Back to Basics: the wonders of a cast iron pan

I own several pans that you could kill a man with. But it's my grandmother's cast iron pan that intruders should fear the most. Heavier than catholic guilt and as black as the night, it's an angry, fierce beast of a pan. The pan itself has been in our family for over 40 years (no wonder it's so pissed off). My grandmother first bought it at the local market in Mokrin, a small farming town in northern Serbia where my mum grew up. She gave the pan to my mum before she died, and my mum gave it to me when I discovered it in an old cupboard at our house a couple of years ago. It has seen a lot of action in a lot of countries, and it is my trusted general when there is serious work to be done in the kitchen. There are few things more primal than searing a steak on a screaming hot cast iron pan, and many would argue (myself included), that that's the only way to do it if you don't have a charcoal grill available.

Steaks are the mainstay of cast iron pans, and probably the reason most people own one. If you like cooking steaks at home, and by extension are not one of those poor, strange outcasts that likes steaks well done, then you'll probably want to know how to cook one to taste like they do in restaurants. And there are a couple of simple tricks (butter, we meet again), but honestly nothing will make a bigger difference than using a proper cast iron pan. Thankfully, cast iron pans are also the home of great bacon, cornbread, and delicious eggs.

Do it.

There aren't many things that don't taste better in the hot embrace of tempered iron, although in my experience fish can be a total nightmare if you're not careful so stick to your most reliable non-stick one for that. On the subject of non-stick pans, that actually leads me to another fantastic quality of cast iron. It's damn near indestructible. You can basically do every single thing that's bad for non-stick pans and a cast iron pan will laugh at you and spit on your shoes. There's pretty much nothing, short of nuclear detonation, that will irreparably damage cast iron, and even then it'd only need to be re-seasoned.

The other great thing is because they're basically a single forged piece of metal, cast iron pans are relatively cheap and  they last for decades. I remember my grandmother making the most mindblowing potato wedges in lard in this cast-iron pan, and 20 years later it is still in fantastic condition. Cast iron pans that come with a non-stick coating are more expensive, but save yourself the money and put the effort in to season it yourself - trust me, it's worth it.

Unseasoned on the left, old and dirty on the right

Scrubbed clean, and ready to be seasoned

Seasoning is the heart and soul of cast iron pans, and it's actually why I love them. Basically, seasoning involves 'burning in' a coat, or patina, of oil, fat and salty goodness so that it creates a non-stick base inside the pan. Over time, the more you cook in it, the better the seasoning will get. I love the idea that a well seasoned cast iron pan has history, it has a character and personality woven from the tastes and smells of hundreds of great meals. Other pans come and go, but cast iron will stick by your side and never let you down if you treat it right. It takes years to truly season a pan to perfection, so if you are ever lucky enough to get a still-seasoned cast iron pan from a relative, hit them with it and do a runner.

Seasoning for the first time

When you first buy a cast-iron pan, it won't have any seasoning on it (make sure to avoid "non-stick" cast-iron pans because that misses the point entirely). Or, if you get a second hand one or a hand-me-down like I did, it will probably be a bit rusty and the seasoning will be pretty knackered. So what you have to do is scrape/rub all the rust and dirt off of it, and wash it thoroughly with soapy warm water. Keep in mind that this is the ONLY time soapy water will ever touch the pan, because once you season it you must never clean it with any detergent or soap, as it will both ruin the taste and destroy the seasoning. Once you've got a nice clean, smooth cast iron pan, you're ready to start seasoning it.

This is what it should start to look like as you use it

Turn your oven to 200 C / 400 F. Take a small bit of lard or bacon fat, and with a paper kitchen towel rub the grease all over every nook and cranny of the pan, inside and out. Make sure the entire surface has a nice thin layer of oil. Then place the pan face down in the oven on the middle shelf, and put a baking tray below it to catch any oil that drips off. Leave the pan in the oven for an hour or so, and make sure the room is well ventilated as there may well be a bit of smoke. (NOTE: do not use vegetable or corn oil for this step, or you will end up with a sticky glaze on the pan and you'll just have to start again).

After an hour or so, come back and turn on your strongest burner to full heat (ideally gas). Get the best, most reliable oven glove you have, and very carefully remove the pan from the oven and put it onto the gas burner. For the love of your uncharred flesh, understand that at this point the pan will be hotter than hades, so be extra careful. Leave the pan on the burner for 10 minutes or so, and then turn off the heat. Leave the pan to cool (this will take a lot longer than you think). When it's warm to the touch, put a couple of teaspoons of oil into the pan and rub the insides with a paper kitchen towel. Do this every now and then after you've used it. You've now got a seasoned cast-iron pan! This is the start of a beautiful relationship.

Your new best friend

When you're first starting out with a newly seasoned cast iron pan, it's best to stick to fatty things so you can build up a good patina. Burgers are godlike, bacon too, and steak is a no-brainer. Add a little bit of oil, then toss in the food watch the magic happen. It's also good to remember that cast iron takes a little bit longer to reach the right temperature, but it retains heat much longer than thinner non-stick pans.

The wonderful thing about this pan is that once you start to use it, it works for so many great things. It's your go-to for steak, it makes bacon taste better, it handles eggs no problem (watch the heat), hell you can even make pizza with it.

For now, let me leave you with a quick guide to making an awesome steak:

• Turn your oven to it's maximum setting (220+ C), chuck the pan into the oven face up.
• Leave it in there for a good 15-20 minutes while you prep the steak.
• Rub the steak with salt, pepper, and oil (avoid olive oil due to its low smoke point. Groundnut ideally, vegetable/corn oil will do).
• Very carefully take the pan out of the oven and put on your hottest burner at max heat, leave it for a few minutes.
• NEVER pour oil directly into the cast iron pan, unless you fancy having some fun with your fire extinguisher.
• When the pan is screaming hot and smoking, toss the steak in and DO NOT touch it for at least a minute.
• Once you turn over the steak the first time, chuck in a small knob of butter and baste the steak with the juices.

• At this point, instructions differ wildly depending on the cut, the thickness and how you like your steak. For a thinner, leaner cut for example, you can just sear it in the pan and you're done. For a thicker, fattier cut like a solid ribeye, you would sear it in the pan to get a nice crust, then chuck it in the oven for a minute or two on each side to finish it off nicely. It really depends on what cut of meat you've got and how you like it.

• Once you're done cooking, scrape out any bits that have stuck to the pan, wash it out with hot water (remember, no soap!) and dry thoroughly. Pop a few drops of oil into the pan, rub the inside and store it away.

I wish I could tell you there was a shortcut to cooking steak perfectly every single time, but there isn't. I've been practising for years and I still get it wrong if I'm using an unfamiliar cut or size. Using the touch test (quick tip: your cheek is rare, your chin is medium, your forehead is well done) and getting a sense of timing through practice, you'll get it right more often than not. And with a proper cast iron pan on your side, it will taste sublime.