Lodge Logic L5SK3 Pre-Seasoned Cast-Iron 8-Inch Skillet
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Kitchen and Housewares Reviews of Lodge Logic L5SK3 Pre-Seasoned Cast-Iron 8-Inch Skillet
Customer Review: I LOVE this skillet!
Summary: 5 Stars
I actually purchased this skillet at Wal-Mart for about 10 or 12 bucks. I forgot the actual price, but still not much for something that can last a lifetime and is made in the U.S.A. Really, we as consumers should try to buy as many American made products as we can when we have a choice. Of course, when it make sense to do so.
So far this is a great skillet for small jobs. It says it's pre-seasoned, but honestly I think that's just to keep it from rusting at the stores. The real seasoning comes from usage. The more you use it, the better it will get.
I have to say that I really love this skillet. It's usually found sitting on my stove because I use it so much. I pretty much use it daily.
Here's a list of what I have cooked in this skillet: fried eggs (2), scrambled eggs (3), omelletes (2), fried chicken breasts, baked chicken breasts (2), chicken fajitas, beef fajitas, sauteed veggies (onions, bell peppers, mushrooms, etc), grilled ham & cheese sandwiches, grilled cheese sandwiches, and more!
I have pretty much designated this skillet as my egg and breakfast skillet. It's the perfect size for frying eggs. There's smaller skillets, but personally I don't think they give you enough room. Granted, I haven't tried them but I think the 8 inch pan seems to be the best size for me.
Here's a bit of advice on this skillet. Use it, and use it often. The more you do, the better it gets. If you want to use it fry eggs, then try what I do. I pre-heat the pan on low heat. On my gas stove, I set the dial on 2. Of course, stoves vary but hopefully that gives you an indication of how low I have it. Any lower, and you will hardly see a flame. It will take a bit to warm up, but it will definitely warm up good.
Once it's ready, I coat the bottom and sides of the skillet with butter. If the butter burns and turns brown, then it's too hot. If it melts quickly and coasts the skillet without burning, then it's the right temp. Crack a couple of eggs into the skillet and let them cook until they are ready to flip. Go a head a give the skillet a shake when the eggs look just about ready to flip. I recommend the Lodge skillet mits for this purpose. Hopefully, your eggs will slide around. If not, then give them a bit of a nudge with a spatula. You might have to work underneath them a bit to loosen them up.
Once you have the eggs sliding around, with a quick flick of the wrist you can flip them over. Or you can use your spatula, but that's no fun. It will also make you look like a pro if you can flip them with a flick of the wrist.
If this didn't work for you and your eggs stuck, then your skillet just needs some mileage. The more you use it, the better it will get. Remember to wipe down and oil your skillet after use. That will protect the skillet so it can be ready for the next time you whip something up.
Anyway, great skillet! I should buy another! LOL
Customer Review: So far, so good
Summary: 5 Stars
I've been using this for about a month now together with a Lodge 3-quart enameled cast iron pot. I like them both and of course they've used for different purposes. This 8-inch skillet is a good size for cooking a small dish for one person like me. I've been using this pan mainly for frying dishes like eggs, fish, sausages, chilli, vegetable, etc. and so far it has performed well. Not 100% non-stick but it's not too difficult to clean.
Here are just a few comments for future buyers.
First, it can rust so requires more care than the enameled pot. Don't forget to rub in some vegetable oil after cleaning with water and wipe dry. I didn't put enough oil in the first couple of weeks and I saw a small rust spot so I tend to leave in some oil to season instead of wipe excess off with paper towel.
Second, if you can, I recommend that you buy a matching lid. I read this from an earlier buyer and I found it to be an excellent idea. The lid keeps food smell off quite a lot even when frying fish (which tends to smell more than other food). It also allows you to use the skillet to cook food with liquid like bean soup or chilli. And it keeps the food warm for a long time, of course. A little note on the lid, though, is that if you want to fry something crispy maybe you shouldn't use it because water droplets from inside the lid will keep your food on the moist side, not crispy. Anyway, I like the lid - it's handy especially when sauteing vegetable.
Third, a little bit on the minus side is that space inside the skillet is quite limited. So you have to manuever your food around and it means you cannot cook a large dish. But you know what, I think this smallish size is good as it keeps me from making too much food and so preventing me from over-eating !! For example, you can fill up some veggie and fish or a pork chop inside this skillet and the food portion will be enough for one person. So it's like a food portion control device for me:-)
Fourth, don't leave your food inside the skillet after you finish cooking unless it has liquid. I accidentally left some broccoli, forgetting that a cast iron pan will keep the heat for long, et voila ! it burned.
Lastly, I like this pan because it doesn't need much oil when cooking and so it's good for your health. I only spray some oil in or put a little butter and the food and veggies is good enough. But of course, I like to leave some oil in after each usage so the pan is normally oily.
In summary, I think this pan is excellent value for money and I highly recommend it. The lid was more expensive than the pan itself but I'm glad I bought it as well. It was a good decision that I carried both the pan and the pot to Thailand !! (well, figuratively speaking, as they were checked-in:-)) They're worth the effort. I look forward to cooking with it more often in the future.
Customer Review: Cast Iron - Cannot Be Topped
Summary: 5 Stars
I own 2 of these little pans, 1 of them for over 30 years & the other had been my mom's for many years beyond that. Had I known back then what I know now (how many times have we all said that?), I would have bought mostly cast iron instead of all the other cookware. It does take a little time to properly care for cast iron but it's sooooo worth it to me. These cast iron skillets turn out a great grilled cheese sandwich, too! Just use a lid on the pan & be sure to cook only on medium-low heat.
Several years ago my mom gave me a wonderful recipe (see below) to make cornbread on the stovetop in the 8" skillet using a lid, flipping the cake over once the batter looks almost done to cook the other side. You have to use 2 spatulas to flip it (the reason for using the 8" skillet). I tried flipping a 10" ONCE & found it takes a better woman than I to get that right! This technique makes a more moist & better cornbread according to my DH & me. Another added benefit is that you don't have to heat up the oven/kitchen.
In a small bowl, mix 1 cup of **self-rising white or yellow cornmeal, 1 Tbs. sugar (optional). In a separate small bowl, whip 1 egg with fork & stir in 2/3 cup milk. Add egg/milk mixture to cornmeal. Stir together just until all is moist. Melt 1 to 2 Tbs. shortening in skillet over medium heat. Sprinkle pan with cornmeal (not too thick) stirring to brown it. This will give you a crustier side. Lower heat to medium-low & add batter to pan and cover. Check batter & once it's looking a little more done than a pancake would, flip the cake using 2 sturdy nylon spatulas. I prefer to cover after flipping & it will be done in less than 5 more minutes. For crustier bread leave lid off after flipping. **Or use regular cornmeal with 2 tsp. aluminum free baking powder, 3/4 tsp. salt in place of self-rising - I'm sort of guessing at these amounts as a replacement for self-rising.
If you'd like to read my method of seasoning cast iron, go to the Lodge Biscuit pan and read my review there. Lodge Logic Pre-Seasoned Drop Biscuit Pan
My DH laughs at me because of my admiration of raw cast iron, enameled cast iron and how I care for them. I now have 2-10", 1-12", the biscuit pan, muffin pans, as well as the Lodge Pizza Pan. The pizza pan makes a wonderful crust. If we have left over pizza, we melt butter in one of the larger skillets over medium heat. Put 2 or 3 slices in & cover with a lid. Reduce heat to medium low. It will take just a little patience but it will taste as if it were fresly baked. You'll probably stop warming pizza in the microwave.
Customer Review: Lodge 8-inch Preseasoned Skillet works well
Summary: 4 Stars
I purchased one of these skillets about a year ago. So far it has been quite a learning experience learning how to cook with these. I mostly used teflon skillets so I had to make a few adjustments to cooking with cast iron.
When I first received the skillet, the preseasoning seemed to be flaking off. I've recently bought a preseasoned Dutch Oven from lodge which had the same flakiness, so I am assuming this "preseasoned" layer isn't very strong, but strong enough to hold back rust.The surface was also a bit rougher than what I thought it would be, but I've read that it smooths out over time.
I scrubbed off the preseasoning and reseasoned with a thin layer of crisco @ 425 degrees F. After seasoning it, I have cooked with it and though some foods will stick a little bit, most foods slide around given that the oil and the skillet has heated up properly. Hopefully in time I will get that fantastic non-stick surface that I hear about with older cast iron skillets.
So far, I have really enjoyed cooking with it and love the fact that I can sear meats at high temperatures and move from stovetop to oven and not worry about toxic fumes or ruining the non-stick surface. For those that are coming from using teflon pans, there are a few steps that need to be added to cook with cast iron that I have learned:
- Remember to warm the skillet before adding food ( I warm my skillet about 4-5 minutes on med-high)
- When cooking eggs with newly seasoned cast iron, add more oil than you normally would, otherwise its a sticky mess
- Remember to dry thoroughly after washing and apply a layer of oil. I didn't dry my skillet once and it left a weird watermark on the skillet. Not sure if it affected the seasoning in anyway, but better not to risk it.
- Remember that the skillet remains HOT even after its been sitting for while (this includes the handle)
- Don't use nylon or regular plastic utensils on the cast iron. The rough surface will scratch the utensil and the high heat will melt it! Instead consider wood, silicone or metal.
Overall, I recommend this product to others, considering that they are willing to put in a little extra care for it. It will reward you with wonderfully seared meats, meals that stay warm over the course of dinner and an extremely durable kitchen tool. This doesn't mean I would toss out my teflon skillet though, since it still has its uses, but my cast iron skillet is the main workhorse.
Customer Review: Love It - It Lives On My Stove
Summary: 5 Stars
I use this skillet so often it basically just lives on my stove. I live alone and usually cook for one, and this skillet is the perfect size for me. I debated between this and the Lodge Logic Pre-Seasoned 6-1/2-Inch Skillet, and I'm glad I chose the 8 inch pan. I've since seen the 6-1/2 inch skillet in a store, and that would've been too small. My current favorite entree is chicken fried tofu (I'm vegan), and this easily holds two slices of tofu, and will accommodate 3 slices with just a little pushing. So this small skillet lets me fry up 2-3 slices of tofu without wasting too much oil - perfect!
I'm a recent convert to cast iron, and I'm cooking more than ever just to have an excuse to use the skillets (in addition to this one, I also own the Lodge Logic Pre-Seasoned 10-1/2-Inch Round Griddle, which is perfect for tortillas and pancakes, and the Lodge Logic Pre-Seasoned Combo Cooker, which is perfect for...well, everything else). The sear you get with these pans is remarkable. I frequently saute mushrooms and fry up veggie patties, and I'm still enthralled with the perfect sear on the patties and the lovely browning of the mushrooms. Yum!
One note: I personally recommend not cooking with olive oil in cast iron pans. The pans heat up more quickly and get hotter than my other pans, so the olive oil starts smoking sooner than I'm used to. And once it's smoked, it leaves a sticky residue in the pans, no matter how hard I scrub with a brush under super hot water. I'm sure others have used olive oil successfully, but I'm not always attentive enough to keep it from smoking and getting sticky. I've been happily using safflower oil, which is a neutral flavored, high heat oil that cleans up easily without soap.
Bottom line: I love this pan, and would heartily recommend it to anyone who's willing to use and care for it properly.