The Down Range Forum
Member Section => Cooking & Recipes => Topic started by: PegLeg45 on April 21, 2014, 12:36:39 PM
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I have always loved to grill and smoke various foods outdoors, and recently have began setting up to do some Dutch oven cooking.
I have used cast iron skillets and griddles for many years, but never for slow-cooking/baking.
I hope to be posting a few recipes and/or experiences soon.
Anyone else a fan of, or old hand at this?
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I make a skillet corn bread that's pretty tasty! Lack a Dutch oven at the moment, AKA, The oven of yesteryear.
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I have all my grandmother's old cast iron cookware. She didn't use a Dutch oven though.
I just got a new 12" Carolina from our local ag supply store last week...... It is pre-seasoned, but not knowing what they use, I want to clean it and season it my self before cooking in it.
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Pork product+ beans= win. Chillie is awesome too. Otherwise any thing you would cook in a crock pot is great in a slow cooker.
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When I was an Explorer leader, we would use a cast iron dutch oven with a rim around the top of the lid. maybe an inch tall.
We would dig a pit a bit bigger around and deeper than the dutch oven and burn wood to hot embers...then scoop them out leaving the bottom covered and put the dutch ove in....and cover the sides and top with the embers.
Don't remember what we made...but it was always good.
http://www.outdoorcooking.com/camp-chef-classic-10-dutch-oven.html?gdftrk=gdfV25448_a_7c1850_a_7c7563_a_7cSDO10&gclid=CI_564668r0CFdBcMgodNG4Ayg
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I use peanut oil to season my cast iron because it has a high smoke point. And I never use soap to wash cast iron except when I haven't seasoned it yet. I may have said this before but my ex wrecked my big skillet by putting it in the dishwasher. It took years to get it solid black again. Now it's almost non-stick.
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A high smoke point might not be the best way.
Some say that a temperature around the smoke point of the oil or fat should be targeted since this will allow vaporization of impurities from the oil, and polymerization and carbonization to occur.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seasoning_%28cookware%29
Here is what Lodge sells for the seasoning job. Seems expensive. I use bacon grease.
http://www.lodgemfg.com/cooking-accessories/seasoning-spray
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Lard! Canola oil and crisco be damned! Stick with good old lard!
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Some good stuff if you are into cast iron.
I read a couple of years ago that the seasoning process occurs when the heated iron with the carbonized oil has it's expanded pores filled with the carbon material...and when it cool, it compresses the trapped carbon material ...
Haven't see that verified anywhere else...but his link gets close to that.
http://www.cookingissues.com/2010/02/16/heavy-metal-the-science-of-cast-iron-cooking/
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Lard! Canola oil and crisco be damned! Stick with good old lard!
That is what my grandmother used.....so I do too. Pure lard.
The secret is to put just enough of a coating on that it renders and goes into the pores, and wiping off the excess so that it doesn't get rancid if stored for long periods without use.
I have some of her skillets that are 60+ years old and they have better non-stick surfaces than the best teflon pans.
And, like Frank said, soap is a no-no....unless you are planning to re-season.
Solus, the one you linked to is like the one I have. Made with the lip around the lid for top-coals style cooking.
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That is what my grandmother used.....so I do too. Pure lard.
It only makes sense. These high tech, chemically processed oils and "lard" like substances are modern chemistry at it's worst anyway! What was good for granny is good enough for me!
I don't cook with any vegetable oils, shortenings, margarine's, et al... Only lard, duck fat, butter, olive oil, peanut oil, sesame oil, etc...
When a chemical company, Monsanto, is one of the largest food "like" producers, we have a problem!
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Take it from a person with a long history in faming. Without Monsanto, the world would be a hungry place.