Cast iron: the next generation

GRANDMA knew all about the cast-iron skillet. She faithfully seasoned it, caring for it like a family member. She might have passed it on to the next generation, where it again was prized for its even heating, its ability to create a crispy brown crust and cook without added fat.

Then again, the old pan might have wound up gathering dust on a shelf in the garage. Who has time to spend seasoning a skillet? Are you kidding?

Someone at Lodge Manufacturing Co., the kings of cast-iron cookware, must have asked the same thing. They’ve introduced a line of pre-seasoned cast-iron cookware. No need to rub the pan with oil or shortening, then bake it at 300 degrees for an hour, repeating several more times. Just remove the price tag and start cooking.

The pans, which have a slightly rough surface compared to the smooth inside of the traditional ones, are coated with a vegetable oil formula and baked in very hot industrial ovens. “We should have thought of this 100 years ago,” the labels say.

Given that a top aluminum skillet can run $200, who wouldn’t want one that costs $10 and was good enough for Grandma? So we cracked some eggs, readied some burgers and put a new 8-inch pre-seasoned pan to the test. Its competition: our trusty cast-iron skillet found 20 years ago at a thrift store.

Our old pan performed as perfectly as ever: fried eggs slid like hockey pucks right onto our plate. We felt like short-order cooks. Fried in a pat of butter over medium-high heat, the egg’s edges were browned, its bottom evenly colored and the sunny-side-up yolk in one place.

The new pan was more stubborn; each time the thinnest part of the egg white stuck, forcing us to scrape at it with a spatula. On the last try, the white broke into pieces. Cleaning the skillet, then, was tougher (soap is not recommended; just a stiff brush and hot water).

The new cookware calls for spraying with nonstick spray after cleaning and before cooking. For the eggs, we sprayed and added butter. We didn’t add butter to either pan for burger patties, fried over medium-high heat, and they didn’t stick. But the new skillet smoked.

In our final test of frozen hash browns, the cooking spray thing was a puzzler, since the potato bag directed us to fry in a few tablespoons of oil. Oil and spray? But maybe it was that combo that earned our respect for the new pan; its hash browns were crispy, evenly browned, even a little crusty. Our old skillet’s were ho-hum ordinary.

What would Grandma say? Well, she might give a nod to the new skillet, but the frozen hash browns thing, we’re not so sure.

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Grandma’s

cast-iron skillet

What’s the difference: Time, elbow grease required to season. If rust develops (always seems to), scour, repeat seasoning process. Still, reminds us of Grandma.

What we thought: How could such an old thing make a perfect fried egg?

How much: $7-$15 at stores and on the Internet.

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That newfangled,

pre-seasoned pan

What’s the difference: Convenience. You don’t have to coat it with grease and bake it several times. It’s been done for you. But it still needs some extra care (coating with cooking spray after cleaning).

What we thought: Our fried eggs stuck big-time, but our hash browns went over big. Ten bucks? OK, we’ll spring. We just need to figure out the cooking spray thing.

How much: $10-$20 at stores and on the Internet.