Greentext

I just like how I can use my metal scrapers and spactulas without having to worry about damaging it.

... Just get a fucking non stick pan and don't use wooden or iron utensils on it. Done, problem solved.

My cast iron griddle is the most used thing in my kitchen, after grilling something on it I get it ripping hot, pour water on it, scrub it with a rag until its clean, then coat it in cooking oil and wait for it to smoke. Takes like 2 minutes and it never leaves my stove.

Cast iron is cheap, indestructible, gets better with time, does want some care but nothing outrageous. I do have a good stainless skillet as well, call it the "stick pan", if you want something to stick and then deglaze, it's good.

But the cast iron is my joy, my kids joke that I love it more than I love them (it is older than they are) and already argue about who will get it when I die. Have never bought a nonstick pan, they seem unhealthy, and old cast iron is satiny and nonstick. It suits the way I cook, or perhaps the way I cook has been shaped by the pans. I don't worry about tomatoes or wine sauce but wouldn't slow cook spaghetti sauce in one, would use stainless or the Le Cruset one for that.

Mostly I think it's like flannel, not great at the start but improves with use, ends up better than everything else and then stays better for a long time. In the case of cast iron that could be several generations.

I bought like a $30 one at the grocery store a few years ago and it's still going strong. If I forget to use it for a long time it'll get a patina of rust, but it scrapes right off. I only seasoned it once when I got it with beef tallow.

Honestly if I threw it away today and bought a new one it still would have been cheaper than buying a Teflon pan for like triple the price and having it only last maybe a year before it gets completely ruined, and you get those forever chemicals in your body as an added bonus.

It's not like it's some huge investment, just give it a try and see if it works for you. Buy a cheap one at a big box store, season it with oil or fat, and don't put it in the dishwasher just hand rinse it with lye-free dish soap and a soft sponge. Maybe that's too much work for you and you prefer your nonstick or stainless, that's fine too, good quality stainless can last a lifetime if treated properly and ceramic nonstick pans are getting better and cheaper all the time and pretty much outcompeting PFA-based products because people are becoming more aware of how shitty they actually are.

In all seriousness my cast iron never looses its seasoning and is the best non stick I have in my house. I refuse to go back to PFSA

I use a wok and I wish I could use it for everything. I love that little damn thing to bits. I have only seasoned it twice (removed the previous one due to rust) and it can fry an egg fine.

It handles soap, tomatoes and other acidic foods fine as well. Didn't use any fancy oil, just avocado oil.

My mom's 300$ tephlon pans don't even last more than 8 months without getting nicks. My Lil fella is 15 years old.

They want to brainwash into using expensive, disposable, products.

This has been my experience with cast iron. There's so, so, so much conflicting information on them. Even in this thread.

I wish the Mythbusters would come back just to test via experimentation all these conflicting claims.