). Still, when it comes time to make a big batch of green chili sauce, a batch of burrito filling, or when the application of even heat is key, or putting a nice sear on meat, nothing beats cast iron. I also have a big cast iron Dutch Oven that I always use for soups & stews.

Cast iron pans are the way to go. No dangerous non-stick materials that emit toxic smoke and kill your pet birds if you overheat them. This one is probably the best I have ever owned. Only criticism is that it is huge and difficult to heat evenly on a normal size gas burner. Bacon tends to brown at the center while remaining uncooked on the edges. But for pancakes, etc. this is perfect. If you don't mind lifting weights, get this one and a smaller 10" pan and you'll have bases covered. If you aren't sure about the weight issue, do not get this. It really is very heavy.

I ordered this skillet in JULY. It is almost October and I still have not received it. It has been delayed twice and I just heard that it might not arrive until almost November. I would cancel the order, but I have already received the lid, which arrived promptly from Amazon. So I wait. I was excited about getting this because I like cast iron and buying a US-made product was appealing. I suspect the problem has more to do with Lodge than Amazon, because Lodge's website has a note about how "popular demand has made it difficult for them to make certain products available." Memo to Lodge: You're losing customers! Hire a few more folks and crank out more skillets!