Cast Iron Skillet 12.5 Inch

Let me start by saying that I love cast-iron skillets. They are simple, beautiful and extremely capable in the right hands. I have several cast-iron pans I have bought over the years and I plan on passing them all down to my children one day.I was hesitant trying on a new brand, but I am happy that I bought this one!Now this maybe a “pre-seasoned” cast iron skillet but it’s a little rough, of course its better than the spray-painted ones and at the end of the day true seasoning comes from cooking on it. Now make no mistake, this is a 12.5 inch cast iron, so its going to be big enough for all your needs and weigh its worth, but that’s okay because apart from the long handle it comes with an assist handle and two sprouts to make handling and pouring easy. But if you really want to master the art of the skillet you have to learn the dos and don’ts.Step one is rinsing it thoroughly under the sink and don’t be afraid to use little bit of soap just this once, that’s right, it came from a factory so despite their “ready to use right out of the package”, you really want to give it a nice rinse. Wipe the skillet until its dry and apply a generous layer of oil all over the skillet, inside and out and rub it in with a piece of cloth leaving an even layer of oil. Put it on the stove after rinsing, to get rid of all the moisture. Put it straight in to the oven, crank the heat to around 350 F and let it stay there for 30 mins. Take it out and let it cool. You may apply another thin layer of oil and repeat this step if you like. I have attached a few pics before and after seasoning it and the effect is noticeable. Over time with use cast iron gradually develops a perfect black, coveted non-stick patina, and I am very optimistic about this one too.I would strongly advise based on my experience to use oily fatty food the first few times and clean it by wiping with a damp cloth. If you do rinse it, remember to heat it up on a stove, cast iron is not silky smooth, moisture gets trapped in the nitty gritties and will cause rust, paper towel or cloth will not dry it up properly. Do not put in dishwasher or soak it in water. Your seasoning is what makes the skillet, you don’t want to undo it. If food gets stuck, add some water and dish soap, put it on heat and scrape it off gently. If you do end up scrubbing it to remove some tough food remnants you can always reverse the damage by applying some oil and following the initial process of baking it, this will crystalize the oil into a shiny layer.An easy way to judge a cast iron’s quality is to heat it up and see how long it takes to cool down, the longer it takes the better, it means it will retain heat and cook evenly giving you better control. In my experience it remained considerably hot for at least half an hour after I took it off the stove.For sure this Cast Iron Skillet is worth its money and will make a valuable addition to anyone’s kitchen.

I'm not a huge fan of cast iron pans because I always found them hard to handle, My husband is a big fan so we got one.. and this one has changed my mind. Not only is this a great non stick pan at high heat, but I can throw it in the oven or use it on the grill. The pan is heavy, but instead of the one handed handle like most I've tried, this one has a second handle to allow support with two hands.This cast iron pan also has an easy pour spout on each side that makes draining the grease or pouring out gravy much easier with less mess.Although this is a pre seasoned cast iron pan, I followed the suggested directions on the box. I coated it with a thin layer of oil prior to using and then baked in the oven for an hour and let it cool. You will smell some burning/smoke smell so be sure to ventilate well.If you have kids or others in your home, you may want to get a silicone handle cover since cast iron heats to a very hot temperature and takes a while to cool down.Be sure to dry thoroughly after rinsing. For me it works best to put it in the oven or on a burner to warm up and dry faster. Air drying will create rust spots that will have to be scrubbed out and undo your seasoning efforts.

I followed the directions for seasoning very carefully. I used the box instructions and then another reviewers extensive directions by wiping the pan entirely with oil, placing it in the oven (30 min), letting it cool, repeating it again. The pan worked very well for cooking. It was easy to handle and seared pork chops beautifully, while maintaining tenderness after being placed in the oven. I washed it carefully, scraping it out, then with a slight bit of dish soap, drying it immediately. I noticed brown streaks, some of which were a few food remnants, but others seems like rust had already set in. I wiped it down again with oil and this did turn the pan back to the original sheen. So. overall I am happy with it. I just an not totally confident why the brown streaks showed up after the first use, when completely seasoned and cleaned, dried immediately.

I bought 2 of these as gifts. After searching a handful of stores I found these on Amazon and was impressed by the reviews. Of course when I received them I had to open the box and check the quality for myself. I was impressed that these were just as nice as the one I had bought myself for double the price. I printed some "how to care for your skillet" instructions for my inexperience skillet-using family members and also taped those to the box. They were (and still are) so happy with this gift! I still receive pictures of meals cooked in these skillets several months after offering. Happy customers!

I purchased this pan primarily for cooking steaks. The first time I used it after seasoning, I cooked a couple of medium sized New York Strip steaks that turned out pretty good. I removed the skillet from the eye to allow it cool naturally (smooth surface electric cooktop), and cleaned it later. A few days later went to cook another steak, and noticed halfway through cooking that the skillet was wobbling. To verify, placed a Lodge Skillet of similar size on that same eye (after it cooled) and no wobbles. Tried various other pots/pans eye combinations (didn't want to believe that a new skillet wasn't true) with the same results. I tried to return but didn't get around to it until it just past the deadline. Oh well, just a warning to those who may be interested. I may have gotten a dud, but who knows?

The bottom is concaved. I noticed that after putting a small amount of oil in the skillet it all ran to the outer edge with none remaining in the middle. I put a strait edge across the bottom and found that there was a 3/16 of an inch depression in the middle of the skillet. That would provide a corresponding 3/16 inch mound in the center of the cook side. You may find that food sticks in the middle of the fry pan since there is no oil there. I'm not happy about that.