# New Gen Cast Iron



## zizirex (Feb 21, 2020)

Hi,

I'm looking for a recommendation for these newer gen Cast Iron skillet.

My eyes are staring at Stargazer because it looks so nice and performs pretty good on youtube reviews. 
Lodge now releases the Black lock series which pretty nice, but not as smooth as how other Cast iron.

Do any of you have any other experience compare with other brands? Butter pat, Field etc..

Thanks


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## ma_sha1 (Feb 21, 2020)

How about carbon steel? Cast ion too heavy & scratch up my glass stove top , I switched to French carbon steel instead & been very happy.


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## spyken (Feb 21, 2020)

I find cast iron too heavy as well. I have Starlight and I gave my lodge away. There's one on FB/kickstarter now which looks nice and polished, but I've long lost my attraction to cast iron skillets. I go for carbon steel (I have one French skillet that I've used for 25 years).


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## Geigs (Feb 21, 2020)

Aus Ion skillets are great. Seamless pressed wrought iron, about half the weight of cast. I think they had a Kickstarter for some pans made in the US but are an Australian company.


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## zizirex (Feb 21, 2020)

I already a couple of Carbon steel pan, Ballerini and de Buyer. I love them but sometimes you want to have extra weight for searing the rib eye and the picanha. Seems there are a lot of choices, I don't know where to start. The Blacklock looks pretty nice for the price, but the polish is not so great that's why I was thinking should I spend more for the expensive stuff or it's good enough.


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## jacko9 (Feb 21, 2020)

An article in Epicurious about cast iron skillets talks about a new light weight smooth skillet from Field.

https://www.epicurious.com/expert-advice/best-cast-iron-skillet-pan-reviews-article

I started with the Field #10 and found it to be light, smooth and came with a very stable pre-seasoning. A little at a time I purchased all of the Field skillets and they have become my daily cooking pans.

https://fieldcompany.com


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## nakneker (Feb 21, 2020)

I have a set of Field cast iron skillets, very smooth finish and a lighter side wall than lodge and such, highly recommend. I also have several carbon skillets and gratins, Blu Skillet is the brand I have, hard to get but very enjoyable pieces in the kitchen. There is a lot of choices for both cast iron and carbon, Id do some research and not just buy the first thing your interested in. The Field skillets are really refined, their website has a lot of good videos and specs, same with Blu Skillets, more of a rustic look but very well made and done by hand.


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## jacko9 (Feb 21, 2020)

Field also has a presence on Facebook where their user group shares a lot of experience using the skillets and a lot of recipes for cast iron cooking.


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## McMan (Feb 21, 2020)

Grab an old WagnerWare or Griswold from eBay. Done.


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## rickbern (Feb 21, 2020)

McMan said:


> Grab an old WagnerWare or Griswold from eBay. Done.


In general this is great advice but I have to mention that I had a hundred year old Wagner family heirloom, passed it on to my daughter two weeks after I got my first carbon steel pan.


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## McMan (Feb 21, 2020)

rickbern said:


> In general this is great advice but I have to mention that I had a hundred year old Wagner family heirloom, passed it on to my daughter two weeks after I got my first carbon steel pan.



Yeah, definitely—carbon steel is wonderful. I like it especially for steaks. But I also like good old heavy heirloom cast iron. For me, both have their place.

So, OP you might be after two pans now... [emoji41]


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## boomchakabowwow (Feb 21, 2020)

i did two steaks side by side. i think i like Cast Iron better for searing a steak.

having said that, my Carbon is working nicely these days. took infinitely more time to season than Cast Iron, but it is doing great now. the season is delicate tho. i think i could wash my Cast pans in soapy water with a green scrubby pad and it wouldnt affect the seasoning. same move on the carbon pan and it is game over. 

i have seen Field pan in the stores up here. the cost makes me gently put them back.


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## zizirex (Feb 21, 2020)

McMan said:


> Yeah, definitely—carbon steel is wonderful. I like it especially for steaks. But I also like good old heavy heirloom cast iron. For me, both have their place.
> 
> So, OP you might be after two pans now... [emoji41]


to the flea market then... LOL

i saw field cast iron, it's really nice but the handle is slightly bit too short.. maybe I will check it out again.


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## Brian Weekley (Feb 21, 2020)

+1 for Aus Ion. I also like their steel flat bottom wok.


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## WPerry (Feb 21, 2020)

I don't really need another cast iron pan, but I really want a Finex for some reason...


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## Brian Weekley (Feb 21, 2020)

I totally understand ... that’s what I said to myself when I bought my third knife ... about 97 knives ago.


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## jacko9 (Feb 21, 2020)

I didn't need a new cast iron skillet but, buying one that weighs significantly less then the others on the market is very attractive for an old folks like me and my wife.


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## spyken (Feb 21, 2020)

oh, now I want an Aus-Ion skillet. if only I had a job.


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## mc2442 (Feb 21, 2020)

I don't actually see the weight of the 12" skillet on Field's website but Googling listed it at 8lbs. I don't have any from Field but I love my Smithey pans which I think the 12" is the same weight. Just throwing out another name if interested.


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## Michi (Feb 21, 2020)

I'm not suggesting that lighter is better than heavier, or the other way around. But be aware that there is a trade-off: a lighter pan has lower heat capacity, so it will heat up and cool down more quickly.


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## zizirex (Feb 23, 2020)

It’s true, the heavier it is, the better it will retain heat. Slightly Heavy but still easy to manouver and Nice polish finish to make it easier seasoning is the kinda goal here.


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## jacko9 (Feb 27, 2020)

Taken from a review in Epicurious;

"We don't see much benefit in spending more than $100 on a cast-iron skillet, though we did test a few in that price bracket. The best of the bunch was the Field Company's No. 8 Skillet ($125 at the time of writing) which, at 4.3 pounds, was the lightest of all the 10-inch skillets we tested and the only one we could comfortably hold with one hand. Field Company advertised that they've brought back the smooth cooking surface found in vintage cast-iron pans, which looks new-agey but requires a bit of work to achieve a nonstick surface. The Smithey Ironware's No. 10 Skillet ($160) is in the same satin-smooth, needs-seasoning boat, and happened to be the heaviest of the 10-inch lot, weighing in at 5.8 pounds."


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## Michi (Feb 27, 2020)

To me, the weight of the pan really isn't that important because, realistically, all cast iron pans are bloody heavy. Doing a one-handed toss is out of the question, and I have to use two hands to move a pan with food in it, no matter what its exact weight.

With that out of the way, it comes down to performance, that is, surface texture and shape. I use a Lodge skillet, which has the fairly rough finish it came with from the factory. Surprisingly, I haven't had any issues with sticking despite that. I might at some point sand it down a bit if I ever decide to re-season the pan. But I'm not motivated to do all that work because the pan performs very well as it is.

When it comes to shape, that's mostly the same for most skillets. Just pick one you like.


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## jacko9 (Feb 27, 2020)

I bought the 10" Field and used it for a while and followed up with the rest of their offerings since I only had stainless steel All-Clad pans. All of the Field skillets have smooth machined cooking surface and after using them they are getting quite smooth and slick.


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## M1k3 (Feb 27, 2020)

Michi said:


> To me, the weight of the pan really isn't that important because, realistically, all cast iron pans are bloody heavy. Doing a one-handed toss is out of the question, and I have to use two hands to move a pan with food in it, no matter what its exact weight.
> 
> With that out of the way, it comes down to performance, that is, surface texture and shape. I use a Lodge skillet, which has the fairly rough finish it came with from the factory. Surprisingly, I haven't had any issues with sticking despite that. I might at some point sand it down a bit if I ever decide to re-season the pan. But I'm not motivated to do all that work because the pan performs very well as it is.
> 
> When it comes to shape, that's mostly the same for most skillets. Just pick one you like.



Well said. I'd add, that weight would only matter for a pan dedicated to searing.


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## nakneker (Feb 27, 2020)

I have a full set of field skillets. They are well done, a bit lighter than most you can buy and certainly finished much much better with a very smooth cooking surface. I have an older Griswold and a Wagner, I like them for their age and personality but if I had to choose between them and the Fields the Fields would win. Plus I like the fact that they are made here in the USA and I had a very pleasant buying experience from them. I had a few questions which they answered and didn’t do so in a snobby way or in a way where I felt like I was bother. They also have a great website with a good amount of information including how they like to season. A lot of guys get frustrated when someone asks how to season cast iron, they act like it doesn’t matter what ya use just start cooking and shush. Fields actually explained, via their website, their preferred oil and why, I liked that.


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## Noodle Soup (Feb 27, 2020)

Question here. Are most of you satisfied with a 10-inch skillet? I use an old Lodge every morning for my personal breakfast. 3-4 strips of bacon and one chicken egg. To me that is all this fry pan is good for. I wouldn't consider anything under 12-inches for general use.


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## Michi (Feb 27, 2020)

Twelve inches is the right general-purpose size for me. Large enough to do anything reasonable, but not too large for my largest hot plate. If I need more room, rather than using a large pan, I do things in batches or use a wok instead.

I don't have a 10" cast iron skillet, but use a 9.5" non-stick pan for smaller jobs.


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## spyken (Feb 29, 2020)

I feel there is always room in the arsenal for a proper coated non-stick skillet.


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## Nomo4me (Mar 1, 2020)

I love my 10" Stargazer. Great weight. I also cook in 9" de Buyer Pro carbon steel pans.


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## spyken (Mar 1, 2020)

what's a good non-stick professional 10" fry pan that can go into the oven as well? I have my non-coated pans but honestly sometimes the ease of the non-stick is just so convenient.


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## Michi (Mar 1, 2020)

Ikea 365. Dirt cheap, durable, and all-metal construction. I'm sold on those. Even if I damage one at some point, they are so cheap that I can just replace them.


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## spyken (Mar 1, 2020)

I find IKEA a little heavy. and I don't like to buy and replace too often. it adds to waste. I saw some by Misen but the shipping they were asking was too much (I'm on the other side of the planet).


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## Michi (Mar 1, 2020)

spyken said:


> I find IKEA a little heavy.


I'm surprised by that. My 28 cm (11") 365+ weighs 918 g, which is almost exactly two pounds. That's light for a pan that size.

I guess something in aluminium would be lighter. But, personally, I'm not keen on aluminium cookware (coated or not).


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## spyken (Mar 1, 2020)

I was hoping for something along the same weight as my De Buyer carbon steel pan haha


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## Michi (Mar 1, 2020)

spyken said:


> I was hoping for something along the same weight as my De Buyer carbon steel pan haha


Hmmm… The DeBuyer 28 cm carbon steel pan weighs 2,125 g. That's more than double the weight of the Ikea 365+.


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## madelinez (Mar 1, 2020)

Heaviest is bestest 

I cook nearly everything in a cast iron 10kg 1" thick beast, it holds the heat on my gas stove. I don't love cleaning it though haha.


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## Michi (Mar 1, 2020)

madelinez said:


> Heaviest is bestest


I like cooking in my Lodge skillet and my Le Creuset dutch oven, and the heavy Fissler and Tefal frying pans I own. The high heat capacity of these is really nice for even cooking.

On the other hand, for things that cook quickly and are sensitive to overheating, I prefer something with low heat capacity. For example, if I cook eggs, or finish a sauce, or boil milk, or caramelise sugar, and I notice that things are getting a bit warm, I can just move the pan or pot off the heat, and it will start to cool down pretty much immediately. Similar, if I want a quick blast of high heat straight away, I can do that with a thin pan.

With something like cast iron, that just doesn't work. By the time the vessel cools down enough, things likely will have gone too far, and it's simply impossible to heat them up quickly (as I can do with a wok, for example).

So, I don't think there is any one true answer here. Instead, it's more about matching the cookware to the job.


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## spyken (Mar 1, 2020)

I don't have weighing scales but I shall get one soon and weigh my de buyer and the 365 at the store. I know I held the 365 and knew that I couldn't flip it as easily as my de buyer.


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## vicv (Mar 1, 2020)

It's funny how things go. Field looks like a good pan but I have an old no. 8 from a Canadian company named smart which is an entire pound lighter than a field. As is my no. 10 Wagner. And those are both polished smooth. So not knocking field but what are they offering besides a smooth surface you can recreate in 10 minutes with a DA on a Lodge?
I agree with others about the love of steel pans (good thick ones) but their french design makes them inefficient to use. With the generous slope to the sides they offer much less cooking surface than the same sized skillet and the long angled handle makes going to the oven difficult as well


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## Michi (Mar 1, 2020)

I would have loved to buy a DeBuyer carbon steel fry pan. They are really, really nice. Except that my wife vetoed it because she really struggles with a pan that weighs more than 2 kg as opposed to one that weighs just under 1 kg. Hence the Ikea 365+, which was the next-best thing I could find in terms of weight and price.

We've had that pan for probably two years or little more now, and it still looks and performs like when it was new. It is remarkably robust. The pan gets used literally every single day. (We are reasonably careful with coated pans and don't use metal utensils in them, but we don't treat the pan with kid's gloves either.) Given the handful of dollars I paid for the pan, this has to be one of the best deals out there in terms of value for money. I can see why students and other people on low incomes go apeshit over this Ikea stuff. Prestige: 0, functionality: 5, value for money: 10.

The long handle on the carbon steel pans is annoying, at least to me. I have a 60 cm wide Miele oven. A De Buyer would fit into it, but only just, with essentially zero room to spare. (If there is one thing that I would change about my kitchen, it would be to have an 80 cm oven instead. But, back when I designed it more than 20 years ago, I hardly ever used the oven, except for the occasional roast, and 60 cm was plenty big enough, or so I thought back then…)

I believe the reason for the extra-long handle is so it stays cooler towards the end. Even so, I'm not sure that this design makes a lot of sense. If the pan is properly hot, I have to use mitts or a towel when touching the handle anyway. And, the longer the handle, the harder it gets to move the pan around because of the longer lever arm.


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## vicv (Mar 1, 2020)

Good to know about the +365 pan. I've eyed that as I have all the sauce pans and 10qt stock pot in that line and love all of them but we simply stopped using or having non stick. Not for any health or political reasons but because they offer no advantages and eventually wear out


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## Michi (Mar 1, 2020)

vicv said:


> we simply stopped using or having non stick. Not for any health or political reasons but because they offer no advantages


No advantages? I would argue with that 

There are times where a non-stick pan is just absolute bliss, as far as I am concerned. I can just drop something in, without any fat, and be sure that it won't stick. Yes, I can still burn it if I'm not careful. But, even when burnt, it _still_ won't stick 

So, the main advantage to me is that I can toss something in, fry it up, and—if it is something fragile, such as egg–be pretty sure that it's not going to disintegrate on me when I try to remove it from the pan.


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## vicv (Mar 1, 2020)

That's fair. I meant for me. The seasoning I have built up and my cooking methods are such that I don't get any sticking in my iron pans. Even if I do a quick deglaze with water cleans them right up


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## Michi (Mar 1, 2020)

vicv said:


> That's fair. I meant for me. The seasoning I have built up and my cooking methods are such that I don't get any sticking in my iron pans. Even if I do a quick deglaze with water cleans them right up


Right. My Lodge is almost (but not quite) as non-stick as my coated pans. That's good enough for almost everything. Except when I'm in a hurry. I have to heat up the Lodge gradually, to avoid the bottom from warping up or down. With the dirt-cheap Ikea pan, I don't have to worry about anything. I just turn the hot plate to full bore and, when I think that things are hot enough, I'm good to go. In a fraction of the time, and without having to worry about damaging the pan.


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## Luftmensch (Mar 5, 2020)

Michi said:


> I have to heat up the Lodge gradually, to avoid the bottom from warping up or down.



Have you experienced warping? I have only read about it.... With a sturdy lodge, I cant imagine it being as large a problem as the older, thinner stuff


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## Michi (Mar 5, 2020)

Luftmensch said:


> Have you experienced warping? I have only read about it.... With a sturdy lodge, I cant imagine it being as large a problem as the older, thinner stuff


Yes, I have a tiny bit of warping on my 12" Lodge. It's warped up a tiny bit in the centre. It's minimal, so it doesn't really affect they way I use the pan. But it definitely happened some time after I bought it.


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## madelinez (Mar 5, 2020)

Interesting, maybe I should be more careful with my solidteknics then. I heat it up on max, I even clean it in cold water while it's still hot. No doubt I'll regret it when it cracks one day


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## Michi (Mar 5, 2020)

madelinez said:


> Interesting, maybe I should be more careful with my solidteknics then. I heat it up on max, I even clean it in cold water while it's still hot. No doubt I'll regret it when it cracks one day


I sit mine on the hotplate for a few minutes on medium-low heat, to let it warm through, before I crank it up. The idea is to get some heat into the sides of the pan, so the pan can expand along its circumference. If heat is applied too quickly, the bottom of the pan expands against the still-cold sides and can only go up or down.


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## madelinez (Mar 5, 2020)

Do you have an induction stove or gas?


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## Michi (Mar 5, 2020)

madelinez said:


> Do you have an induction stove or gas?


Electric (ceramic) cooktop. You didn't pay attention last time you were around!


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## madelinez (Mar 5, 2020)

Haha I just remember the Miele Oven 

Well that's even more interesting because Ceramic has always been quite slow for me, maybe it's because the gas burners are actually passing a lot of heat directly onto the sides of the pan versus the base.


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## Michi (Mar 5, 2020)

madelinez said:


> Haha I just remember the Miele Oven
> 
> Well that's even more interesting because Ceramic has always been quite slow for me, maybe it's because the gas burners are actually passing a lot of heat directly onto the sides of the pan versus the base.


Those burners are no slouch. Miele advertise that they go from 0-100 in four seconds. Given that cast iron isn't a great heat conductor, I can see how you can end up with a bottom that is a lot hotter than the sides.

It's easy to check: just put the pan on medium heat and then feel or measure the temperature in the middle and the sides. There is a big difference until the whole thing reaches equilibrium.


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## Luftmensch (Mar 6, 2020)

Michi said:


> Yes, I have a tiny bit of warping on my 12" Lodge. It's warped up a tiny bit in the centre. It's minimal, so it doesn't really affect they way I use the pan. But it definitely happened some time after I bought it.



I am sorry to hear that!

I have not checked my skillet. I am aware of heating them slowly but I am impatient and have been on gas for the last several stoves. Oh the hubris! Oh the shame! I am sure if I looked it would be a bit warped. Doh! Modern induction/ceramic are far more demanding surfaces than the old gas trivets!


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## Michi (Mar 6, 2020)

The one thing I would change in my kitchen, if I could do it all again, is to have a gas cooktop. There are no gas lines in the street I live in, so the only way to get gas would have been to get a big bottle or two installed outside somewhere, and have those swapped out once or twice a year.

I got seduced by the super-clean look of the ceramic cooktops. No corners and edges where stuff gets stuck, one clean neat surface, touch sensor controls, all very slick. In theory. The reality is that, one, ceramic cooktops are good, but not as good as gas. And, two, that the ceramic cooktop has a tendency to scratch and look not so good after a few short years. And while a ceramic cooktop heats up fast, it's not as fast to cool down as a gas burner, meaning that, if I want to reduce heat quickly, I have to move the pot or pan. (Not a big deal, except when I have four pots and pans on the stove already, and there really is nowhere for the pan that is getting too hot to go to…)

Overall, gas is the better option. Let me correct that: it's the _best_ option.


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## Luftmensch (Mar 6, 2020)

Michi said:


> There are no gas lines in the street I live in



Thats a bummer.... My memory is hazy... I have some distant memory of the Government incentivising gas hot water during the Krud years? I wonder if that helped spread the network....



Michi said:


> Overall, gas is the better option. Let me correct that: it's the _best_ option.



Interesting! Where does induction rank in your opinion?


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## Michi (Mar 6, 2020)

Luftmensch said:


> Interesting! Where does induction rank in your opinion?


I have only limited experience. I've used an induction cooktop exactly once, for about 30 minutes. It was fine. It took two or three minutes for me to figure out which setting corresponded to the heat I wanted, and then I was good to go and comfortable.

Getting the induction cooktop to go really hot really fast worked well. But getting it to cool down was a bit like my ceramic hot plate cooktop. The cooking surface stores a fair bit of heat so, if I really want something off the heat "right now", I think a gas burner still wins. Once the gas is off, there is very little residual heat to go into the pot.


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## WPerry (Mar 6, 2020)

We got an induction range about 6 months ago. I'd like to say that I love it... but that wouldn't be quite accurate. 

The performance is awesome - it can heat up scary fast, the simmer side of things is excellently nuanced, and clean-up is far, far and away the I've best ever experienced (I've never had to resort to anything more than a water-dampened paper towel). 

All that said, it's just so magically alien that it doesn't tug on my heartstrings the way open flames do. I really like it, but I don't love it. The big question: given the choice, would I make the same decision and buy it again? Yup, I would, romance be damned.


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## WPerry (Mar 6, 2020)

Oh, on the cast iron front - I saw a Finex in real life yesterday. Yeah, I'm over that yearning.

On the interior, the bottom is really nicely finished, but the sides are still rather rough. More off-putting is the abruptness of the transition between the two; simply put, there is no transition - it's a hard line. A very hard line. For being one of the more expensive options on the market, that was a total turn-off for me.


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## parbaked (Mar 6, 2020)

Michi said:


> Getting the induction cooktop to go really hot really fast worked well. But getting it to cool down was a bit like my ceramic hot plate cooktop. The cooking surface stores a fair bit of heat.



No...an induction cooktop surface doesn't generate or store any heat. 
The residual heat you experienced was stored in the pan, not the cooktop.


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## Michi (Mar 6, 2020)

parbaked said:


> The residual heat you experienced was stored in the pan, not the cooktop.


You are right, me bad!

I suspect it's the lack of an air gap underneath as well. On a gas burner, once I turn off the gas, convection will draw cooler air underneath the pan, making it cool down more quickly.


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## Luftmensch (Mar 6, 2020)

Michi said:


> Getting the induction cooktop to go really hot really fast worked well. But getting it to cool down was a bit like my ceramic hot plate cooktop. The cooking surface stores a fair bit of heat so, if I really want something off the heat "right now", I think a gas burner still wins. Once the gas is off, there is very little residual heat to go into the pot.





parbaked said:


> No...an induction cooktop surface doesn't generate or store any heat.
> The residual heat you experienced was stored in the pan, not the cooktop.



I think these are both right.

Induction cook tops need a ferrous material on top of them to generate heat through eddy currents. You can crank up an induction stove and place your hand directly on top of it... But it also makes sense to me that when a pan is placed on the surface, it can conduct heat back into the stove top. The degree to which heat will be absorbed will depend on the quality of the design and materials. 

On a gas stove, heat transfer from the pan is mostly through convection (perhaps a little radiation). The surface area for conduction on the trivets is much, much lower.

... like always, it probably depends on the quality of the product being used...


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## WPerry (Mar 7, 2020)

I can only speak for my induction cooktop, but when I turn down the heat it's like slamming on the brakes - I can come down from a boil almost instantaneously, particularly with the clad steel pans.


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## vicv (Mar 8, 2020)

And some of the heat from the pan does make it's it' back to the glass top. It generally isn't bad though but it will absorb some


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## parbaked (Mar 8, 2020)

Luftmensch said:


> But it also makes sense to me that when a pan is placed on the surface, it can conduct heat back into the stove top.





vicv said:


> And some of the heat from the pan does make it's it' back to the glass top. It generally isn't bad though but it will absorb some



If the induction cooktop gets warm, it is absorbing heat from the pan.
This will reduce, not increase, the heat in the pan.


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## btbyrd (Mar 8, 2020)

WPerry said:


> I can only speak for my induction cooktop, but when I turn down the heat it's like slamming on the brakes - I can come down from a boil almost instantaneously, particularly with the clad steel pans.



This. Induction is very responsive, comparable to gas.


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## Luftmensch (Mar 9, 2020)

parbaked said:


> If the induction cooktop gets warm, it is absorbing heat from the pan.
> This will reduce, not increase, the heat in the pan.



Absolutely. I am in full agreement - I am just musing on conduction, convection and contact surface area.... Induction can apply heat and turn heat off incredibly quickly in the pan. In the stove, there be a thermal lag that depends on quality of the build. The support material of the stove will absorb heat from the pan during cooking. In doing so, the thermal gradient between the hot pan and the stove top will get smaller. This provides the pan a degree of insulation at the bottom when the inductive heating is turned off.

On the other hand, conducting heat is more effective than convection. So a hot induction stove top might still be better at sucking heat out of a pan than a trivet air gap on gas stoves.


.... I am just spit-balling out loud here! Definitely commenting not from experience. I have only have the pleasure of playing with induction once. Ultimately I would like to own one... apart from the temperature control, it is the greener option...


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## Hammett (Mar 22, 2020)

To bring this back to cast iron. I have a Lodge 12 inch that I love. 

I also have a Field no. 8 and no. 12. They are both extremely nice looking pans. My no. 12 is a second, but that was no big deal and saved quite a bit of money. If you want it to look good from the get go, go with the full price models.

The no. 8 is nice and light, but I think that the bottom is just too thin. I found the heat uneven. I only use it for things that will be swished around a lot or when I use it in the oven. I bought it to do eggs and do not use it for this at all.

The no. 12 is made with a thicker bottom and I find this to be a great pan. My understanding is that only the no. 12 (not the no. 8 or no. 10) have the thicker bottom. 

The Lodge's come rough, but if you use a metal spatula and/or fish turner and are not too shy about it, they smooth out nicely while also still holding on to the seasoning. 

The Fields are nice and smooth, but the seasoning takes a lot longer and is more likely to strip off like it does on carbon steel. 

The Lodge is pretty hard to mess up. I love the Fields but they also made me appreciate the Lodge even more.


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