BSK makes use of a formidable batterie de cuisine. Pots and pans of all sizes. All Clad. Paderno. Cuisisinart. Creuset. Dansk. Stainless steel. Copper. Non-stick. HG, on the other hand, uses one large pan (except when boiling water for pasta, of course). HG’s pan is black and cast iron with a lovely patina obtained from many, many years of use. HG’s love affair with cast iron cooking goes back to HG’s very early childhood more than half a century ago. Little HG was living — for a very brief time — in a boarding house in Georgia and HG still retains happy memories of a smiling African-American woman wielding a big black pan in a cozy kitchen. What came out of that pan were any number of savory foods that comforted little HG. These days HG uses the pan to fry fish, brown chicken, fry pork chops, pan broil steaks and hamburgers. Yes, there are folks who are enthusiastic about putting hamburgers and steaks on the barbecue grill. HG sticks to his pan. Better heat control. And, the meat gets a delicious, dark crust. HG’s seasonings are Malden’s Smoked Sea Salt, smoked black pepper (or Aleppo pepper) and in the case of pork chops and chicken, Goya’s indespensable Adobo spice mix.
Moan Ami,
Cruising through as I like to do a few Hungry Gerald savories, I came across your cast iron pan paean and felt a great pang of recognition. Yea, although it has served more humble fare, my old Lodge has been serving up supper for decades.
At the moment, mine is in the oven full of quartered plum tomatoes drying to an intense char. And when that’s done, baking tonight’s ginger lime chicken. Give me a cast iron pan, I always say, and I can always cook, roast, fry, steam, braise and simmer something. love to you and BSK
Yes. As I”ve often remarked to my magnificent wife: Give me a big black pan and thou. Plus, a nice piece of sirloin, of course.