Lodge Cast Iron at Woot!

[SoonerP226]

Woot! has a decent selection of Lodge cast iron cookware on their site through Friday, so this might be an opportunity to pick up something you need. They had grill/griddles, grille pans, and dutch ovens, among other things.
http://home.woot.com/plus/lodge-cast-iron-pans-accessories

 

[BadgeBunny]

Ohhhh ... GC is NOT gonna be happy with you!! Thanks for the heads up!

 

[tRidiot]

Is that a good brand? I'm thinking I need some items, but IS there one brand better than another when it comes to cast?

 

[RidgeHunter]

Is that a good brand? I'm thinking I need some items, but IS there one brand better than another when it comes to cast?

No. Lodge is cheapm rough finished **** that never takes a season. Go to flea markets and buy old. Wagner and Griswold are top dogs, but you will pay for them. The older cast iron is, if it's not been too neglected, the better it gets.

Sorry to Lodge fans, but I got so mad at the one piece of Lodge I owned I took a sledge to it.

 

[BadgeBunny]

Is that a good brand? I'm thinking I need some items, but IS there one brand better than another when it comes to cast?

I like the pieces I've gotten from Lodge. No problems with sticking and I use some of mine with sourdough batter. That stuff is IMPOSSIBLE to get off of anything but really well-seasoned cast iron ...

It's important to remember that "preseasoned" does not mean "well seasoned" and you will still need to have a breaking in period with your new cast iron, even from Lodge.

 

[HardKnox]

We have several different Lodge pieces we use for scouting. The easiest and tastiest way to season is with BACON, lots of BACON. When we store them, we heat them up and use a good crisco to coat them. Make sure and leave a gap between the pot and lid as sometimes the grease can sour.

 

[Brandi]

What is Woot?

Lodge is the last remaining American manufacturer of cast iron cookware and they make excellent stuff. If you have issues with the ban not working it's not the pans fault, it's a cast iron pan, no moving parts to go wrong. I will say their "pre-seasoned" isn't what most cast iron users would call seasoned so I always re-seaon their pre-seasoned.

I normally buy mine at Bed, Bath and Beyond or Bass Pro Shop (BPS usually has a very good selection).

 

[Shadowrider]

I just bought a Lodge 6qt enameled dutch oven and matching skillet. The enameled ones are made in China, but the old school plain cast iron is still made here. I looked at Bed, Bath and Beyond but all they had were Emeril's chinese lightweight crap at twice the price. These new Lodge pans are heavier than any I was able to lay hands on and considerably less expensive. Like Brandi said it's cast iron. There's no way it can not work if used properly. With that said Lodge most definitely oversells the "pre-seasoned" thing, because they aren't really seasoned at all. They have to do something to keep them from rusting because raw unprotected cast iron will rust in just minutes. By the time they made it into your shopping cart they'd be red/orange if they didn't spray them with oil while hot. To season them wipe a real light coat of veggie oil or crisco on them and bake at 350 for an hour. Turn off the oven and let it cool down. Then repeat once or twice. Cook some cornbread for a few times and you have an almost bullet proof seasoning on your iron and not much will stick if you preheat the pan before you put the food in it. That's the part my wife doesn't get.

I still want a couple of plain iron pans, the enameled ones are pretty and all, and they transfer heat like iron should but you don't get the iron in the food, and besides you just can't screw up plain iron. Not even my wife who can ruin an anvil with a rubber mallet. FWIW I got mine from Amazon at just as good of prices as the O/P's link.

 

[inactive]

No. Lodge is cheapm rough finished **** that never takes a season. Go to flea markets and buy old. Wagner and Griswold are top dogs, but you will pay for them. The older cast iron is, if it's not been too neglected, the better it gets.

Sorry to Lodge fans, but I got so mad at the one piece of Lodge I owned I took a sledge to it.

I've tried telling them this before, but no one listens to us young folk. Apparently sand cast and unfinished Lodge are what people like these days. Some people have had luck sanding them to a smooth cooking surface, but I'm not that patient. My old Griswold, Wagner, and BSR are top notch. The former two even better than the BSR.

 

[RidgeHunter]

Some people have had luck sanding them to a smooth cooking surface, but I'm not that patient.

Good point. If you're more patient than a guy who took a sledge to his own cookware, Lodge might be for you.

I'm not that guy. Ask many a printer what I do to equipment that has betrayed me.