Cast iron skillet
A heavy iron pan that holds its heat when cold food hits it
Solid iron, usually 10 or 12 inches, sold bare or pre-seasoned. It heats slowly and unevenly, then holds that heat when a cold steak lands, which is why people keep one for searing and for cornbread. The cheap ones cost under $30 and outlast their owners. Maintenance is light. Dry it after washing, wipe a little oil over it, and keep long tomato or wine simmers out of it, since acid strips the seasoning back.
People on record
Sorted by strength of stance
Does it: documented as part of their own routine. Recommends: explicitly advises other people to do it. Discusses: covered it substantively without clear personal adoption; this can include criticism or disagreement.
- J. Kenji López-AltDoes it
Chef and food writer · The Food Lab
A 12-inch pre-seasoned Lodge sits on the list of tools he says he actually uses, filed under kitchen essentials rather than among his collaborations. It gets no write-up and no comparison on that page, just a line between the sheet pans and the cooling racks.
Source: kenjilopezalt.com: Shop
Aimed at the same thing
Other entries filed under energy or productivity.
- Gear$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Carbon steel wok
A thin steel pan with sloped sides, sold flat-bottomed for Western stoves
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - Gear$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Digital kitchen scale
Weighing ingredients in grams instead of scooping them by volume
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - Gear$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.
Enameled Dutch oven
A lidded cast iron pot under a glass coating, for braises and stock
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - Gear$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Immersion blender
A stick blender that goes into the pot rather than the pot into a jug
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - Gear$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.
Predictive cooking thermometer
A multi-sensor probe that finds the center of a roast and predicts finish time
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Hard thinking before lunch
Book the mentally demanding work for the morning and stop making big calls late in the day
On record from 2 of 62 tracked people: 2 do it
Gear entry · notes paraphrased from cited sources, quoted excerpts copied from the transcript they link to. Not medical advice. Not affiliated with, endorsed by, or reviewed by anyone listed. How this works.