[kfoley]

We use seasoned cast iron for eggs with very few issues. We used to use butter which led to some sticking, however recently we've been using olive oil and it's much better, with little to no sticking depending on what style we're cooking the eggs.

[ronyeh]

Wow I've had the opposite experience with my lodge cast iron pan.

Butter is the only thing that allows my eggs to not stick.

Olive oil and vegetable oils in general cause more sticking.

Maybe we preheat our pans differently? Do you use very low heat but preheat for a longer time?

[ronyeh]

Thanks for the replies everyone. I've loved and cooked on my cast iron and carbon steel pans for years but recently life got busy and I went back to non stick for some things (like scrambled eggs or salmon skin).

I think we just forget how low maintenance a non stick pan is for normal people who don't care about cooking. To normal folks, the idea of preheating a pan slowly, or wiping some oil on with a piece of paper and reheating the pan to dry it (after cooking!) are extra steps that take time out of your busy day. I do notice I use fewer paper towels once switching back to nonstick. I probably also use less oil in my cooking too!

[rpastuszak]

Do you mean just salmon skin? How do you prepare it?

[tlavoie]

I just smoked a batch of salmon, skin-on. When we eat some, some very happy dogs get the skin. I would be curious if there was a good prep for human consumption though.

[tlavoie]

I'm not usually a fan of the texture straight off the meat, but frying it up does sound good! And after all, this has been smoked already, so there's a ton of flavor.

[ronyeh]

Humans can eat it the same way. I just pan fry until it's crispy and add some salt to taste. My kids love fried salmon skin (along with salmon + rice + dry seaweed wrap).

[rpastuszak]

This sounds great! A salmon version of pork cracklings but somewhat more umami.

[arcticbull]

Once properly seasoned (not in the r/castiron sense, but cooked on for a while on top of a solid base coast of seasoning) I just don't really get any sticking at all on my lodge pans. Oil or butter. There's recommendations for pan temp, etc, but I'd say just cook on it some more and it stops mattering.

When I first get a new pan it's very picky with technique, but cooking some bacon and steak on it for a few weeks, and nothing sticks anymore.

[jghn]

I love my Lodge but modern cast irons like Lodge can never get that true non-stick texture that people talk about, although it can reach a not bad level [1]

[1] https://www.seriouseats.com/the-truth-about-cast-iron#toc-my...

[arcticbull]

This guy seemed to manage. Here's a video of an egg cooked on a cast iron skillet without oil. [1]

It doesn't have to be absolutely perfect without oil - a thin coat will yield perfectly comparable results.

[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33OaD3RikXo

[tass]

You can sand them as a DIY project. I haven’t done this myself but am now considering it after reading how easy it is.

[snazz]

Just wear a respirator if you do, that dust isn’t good for you :)

[meristohm]

Higher heat means there's a more robust steam layer, but then that means you either need to be stirring or flipping or adding some water and a lid for steaming.

To heat the pan I turn the electric range to high for a bit and then down to 4 (of 10), and then I turn it off before the eggs are done, as the thick cast-iron pan and the glass and coil has enough residual energy. Same for popcorn, same for pancakes, etc.

[bluedino]

No love for shortening, lard, or good old bacon grease (if you're eating eggs you're likely eating bacon as well)?

[kfoley]

Interesting, I've also got a Lodge. I use a low heat with a longer preheat, usually somewhere between a 3 or 4 out of 10 for for I'd say 2-3 minutes or so to preheat (not sure if that's relatively long or not).

Maybe it's the seasoning? I haven't seasoned ours in a long time but the last time I did I used flax seed oil.

[lost_tourist]

I generally preheat my cast iron until drops of water instantly sizzle away or for searing dance around the pan . I pretty much only use extra virgin olive oil (low heat cooking) or avacado oil (high heat cooking, like searing a steak) in a well seasoned cast iron pan. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leidenfrost_effect

[meristohm]

Same here. One thing that works really well to cook eggs in our daily-use cast-iron pan is to add a tablespoon or so of water and put a lid on; the steam cooks the top of the eggs this way. Not great if you like your eggs brown and crispy, but it is very easy to clean; if there are any stray bits I just wipe them out with paper and put that in the compost.

[lost_tourist]

yeah I use my hexclad or well seasoned cast iron for eggs. An unsung hero is also carbon steel, as it's lighter and smoother (unless want to pay arm and a leg for super smooth bottom ground cast iron). Stainless is great for sauces or something that has a lot of acid (which can eat away at your seasoning in in cast/carbon steel). Carbon steel is super easy to season as well because it's extremely smooth.

[SAI_Peregrinus]

If you've got a respirator & an angle grinder, cast iron is easy to grind smooth.

[lost_tourist]

but y tho? I use (in addition to my carbon steel pans) the standard cast iron el cheapo version of Lodge and nothing sticks if you season your pan and heat to the proper temperature.