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cast iron- where to buy  

post #1 of 33
12/22/07 at 3:39pm
Thread Starter 
title basically says it all. i am also wondering what exactly i am looking for in quality etc

TIA
post #2 of 33
12/22/07 at 4:01pm
I've purchased some at Cost Plus. I'm not sure about quality. I guess to me it all seems pretty much the same. There's always the super expensive Le Cruset - which is enamel covered. I dream of owning some of those one day.
post #3 of 33
12/22/07 at 5:26pm
There really is a difference in quality... for that reason I would stick with a brand that has a good reputation until you can tell the difference. Lodge is great, and relatively cheap. If you order Lodge from Amazon, you can even get free shipping, which is good because it's really heavy.

Alternately, the cheapest places to find them are estate sales, flea markets and garage sales. And since they're vintage, they're usually better quality than anything you can buy now. Sometimes you can find them at Goodwill, too.
post #4 of 33
12/22/07 at 7:47pm
Wouldn't I like to know : I looked at some at a good kitchen shop yesterday actually and they were crap. Cast Iron pans should not have wooden handles that wobble when you pick it up I think? :
post #5 of 33
12/22/07 at 8:03pm
I don't think I've ever seen cast iron w/ wooden handles.
post #6 of 33
12/22/07 at 9:55pm
Me either till now LOL.. stupid expensive ones too!!!!!
post #7 of 33
12/23/07 at 12:14am
Quote:
Originally Posted by CariOfOz View Post
Wouldn't I like to know : I looked at some at a good kitchen shop yesterday actually and they were crap. Cast Iron pans should not have wooden handles that wobble when you pick it up I think? :


Um... no.

If you pick up a 10 inch cast iron skillet, it should feel fairly heavy for one hand. When my big skillet is full of food, it requires two hands. And the entire thing should be able to go onto the BBQ without worrying about catching fire.
post #8 of 33
12/23/07 at 2:36am
Yep those are the ones I remember from growing up in the southern US (cast iron was the ONLY pan then ) I may have to bite the bullet and pay some absurdly exorbitant price in the end:
post #9 of 33
12/23/07 at 2:42am
I got mine for 8 dollars at Family Dollar and I love it to death. I cook everything in it, including tossing the whole thing in the oven for corn bread or cinnamon rolls when the mood strikes me. It seasoned seasoned beautifully and now nothing sticks to it, making it easy to cook in and even easier to clean. It's also nice and heavy and cooks evenly.
post #10 of 33
12/23/07 at 11:16am
Does anyone have any experience with the Lodge preseasoned cast iron? I have been looking and looking at thrift stores and never find any. I really don't want to use my nonstick pans anymore. I may have to bite the bullet and purchase them new.

Also, there is no way I can afford (and I can't find one at thrift stores either) a stainless soup pot. Can I get a 7 quart cast iron and use it for soup and pasta and stuff?
post #11 of 33
12/23/07 at 12:32pm
I got most of mine from Lehman's - they have basicly all of Lodge's for a pretty decent price... and they're shipping is very reasonable (and quick!), considering.... My MIL did get me a couple pans for xmas last year though, and I picked a couple up at goodwill... and i got my 11 hole muffin pans from shoppers choice... or something. Lodge is made in the USA, so thats nice
post #12 of 33
12/23/07 at 3:14pm
I have the Lodge Logic pans. The logic line is preseasoned. I ordered from Amazon at an amazing price and it was shipped for free. I have only seen Lodge line irl at Cracker Barrel and it's very expensive there, plus you pay tax on top of that. I love Amazon for kitchen wares.
post #13 of 33
12/23/07 at 6:50pm
I am always finding cast iron at thrift stores in my area.
post #14 of 33
12/24/07 at 12:46am
Most of mine has been hand me down or from thrift stores. I did purchase a couple things new - waffle iron and muffin pans - both online from Amazon.
post #15 of 33
12/24/07 at 1:34am

Lodge Pre-seasoned Cast Iron

I have bought several of the pre-seasoned Lodge cast iron pans, and have been very happy with them. Amazon has good prices, and sometimes great prices on these, and free shipping, as someone else mentioned.

Good old Wal-Mart carries some of these as well. One WM I was at recently even had the enamel-covered Lodge (I think it was a 3 or 5-quart casserole), and on sale too. These are quite new, and are Lodge's answer to the Le Creuset fancy pans. The reviews I have read are good. I have some Le Creuset (love them), but have not tried the enameled Lodge. If I didn't already have the sizes I need, I would not hesitate to buy a Lodge piece. I'm sure you can return it if you don't like it, especially if you buy it at Wal-Mart. They are great on returns.

Good luck at finding just what you want!
post #16 of 33
1/1/08 at 5:02pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by magstphil View Post
title basically says it all. i am also wondering what exactly i am looking for in quality etc

TIA
Do you have a TJ Maxx Home Goods around you? You can find ridiculously cheap, name brand pans there. Also, in Aurora IL (a suburb of Chicago) there's a Le Creuset outlet store! They've got stuff for 50-60% off, that are "seconds", meaning the enamel has a drip on one side. Got any friends in Chicago?? =)
post #17 of 33
1/1/08 at 11:42pm
I have a set from Amazon of Lodge, so it's pre-seasoned which I loved. It's a deep pan, and came with a skillet, they're both the same diameter so you can use the skillet as a lid. I never put those two pans in the cupboards anymore, they're almost all I use!

As far as a stock pot, I've taken to using a pressure cooker which I love! I found a great cheap one which is a great brand, all stainless steel with the sandwich base and it's an 8 quart so I can cook a ton in it if I need to....you can always cook anything in those, you don't have to pressure cook in the pot if you don't want to, which makes it versatile. Worth looking around.

Thrift stores in our area stink, I envy all you who have these great finds at your local thrift stores!

I did find a legless dutch oven with a lid at a local cheap tool sale. It was a cheap brand I'd never heard of, got it for 10 bucks and was unseasoned. I'm slowly building up the seasoning on it.
post #18 of 33
1/2/08 at 12:31pm
I mostly use my 10" pot (5 quart?) for green chili, and I just used the 12" for the first time over new years - it had posole in it for like 48 hours sitting on the woodstove's warming shelf and it did wonderful (as did the smaller one with chili). I just put it in containers and stuck it in the fridge this morning... I'm thrilled to be honest. It made it super easy to much on posole all day long, and neither pan needs reseasoned I'll definetly be using them for soups more often, especially in the winter!!
post #19 of 33
1/2/08 at 11:04pm
Whats posole? You munching on it all day long makes it sound tasty. lol
post #20 of 33
1/2/08 at 11:18pm
Its a soup thats the tradition to eat on new years, I think its called hominy? Made with posole (hominy?), onion, pork... very very tasty
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