5. We re-seasoned the pans ourselves in an oven for an hour at 500°.
6. We cooked another round of eggs to observe any changes.
What to look for in cast-iron pans
We wanted to narrow what we considered in this test, so we omitted enameled cast-iron skillets like those made by Le Creuset or Staub because enameled surfaces offer a different experience in terms of both cooking and care. We also chose to exclude any cast-iron griddles or grill pans since they are too different functionally. We also ruled out any pans with handles made from materials that aren’t oven-safe.
Sizing is a bit different from company to company, but we chose to stick with a 10″-diameter skillet—an 8 in traditional cast-iron sizing—as it is the most common size available for a cast-iron pan.
How nonstick is the pan out of the box?
We should clarify that cast-iron pans aren’t nonstick in the sense that you can cook an egg in the pan without any oil and slide it around with ease. A really well-seasoned pan that’s a glossy lacquered black from years of use might get pretty darn close, but the seasoning really just helps food release more easily from the pan—and the more seasoning there is, the less oil you’ll need for food to release. We evaluated the pans on their out of the box factory seasoning because having a solid seasoning layer to start with diminishes the amount of time you need to break in a pan. This matters more with cheaper, rough textured cast-iron, which is more prone to sticking when it lacks proper seasoning. For polished or vintage-style cast-iron pans (like the Lancaster), factory seasoning is nice, but the smooth surface also aids in preventing sticking, so it isn’t as crucial in the beginning stages of using the pan. That is why throughout this review you see more emphasis on factory seasoning when discussing budget pans.
Is the pan designed in a way that makes it easy to use?
We counted form and design heavily in how we judged these pans. We wanted the pan to be comfortable and easy to maneuver, so we looked for pans that were light in weight and had handles that were comfortable in the hand. If the pan was heavier, we wanted to see a helper handle for moving the pan from the cooktop to the oven. We didn’t place an emphasis on whether handle was designed to stay cool, because even a handle billed as “stay cool” will get dangerously hot when cooking for long enough, so we feel it’s better to just make a habit of always using an oven mitt or cloth to grab a cast-iron handle.
Why use cast iron instead of any other cookware
Heavy-duty, even-heating, satisfyingly weighty skillets are staples in the BA test kitchen because of their versatility. Stainless-steel and carbon-steel frying pans get hot quickly, but they don’t always have the heat retention capabilities of cast iron. And while a nonstick pan is nice for scrambled eggs and crispy-skinned fish, many are not ovensafe and should never be exposed to high temperatures, so you can’t sear with them safely.
Other good cast-iron skillets
These pans all performed well in our testing but were bested by our top picks.
If you know cast-iron pans, you might see the Yeti cast-iron skillet and might find that it looks somewhat familiar. This is because Yeti acquired cult-favorite Butter Pat last year. The Yeti skillet is just the Butter Pat by a new name, and apart from the logo, the finish, handle shape, and overall design remain unchanged. This pan has a nice velvety surface that holds onto seasoning very well, while still maintaining a smooth, glossier finish that makes vintage-style pans so desirable. Small gripes: the handle design wasn’t a favorite among testers, and the side walls are a slightly shorter than most other cast pans. It’s also a touch heavier, and a couple touches more expensive than our winner. Still, this is an excellent cast-iron pan and makes for a great family heirloom.
The Lodge Cast-Iron Skillet
People tend to be shocked that we don’t place the Lodge as our winner or budget pick. It is a fantastic pan, make no mistake. It has a great factory seasoning that’s resilient from the jump, and the 10″ costs around $20 bucks—so what gives? When it came down to it the Victoria pan had a slicker factory seasoning out of the box and a more comfortable handle design.
Stargazer Cast-Iron Skillet
The Stargazer is a lovely pan. It differs from a lot of other cast-iron pan designs by eschewing a pour spout for a curved lip around the entire edge of the pan. Liquids pour from the pan without drips or clinging to the edge. It also has a spacious and easy-to-grab helper handle. It comes with a lightly pre-seasoned polished surface that was fairly nonstick out of the box, but had definite room to improve over continued use. At 5.2 lb. for the 10″ skillet, it is on the heavier side, which is why this one didn’t win overall. It’s still an excellent, well-designed pan.
Another high-end polished cast-iron pan on the list. Smithey pans are exceptionally gorgeous, so much so that it almost feels wrong cooking with them. However, you should cook with it straight away, as the factory seasoning is a little light on these, and we observed a little bit wearing away after the first couple rounds of cooking prior to us adding an additional layer of seasoning. Gorgeous as they are, Smithey pans are heavy, 5.8 lb. for the 10″ skillet.
This skillet is the second lightest (4.3 lb. at 10″) and has a velvety surface that holds onto seasoning a little better than the smooth polished pans. Like the Stargazer, it also has a curved lip instead of a pour spout, but we found that this pan does have a bit of a dribbling problem, which we weren’t so crazy about. Still, one member of our team who has now lived with this pan for years loves it and uses it every day.
The Lodge Blacklock 96
Lodge released this pan in response to the wave of new and fancy polished pans, and beautiful (quite beautiful), well seasoned (three glossy layers), and lightweight as it is (almost even with the Lancaster), our testers found the handle uncomfortable to hold.
Ooni Cast-Iron Skillet Pan
Ooni is a pizza oven company, and this pan is really designed for cooking in an oven rather than on the stovetop. It has a detachable handle, which is actually a bit of genius design for making it easy and comfortable to grab out of a blazing hot pizza oven. But the sides are too shallow for doing more normal cast-iron things like frying chicken, or sautéing greens. It is, however, great for cornbread and pizookies.
Cast iron skillets we don’t recommend
This pan is pretty similar to your standard Lodge or Victoria, but with a seasoning that’s not quite as nonstick out of the box. We did find, however, that it adds new layers of seasoning quite well, so it’s not a bad budget pan by any means.
The Valor is apparently a favorite in restaurants, but there’s nothing really special to it that makes it stand out. If anything, the pour spouts are so small they might as well not be there at all.
We’re all for innovation, which is what Finex sought to do with its octagonal pan and its bulbous handle, but we didn’t really observe any value from the modifications. While the octagonal shape is for easier flipping you could just use a bigger cast-iron pan for anything you want to flip. And its “speed cool” handle was awkward and bulbous in hand.
Anytime Kitchenaid ventures beyond the small appliance space you never quite know what you’re gonna get. In this case, it’s a cast-iron pan that is totally average in every way except for its modern, minimalist design. We think this pan is too expensive for what you’re getting.
This is Victoria’s answer to the high-end polished cast-iron pan. The seasoning is great, but the pan is heavier than the Lancaster, and we didn’t love all the extra design embellishments. The brass insert on the handle had no practical value (it heated up quicker than the surrounding cast-iron). Also all the extra ridges and divots just meant more places for gunk to get stuck in.
“Ooh, a lid!” Was the universal reaction to this cast-iron pan. If you like the idea of having a lid for your pan, this is your pan. The problem with cast-lids though, is that they don’t benefit from the progressive seasoning development the rest of the pan gets as you cook with it. Lids are only really dealing with evaporative moisture, which makes them even more likely to rust.
This is a super polished cast iron pan with a glossy cooking surface that was nice to work with. However, we noticed quite a few cosmetic issues, like small nicks and rough edges that made it seem like there were some corners cut in the manufacturing process.
Amazon customers really like this pan. It comes with a silicone handle cover and a glass lid which is nice (glass is a better material for a lid than cast-iron). It also has tall, 3-inch sides, which makes this pan great for frying. Beyond that though, the pan is heavy and seemed to be barely pre-seasoned.
Another pan that is just fine. The factory seasoning is minimal, so you’ll have to build that up yourself. There are several better options that are just as affordable from Victoria, Lodge, and others.
This is an affordable pan that looks a lot like a Lodge, but with a lesser factory seasoning, we don’t go out of our way to recommend it.
The seasoning that came on this pan out of the box was pretty bad, and with so many other cheap alternatives that offer much better quality, we don’t see the point in purchasing this pan. It’s also only available in a 15-inch diameter at the time of writing, which is bigger (and heavier) than most people need.
How to care for a cast iron skillet
When you first get your pan, you’ll want to season it. We recommend this even when the pan comes labeled as pre-seasoned. To do this, just lightly rub a bone-dry pan with a thin layer of high-heat, neutral vegetable oil and place it upside down in a scorching oven—450°F-500°F should do the trick. Leave for an hour, turn off the heat, let it cool in the oven, rub with a tiny bit more oil, and store. You can season cast iron as many times as you’d like to build up a glossy nonstick surface; when the pan looks dull or dry, it’s time to moisturize.
No, you can’t chuck it in the dishwasher, and you won’t be using your normal hand wash methods, but a cast-iron skillet really doesn’t require much love. When it’s time to clean up, simply wipe a damp rag across the surface of your pan, then dry it thoroughly. Often, that’ll be enough. But if there are any crusty bits, try pouring coarse salt in there and going at it with a Tawashi scrubber, which has soft bristles that whisk away any detritus. Many will tell you to avoid soap at all costs lest you ruin your careful seasoning, but a little dish soap is fine—just don’t let it sit in hot water. (Read our complete guide to cleaning cast iron.)
For really baked on crumbs, try The Ringer, a handy chain mail scrubber that easily rinses clean between uses. After cleaning your cast iron, be sure to wipe your fry pan very dry—this is key for preventing any rust spots. Then take a teeny bit of neutral cooking oil (like canola or vegetable), smear on a paper towel, and give it a light coating. Take care to get the handle and the bottom as well as the cooking surface, as rust can crop up anywhere. And you’re good to go! It sounds involved, but it really only takes a few minutes. A well-seasoned pan takes virtually no time at all, so dutifully season and you’ll be rewarded.
How to fix rusty spots on cast iron cookware
Toss your skillet in the sink absentmindedly or leave it out in the rain, only to find it’s developed a layer of orange rust? Don’t panic—rusting can happen pretty easily if you allow your pan to come into contact with water for an extended period of time (it is made of iron, after all). But that doesn’t mean it’s ruined. A salt scrub will help with most small spots, while a vinegar soak is the cure for more serious cases. (Read more on dealing with pesky cast-iron rust patches.)
If, after all of that, you’re still intimidated by raw cast iron cookware, you might want to consider an enameled cast iron skillet. It offers all of the heat retention and distribution of a well-seasoned cast iron pan, it has a porcelain enamel to prevent rusting. Unlike a Le Creuset Dutch oven, the best enameled cast iron skillets, like Staub’s, have a dark textured enamel that helps with browning and crisping.
