What can you expect in the Food Thread on PF?

[Evo]

I bought some zucchini because I was going to make a stew for couscous, but that's not going to happen since I made a huge pan of chicken enchiladas. Now I have to cook them before they go bad. They've already started bullying the radishes, so I need to act quickly.

I was thinking of sprinkling them with olive oil and italian herbs and roasting them. Any other simple ideas?

 

[Andre]

I was thinking of sprinkling them with olive oil and italian herbs and roasting them. Any other simple ideas?

When I had a shipload of zucchinnis in the old days I used to pickle them with onions, ratio one to one. Add some italian herbs, Fill up the jars with boiling water/vinegar and a bit sugar for taste. Cook 'au bain marie' (short) and close the jars while hot. Cool quickly in water to prevent the zucchinnis to get too soft.

 

[turbo]

When we get too much zucchini, my wife gets out the Kitchen Aid and slicer attachment and shreds them. She packs them in small Zip-Loc bags and tosses them into the freezer. When she wants to make a loaf of zucchini bread, pull out a bag.

 

[Evo]

Ok, so I bought "green vidalia" onions, they're young vidalias with the green leaves and supposed to be similar to leeks when cooked, and they were only 99 cents a bunch. I also splurged and bought radishes (since I can't get them to grow here), those I will sautee in some butter. If you haven't eaten sauteed radishes, you haven't lived.

Now I have to decide what to cook for an entree. I have tons of steak from that steak "mishap". Maybe a steak topped with the sauteed vidalias and radishes.

 

[rewebster]

A new trend in growing lettuce, radishes, and other quick growing 'small' things is using plastic gutters (cut to your size, capped on the ends) and with drainage holes.

They don't take up make space for the 'output', easy to handle, and be hung, even over each other.

A ten foot section runs about $4, but the ends caps can run about $2 each.

 

[Ben Niehoff]

I need some advice on cast iron, and I thought you guys could help (especially Turbo). We are looking to get one or two pans and a dutch oven. Prices of new things are kinda high, so if I can snag something used off of Craigslist, that would be great.

What do you think of the quality of these items?

This one looks good on the back; no picture of the front. It's a small skillet, though...so it wouldn't be enough on its own:

http://inlandempire.craigslist.org/clt/1714231996.html

I think these look OK, a little hard to tell:

http://inlandempire.craigslist.org/clt/1703170006.html

These look like they need work...probably wouldn't want to bother:

http://orangecounty.craigslist.org/hsh/1715620730.html

And these might make you cry. I'm not considering buying them, just showing you what I dug up: :P

http://inlandempire.craigslist.org/clt/1698798632.html

All of these things are about an hour away from where I live, so before driving out there to see them, it would help to have your opinion.Also, if I were to buy new instead, what do you recommend? And what's the best kind of fat to use for seasoning the pan?

 

[Evo]

Griswold is very expensive, I believe turbo has some.

For new pans look at Lodge for a good pan at a reasonable price.

http://www.lodgemfg.com/Logic-product.asp

 

[turbo]

The 8" and 10" Wagner Ware skillets in the second link are very nice. The little #3 in the first listing is tiny. If you wanted to saute a bit of onion and garlic for a dish, you might use it, but a #5 Griswold is the smallest I would get, since I'm a cook, not a collector. It's a good size to do up a couple of scrambled eggs, and it's almost always on the stove-top waiting for another task. Lots of savory/aromatic stuff starts out in that little skillet before being added to the sauce-pot.

If you get the 8" and 10" skillets, start haunting lawn sales and estate sales and see if you can come up with a 10" dutch oven and lid. The lid can do double-duty on the skillet and the pot. My wife and I have a 12" dutch oven with lid, and the lid gets used on our 12" skillet quite a bit. It holds in both heat and moisture, with is really nice when you're whipping up a risotto or something similar.

Griswold and Wagner Ware are both good high-quality brands, and the cookwear lasts lifetimes. Invest in some non-scratch spatulas, so you won't erode the cured surface of the cast iron. If you need to clean cast iron and stuff is cooked on, the best method I've found is to put water in the pan and bring it to a boil to loosen the tough stuff and de-glaze the pan. Wipe out the pan with terrycloth or a nylon scrubber, then scour the bottom lightly with coarse sea salt, wipe that out and lightly oil the pan with oil with a high smoke temperature (I use peanut oil) and reheat the pan. When the pan is cooled, wipe out the excess oil and store the pan.

You don't have to do this whole routine very frequently - just when the pan needs a real good cleaning. With a few years of seasoning, the bottom of the skillet will be shiny and practically non-stick.

 

[turbo]

Griswold is very expensive, I believe turbo has some.

Yes, but I don't have a lot invested in them. I got them at yard sales, house-cleanouts, and the like. It's the same way I got some nice old chef's knives.

If you buy Griswold through eBay or similar, you will pay a premium because they are very collectible, plus good cooks know how good the cookware is. That means you are competing against collectors AND experienced cooks. Double whammy.

Lawn sales are great, though. Our most-used skillet is the little #5 Griswold, and my wife picked it up at a lawn sale for a couple of bucks. Score! I didn't have to work at it at all - the pan was already clean, rust-free and well-seasoned. Some old cook must have kicked off or got put in a nursing home, and the heirs were clueless about good cookware.

 

[Ben Niehoff]

We have a silicone spatula already (with a metal support inside so it doesn't get all floppy). Besides that, we have some nylon stuff (crappy) and some wooden spoons and spatulas (great). I assume wooden spoons are OK for cast iron?

I was just on the phone with the guy with the Wagner Ware skillets. He says the smaller one does not sit flat, so I won't get that one. But the larger one sounds good, will probably pick it up tomorrow.

Edit:

I will certainly be checking out lawn sales and estate sales, as the season for them is approaching. Also, this is LA...sometimes you can get some really great stuff at estate sales if some rich Hollywood types get divorced or something. :P

 

[turbo]

Good luck, Ben. My wife and I have a nice collection of wooden spoons and spatulas that are great for cast iron. Recently the Chinese have started putting out wooden utensils made of laminated bamboo, too. If you can trust that the adhesives aren't full of formaldehyde and other bad actors, they might be an option. My wife picked up a couple of laminated-bamboo pizza-bread peels since she has started baking bread with a passion, and they are wonderful. Dust the peels with corn meal, after the last punch-down, put the loaves on the peels and cover with cloth for the last rise, then slip the loaves onto the preheated bread stone when you're ready to bake. Those simple tools make a huge difference.

 

[Evo]

I picked up a cast iron pan at my Grandmother's house over 40 years ago, and the house was filled with stuff that was pre-civil war. The pan is so worn that I can't make out the markings. It is very crudely made, so probably not worth anything, but it works.

 

[turbo]

I picked up a cast iron pan at my Grandmother's house over 40 years ago, and the house was filled with stuff that was pre-civil war. The pan is so worn that I can't make out the markings. It is very crudely made, so probably not worth anything, but it works.

There were foundries all over the country 100 years ago, and there are probably all kinds of regional treasures to be found, crude-looking or not.

Wagner Ware and Griswold got popular by standardizing on sizes and delivering pans with a nice smooth machined interior finish. You could go to a hardware store or general store and order a pan, knowing that it was going to be well-made. Somehow, Griswold had the upper hand in Maine, because it is very rare to see any Wagner stuff at lawn sales. Years back stuff got delivered by train here, and most of the large distributors of tools, hardware, etc were located in Boston. We had local tool-makers like Snow and Nealy, but they were mostly making steel tools for the lumber industry. Even today, their cruising axes are highly-prized as compact light tools for chopping camp-fire wood etc. My uncle has one and I swear he keeps it sharp enough to shave with.

 

[Ben Niehoff]

Hey, so I also want to ask, are these prices any good? Because it looks like I could get brand new stuff from Lodge for similar prices.

 

[Evo]

Hey, so I also want to ask, are these prices any good? Because it looks like I could get brand new stuff from Lodge for similar prices.

Griswold and Wagner are collectible, so you'll pay more. They are very well made.

Alton Brown did a show using Lodge, they are also very well made, but not considered collector's items. He's also an actor. Maybe get a piece of each and compare.

At least with new pans, you can be assured it wasn't formerly coated with rat urine and feces and dead mice.

 

[rewebster]

At least with new pans, you can be assured it wasn't formerly coated with rat urine and feces and dead mice.

who knows for sure if the new pans weren't coated that way too

 

[Ben Niehoff]

So, after doing some more research, it seems that the newer Lodge pans have the stereotypical rough surface, while the older vintage pans are smooth and shiny...it seems that is a good reason to get an older pan...

 

[rewebster]

So, after doing some more research, it seems that the newer Lodge pans have the stereotypical rough surface, while the older vintage pans are smooth and shiny...it seems that is a good reason to get an older pan...

check your local antique malls and stores----sometimes they're high--sometimes low---I've seen them (old Wagner's and Griswold's) in antique malls for $5-10

 

[Evo]

I'd still recommend trying Lodge, they are pre-seasoned, I saw the show on how they're made.

Rated 5 stars here.

http://reviews.basspro.com/2010/65368/reviews.htm

 

[turbo]

So, after doing some more research, it seems that the newer Lodge pans have the stereotypical rough surface, while the older vintage pans are smooth and shiny...it seems that is a good reason to get an older pan...

That is part of the non-stick charm of the old Griswolds, provided they are well-seasoned. The bottoms are quite smooth - almost shiny. If you want to give Lodge a whirl, you might do well to get some sanding disks for your electric drill, and smooth the interior with those. Then clean thoroughly, and season the pan. Cast iron will have pits after machining/sanding, but those fill in as you season and use the pan, so don't worry about them.

I checked Amazon for a Lodge 12" skillet. They sell for about $20, and the 12" cover sells for $24! Instead you should opt for the 12" dutch oven which comes with the same lid and sells for $29. That pricing scheme is insane!

 

[Ben Niehoff]

I just learned to use an electric drill two days ago, actually. I don't have the equipment or space necessary to do power sanding...no eye protection or work bench or anything. I live in an apartment building in Hollywood. :P

I've gotten slightly bit by the collector's bug, so I think I will grab a high-quality antique piece with smooth surface. I have a #6 skillet and a #9 Dutch oven on the way already...watching certain websites for a good #9 skillet, as that will probably be the primary cooking tool.

I got a great price on the #6 skillet...about $20 for a Wagner Ware. I probably overpaid for the Griswold #9 Dutch oven, because it was from an antique store. Both are professionally cleaned, re-seasoned, and ready for cooking, according to the sellers.

 

[turbo]

Good news, Ben. Nice old cast-iron is something that you will treasure forever. It's easy to over-pay if you're on the hunt, but if you are patient and check estate-sales, house clean-outs, and yard sales, you should bump into some nice stuff, cheap. It takes time, but it will happen if you are patient.

I'm lucky in that I came from a family of good cooks. When I went off to college and got my own apartment, my mother, aunts, etc gave me some pretty nice used stuff from their own kitchens. 2nd-hand, mis-matched cookware, but great stuff, for the most part. My first kitchen was stocked with a couple of cast-iron frying pans, some copper-clad SS lidded pots, a couple of decent old German knives, and a tiny little stoneware bean-pot that was just right for 2 people, or one person planning limited leftovers. My cups, plates, bowls, and "silverware" were all Heinz 57, but very serviceable.

Most of the family were of modest means, but they all appreciated and gathered good cooking implements over the years. My grandmother on my father's side was the cook for a very large logging/pulpwood operation and fed a huge hungry crew every day at breakfast and dinner, and made up massive lunches for those guys to eat during their work-day. An aunt was the cook for the town's only restaurant, and ran a catering service out of her home when she quit that job after the kids were out of the house. My mother was the best cook of all, with a real talent for delivering French provincial meals on a budget.

 

[Evo]

My background is French haute cuisine. One thing good is that I was taught all of the classic basics of cooking from experts. Which unfortunately makes me an insufferable snob about classic cooking techniques.

Not to mention that French haute cuisine has fallen out of favour. Too rich and too difficult.

 

[IcedEcliptic]

Every good cook is a snob! Cooks take pride in their work, and seek perfection. That is why cooking is so good to do, and tasty besides. The French taught the world so much of cooking technique, how to use the knife, and they adopt much of the middle-east and northern africa cuisine. The french put into a technique, what many cultures do. French cooking applied to Indian food is delicious! Who would wish to live without monte au burre? :)

 

[turbo]

My background is French haute cuisine. One thing good is that I was taught all of the classic basics of cooking from experts. Which unfortunately makes me an insufferable snob about classic cooking techniques.

Not to mention that French haute cuisine has fallen out of favour. Too rich and too difficult.

And too expensive! My mother was a child of the depression, as was my father, so she adapted provincial French cooking to our means, as did her elders before her. We ended up with family favorites like "French Soup" made with potatoes, home-canned tomatoes, onions, leeks, rice, and herbs. Delicious with fluffy layered pastry biscuits.

My mother used to serve us kids julienned steamed green beans in hot buttered cream. Not too expensive, since our milk-man delivered whole milk from a local farm, and the top 1/3 of every quart was cream. The farmer once told me that he'd never allow a Holstein on his farm because they gave water, not milk. Only Jerseys and Guernseys. I'm approaching 60 and grew up in a cultural oasis where things changed very slowly, if they changed at all. I grew up pretty poor, but I feel sorry for the "better-off" kids that got boxed macaroni and cheese and canned soups shoveled at them day after day.

 

[turbo]

BTW, Ben, people in these times often store stuff in rental storage units, and default on the rent, so their stuff gets sold. Another option to the clean-out sales, lawn sales, etc. Do you think that the owner of a rental-storage business knows what decent cast iron is worth? Unless the owner hires an appraiser and a good auctioneer, stuff will go cheap.

 

[Ben Niehoff]

So I received my Wagner Ware #6 today. I have a Wagner Ware #8 and a Griswold dutch oven on the way...should get them in a few days.

Here are pictures of the #6 (whenever attachments get approved):

 

[Evo]

They look very nice!

 

[IcedEcliptic]

So I received my Wagner Ware #6 today. I have a Wagner Ware #8 and a Griswold dutch oven on the way...should get them in a few days.

Here are pictures of the #6 (whenever attachments get approved):

That is a fine investment that can last a lifetime! You can cook full course meals in a dutch oven, and some very delicious breads.

 

[turbo]

So I received my Wagner Ware #6 today. I have a Wagner Ware #8 and a Griswold dutch oven on the way...should get them in a few days.

Here are pictures of the #6 (whenever attachments get approved):

That's wonderful, Ben! The #6 will end up being your go-to pan for sauteing onions, garlic, etc prior to their addition to sauces and casseroles. Our #5 serves that purpose here, as well as providing me with fried hot dogs and rolls (a weakness that I can now indulge because my wife found Applegate Farms hot dogs with NO glutamates), and the occasional mini-omelet. I'd like to have a #6 and a #8, too, from a decent manufacturer. Our cast iron gets heavy use.

BTW, if you have never cooked a New England boiled dinner, you might want to try your hand at it with the Dutch oven. Sear a cheap chuck roast in the pot with salt, pepper, and a high-smoke-temp oil (I use peanut oil). When the roast is browned on all sides, deglaze the pot with cheap burgundy and water. Add garlic powder and onion powder to the liquid, cover and simmer for hours. After about 3 hours or so, add chunks of potato, onion, carrot, cabbage, turnip, and cook until the vegetables are tender and have soaked up the flavors from the glaze, the wine, etc. Killer meal, and the left-overs make a wonderful hash for breakfast.

 

[Ben Niehoff]

That's wonderful, Ben! The #6 will end up being your go-to pan for sauteing onions, garlic, etc prior to their addition to sauces and casseroles. Our #5 serves that purpose here, as well as providing me with fried hot dogs and rolls (a weakness that I can now indulge because my wife found Applegate Farms hot dogs with NO glutamates), and the occasional mini-omelet. I'd like to have a #6 and a #8, too, from a decent manufacturer. Our cast iron gets heavy use.

That's exactly what I did with it tonight, in fact. Charred and caramelized some onions, carrots, celery and sauerkraut, dumping each one in pot of simmering beer as it finished. Then I used the pan to brown some bratwurst, then simmered everything together for an hour.

The most amazing thing is that when I add things to the pan, the pan actually stays hot. This is the first time I've cooked with cast iron...I can say it's completely different from anything else. Each ingredient simply starts going, rather than requiring a minor adjustment of the heat every time something is added.

I've read that copper cookware has a similar heat capacity...but of course, copper is way more expensive.

The #6 looks about perfect for a full-size omelet, if you ask me.

 

[IcedEcliptic]

That's exactly what I did with it tonight, in fact. Charred and caramelized some onions, carrots, celery and sauerkraut, dumping each one in pot of simmering beer as it finished. Then I used the pan to brown some bratwurst, then simmered everything together for an hour.

The most amazing thing is that when I add things to the pan, the pan actually stays hot. This is the first time I've cooked with cast iron...I can say it's completely different from anything else. Each ingredient simply starts going, rather than requiring a minor adjustment of the heat every time something is added.

I've read that copper cookware has a similar heat capacity...but of course, copper is way more expensive.

The #6 looks about perfect for a full-size omelet, if you ask me.

Oh that sounds SO good! Copper is pain to take care of too, compared to "salt and fat" for cast iron!

 

[Evo]

Overpriced trendy food.

Todays rant - Greek yogurt.

It's the new trendy thing on tv food shows. I'm sure it's great and the local market has just started carrying it. YAY! WHOA! Eight dollars for an 8 ounce container? Are you kidding? Oh, but you say, it's thicker than regular yogurt. Ok, so I buy two containers of regular yogurt for $3 total and drain it in a cheesecloth. Why, it's greek yogurt!

 

[turbo]

It will only get worse, Evo. Yesterday, my wife dropped in at the supermarket to pick up some food, and they were pushing some froo-froo dish samples that contained all kinds of really over-priced ingredients, like some "special" sun-dried tomatoes that cost more than filet mignon. The base ingredient was eggplant, but the herbs, cheeses, and afore-mentioned tomatoes could easily put an idiot in the poor-house. Luckily for the supermarkets, idiots abound, so they will make their nut every week.

 

[Monique]

Oh that sounds SO good! Copper is pain to take care of too, compared to "salt and fat" for cast iron!

Only if you want to keep it in a show-room-shine state. I have a copper pan that I use daily and don't really care whether it shines perfectly, I have it for its function: to cook. Since copper pans are coated on their insides with a non-reactive metal, they are actually easy to take care of.