Armed Polite Society
Main Forums => The Mess Hall => Topic started by: Ben on October 22, 2017, 12:59:33 PM
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What is your favorite and/or most used cookware?
A year ago, I would have said my 9" cast iron skillet. Back a year ago, I bought a 10" carbon steel skillet, and man am I sold. Does most all the stove top stuff the cast iron does, but in a much lighter package. It took me a while to get it seasoned, but I think it is more non-stick than the cast iron. I still use the cast iron when I do stuff in the oven, like steak or cornbread (I use my 8" straight wall cast iron for the cornbread), but everything up top, it's pretty much the carbon steel skillet. Only exceptions being when I make biscuits and gravy or rouladen, I'll use my 12" cast iron for the extra room. However I'm thinking about getting a 12" carbon steel skillet as well for that duty.
Otherwise I use my dutch ovens a decent amount of the time. I was using my 5 quart to bake bread for a good while, but for the amount of bread I can eat in a week, putting that dough in the 5qt left me bread that was like 3" high. I ended up finding an off brand 3qt dutch oven on Amazon that is smaller diameter and high walled, and it makes a perfect sized loaf for me, with a decent height. I use that one pretty much weekly during bread baking season (all year except for mid-Summer, when it's just too freakin' hot to be using the oven).
I also daily use a 3qt stainless pot, mostly for my water for morning coffee when I use the french press, and mostly because it works with my portable induction cooktop, which I also love, given I have an electric stove here. I also use that combo for rice and steaming vegetables and such.
What about youz guyz?
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So far, my favorite acquisition is the ceramic frying pan. I will never buy teflon again.
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I'm still firmly in the cast iron camp for favorite. Cooked my sourdough pancakes in a cast iron skillet this morning.
Though, if push came to shove the "most used" is probably the damned microwave or electric toaster.
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Calphalon tri-clad stainless skillet for stovetop use. Heats faster and more evenly than cast iron.
Oven use is a toss up between a cast iron skillet, a Pyrex casserole dish, and a cookie sheet.
Brad
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Most used? Skillet from restaurant supply store. Non stick or not depends what I'm cooking.
I loves me my cast iron....but I'm lazy and like chucking stuff in the dishwasher. Much like why more often than not I'm not using my high dollar knives, of which I have plenty and love, these days. No, more often than not I'm using my "beater" Dexter Russel industry knives where the whole set I put together for cooking and basic butchery cost me about what one of my high prices chefs knives cost. And I can toss them in the dishwasher or abuse and they don't seem to care.
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^^^Dexter Russel SaniSafe knives for the win! I have a couple knife blocks full of them.
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^^^Dexter Russel SaniSafe knives for the win! I have a couple knife blocks full of them.
Love the things. I have high dollar knives, and I rarely use them these days. I don't feel like babying them most of the time. The Dexter Russel ones? I use them reasonably as a tool and call it a day.
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Pampered Chef garlic press. I really like the thing. Easy to use and easy to clean.
https://www.amazon.com/Pampered-Chef-Improved-Garlic-Press/dp/B001UC4VAW
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For a single most used i have to go with my Weber grill.
If you are only talking inside it is a toss up of 14" cast iron skillet, 14" wok or Dutch oven.
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Hard to say if I really have a "favorite."
One of the ones that gets the most use is my Grandmother's "Maid of Honor" cast aluminum dutch oven. It's a great for both stove top as a big pot and for the oven.
Maid of Honor was a Sears line of cookware and other kitchenware, aluminum, cast iron and, what I didn't know until I just googled, glassware, as well. Apparently it was a big seller for them in the 1940s and 1950s.
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12 inch enameled cast iron skillet that I got at Aldi on clearance for $9.99 several years ago. All the joys of cooking with cast iron, as it's pretty much non-stick, yet can be cleaned with soap and water and blue scrubbie if something (like cheese) does stick. It doesn't need to be babied and I can cook acidic foods like tomatoes sauces and the like. Plus it's good size.
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My Lodge cast iron dutch oven
My Food TV brand enameled dutch oven (for tomato sauces, mac and cheese, etc.)
My two really big deep non-stick fry pans.
Cooking tongs with the plastic tips
Bamboo spoons
With these, a cutting board, and my knife block, I can cook about anything. Oh, and throw in my pasta pot and my big sauce pot (for cooking rice).
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My Lodge 13.5" skillet.
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Ooo boy this is tough. We have a full complement of almost everything here and wife is a very accomplished cook and I'm no slouch in the kitchen.
My wife uses a couple pro quality triple clad skillets and an enamel coated cast stock pot. She also uses an antique "chicken fryer" think Dutch oven with a handle and lid.
I get a lot of mileage from a vintage 22" carbon steel wok with long handle that I bought while a college student 40 years ago. Various cast iron skillets have been seasoned and properly maintained for just as long. I also love to cook in terra cotta clay baking dishes but that's a different technique.
No shame in using the slow cooker crock pot either.
Cooking outside is a whole nuther thread but my big wok gets some time on the propane fueled fish fryer turbo jet thingy. Now that's cooking!
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"No shame in using the slow cooker crock pot either."
No shame in it?
Hell, the crock pot was about the only fad of the 1970s that was worth anything. Crock pots are absolutely brilliant for so many things.
I'm probably going to do a Southwestern bean soup this weekend, and I'll do it in the crock pot.
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I have three (ok, more than that, but the others don't get used enough) cast iron skillets that are my go to-s for nearly everything.
14" griddle skillet: basically anything that doesn't have a lot of juices: pancakes, onions, garlic, etc...
14" skillet: this one has the high sides for cooking almost everything else: hamburger, chicken, pork, etc... Makes a nice cornbread skillet, too.
15" Chicken fryer: I could just replace the skillet with this one, but it's so nicely seasoned, I hate making it the workhorse. This is my favorite, as it is the "Chicken Pot Pie" pot. Cook up everything on the stove with it, put the biscuit dough on top and pop it in the oven. MMmmm.
As mentioned, I do enjoy the cast iron wok. No concerns about it getting scratched up like the teflon ones. I just haven't (yet) used it enough to include the list.
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I have over 100 different pots, pans, skillets and such on my kitchen wire rack. I can't pick a favorite, since I use the best possible implement for the dish I am making. :)