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I never understood fans of cast iron. Its like still using candles for light, sure it gives a warming light, but electricity is cheaper, safer, and quicker to use for light. Same for pans, stainless steel have exactly the same use as cast iron without any of the inconvenience. Sure heating behavior is different, but who cares, you can get to the same results with stainless steel with a bit of experience... If you really want that "hipster cooking" feeling, just use copper, sure its way more expensive and you need to be extra careful, but its still better than to try using cast iron which is a real pain in the ass to use, making cooking twice as long as it should be... And for Teflon... it's shit, weak as hell and will give you cancer. Aluminum is shit too, still better than teflon and at least its the cheapest.
If you're buying modern garbage $10 pans from Dollar General don't be surprised when they're not performing as well as your Cuisinart SS. I have all SS and cast iron, and they both get about equal usage. CI is just better for meats. The higher heat conductivity and even temperature across the surface (with proper time to warm up) is incredibly useful. Searing is unsurpassable with CI. You can be rough with CI and it takes the beating in stride.
SS is better for quick heat and rapid changes in temperature. Boiling water, sauces, roux, etc.
I've had cast iron pans with old dinner remains sat in the bottom for 3 days, it comes off with hot water. And yes I use soap and water. If you use a good oil for seasoning and you set your pan up nicely you don't have to worry about babying the seasoning.
twice as long
If you're using CI for the right use cases it is WAY faster than aluminum. As I said, the heat transfer of iron is extremely good compared to thin walled aluminum or stainless. CI will cook chicken very fast. It's all down to knowing your tools and using them correctly.
I can tap a nail into a wall with pliers, doesn't mean they won't do the job as well as a hammer.
Nothing cooks fried eggs as well as my cast iron pan. Fried eggs, scrambled eggs, french scramble, omelettes, any kind of eggs. Sometimes I use it for sausage too.
I use stainless for everything else.
I cook with cast iron almost daily, all I do is scrub it with hot water and let it dry, and it's ready for the next day.
Well, I found it to be easier than stainless. I know how to use stainless in theory, but I never managed to use it properly. lol
I realized there's a hipster factor around it but I really find it easy to cook a lot of things without thinking twice. I'm only careful when I clean it.
It seems obvious you purchase equipment for restaurants. /s
Quite a hot take there. You ignored carbon steel in the conversation.
A large number of restaurants use rolled carbon steel or cast iron for searing and shallow frying.
Yeah, cast iron is a giant pain. I have a relatively heavy steel pan, which is fantastic for cooking anything I would cook on a cast-iron pan because it retains heat well, and it's easier to clean.
Screw cast iron, the only cast iron thing I like is my enamel-coated pot for soups, and that's because it avoids pretty much everything about cast iron except heat retention.