In some cooking circles, cast iron gets a terrible rep – people think it's old-fashioned, heavy, and hard to take care of. And really, how often do folks nowadays need to hitch up a mule and wagon and leave civilization and Teflon-coated sauté pans behind?
True, cast iron is old; it's been around since the Middle Ages. And it is heavy. No one can dispute that even a small, cast-iron pot has a heft to it that no other cookware has. Nevertheless, cast-iron cookware has a place in today's kitchens, and that doesn’t mean simply hanging on the wall for decoration. Cast iron has much to offer modern-day cooks; it's easy to use, easy to care for, economical, versatile, and durable, and let's face it, it has a nostalgic appeal that no other cookware has. But more compelling than all those reasons is that it's a great cookware that makes great food. In fact, most cast-iron cooks will tell you that food cooked in cast iron tastes better than food cooked in anything else!
Cast-Iron Cooking For Dummies is for those cooks who may want to inject a little adventure and variety into their cooking. If you've never even thought of using cast-iron cookware, or you have a few cast-iron pots lying around, you'll discover all you need to know about making great food using cast iron. Here just a sampling of what you'll find in
Cast-Iron Cooking For Dummies: - Selecting the right cast-iron cookware for you
- Seasoning a new cast-iron pan
- Caring for your cast-iron cookware
- Discovering techniques to enhance your cast-iron cooking
- Enjoying cast-iron cooking in the Great Outdoors
- Tons of delicious recipes, from main and side dishes to desserts and international dishes
- Top Ten lists on ways to make your cast-iron cookware last longer, the best dishes suited for cast iron, and tips for achieving success in cast-iron cooking
So, whether you're a cooking novice or an experienced chef, you can find plenty of enjoyment from cooking with cast iron – and
Cast-Iron Cooking For Dummies can show you the way.
Reader Reviews
This is a very good introduction to cooking with cast iron. The first couple of chapters give you the basics of using cast iron (seasoning, how and what to buy, caring for and using, etc.). The second part of the book has all the recipes with chapters on meats, poultry, seafood, vegetables, breads/cornbreads, desserts, and non-traditional dishes. There is also a chapter on using an outdoor dutch oven and some recipes to go along with that. Overall, the recipes are good but do use more bacon fat and butter than I would like. Every recipe is accompanied by its nutritional information so you can decide if you need to substitute some of the ingredients or not. The hushpuppies recipe has slightly more than 50% of its calories come from fat so let the cook beware. Definitely buy this book if your are new to cast iron cooking. If you are a pro, I might hold off as the book will probably be too introductory.
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