What has MADE your day today?

[JohnMBrowning]

My 8" I got from my mom, so maybe its pre 50's??? USA on the bottom.
Got the 6" and 12" from neighbors, they too say USA on the bottom and very well could be that old - I recall him saying he got them in alaska and he was kinda a foodie...
These three actually look to be of fairly decent quality - dense, non grainy cast iron, with nice radii at the edges. No identifiable names to be seen, but the 12" does say "SK".
Bought the 10" from wallyworld ~5 years ago, so yeah I know that its cheap - it only cost me $9 - I got it specifically for hashbrowns since the 12" was too big and the 8" was too small... but I'm finding that it is actually my goto size. The cast iron seems a little coarser, with a grainy texture and a noticeable transition at the edges.

I'm pretty certain that the issue with the bigger pans is that flame impingement area is only ~3" diameter --- even a 'stellar high quality' pan would have difficulty heating to the edge uniformly if the flame is set to not scorch/super heat the center --- as shown in that pic - that is flame height/diameter that keeps cooking oil from smoking that I use 90% of the time. The 12" pan is essentially useless for anything other than browning because the center gets too damn hot while the edges stay relatively cool --- any oil you put in the pan heats in the center and flows to the edges and pools while the center scorches any remaining oil. I've always had this problem with my aluminum/teflon pans in the past too --- the square griddles I kept show the same ~4" scorch ring in the center, even though they have nice 'heat pipe' patterns on the bottom.

Really makes me wonder how people cook with the thin stainless pans? I would guess the problem is much worse for them...

[Caveman Jim]

Was able to pay off our mortgage 5 years early!!!!

[Selador]

My 8" I got from my mom, so maybe its pre 50's??? USA on the bottom.
Got the 6" and 12" from neighbors, they too say USA on the bottom and very well could be that old - I recall him saying he got them in alaska and he was kinda a foodie...
These three actually look to be of fairly decent quality - dense, non grainy cast iron, with nice radii at the edges. No identifiable names to be seen, but the 12" does say "SK".
Bought the 10" from wallyworld ~5 years ago, so yeah I know that its cheap - it only cost me $9 - I got it specifically for hashbrowns since the 12" was too big and the 8" was too small... but I'm finding that it is actually my goto size. The cast iron seems a little coarser, with a grainy texture and a noticeable transition at the edges.

I'm pretty certain that the issue with the bigger pans is that flame impingement area is only ~3" diameter --- even a 'stellar high quality' pan would have difficulty heating to the edge uniformly if the flame is set to not scorch/super heat the center --- as shown in that pic - that is flame height/diameter that keeps cooking oil from smoking that I use 90% of the time. The 12" pan is essentially useless for anything other than browning because the center gets too damn hot while the edges stay relatively cool --- any oil you put in the pan heats in the center and flows to the edges and pools while the center scorches any remaining oil. I've always had this problem with my aluminum/teflon pans in the past too --- the square griddles I kept show the same ~4" scorch ring in the center, even though they have nice 'heat pipe' patterns on the bottom.

Really makes me wonder how people cook with the thin stainless pans? I would guess the problem is much worse for them...

Gotta say, you have paid a lot more attention to pans and flames than I have. LOL

Maybe I have just been lucky? Or maybe I just accept what is 'good enough'. I dunno.

I am wondering about something... My gas 'stove', is simply the side burner off of a large BBQ, that I built into a counter. Flame pattern on that thing is a lot wider than yours. I mean, where it actually comes out. Not just the tips of the flames.

Looking at yours, there is obviously a diffuser under the grate. Right on the top of the burner itself.

I wonder if you put a larger diffuser disk, there, instead of on top of the grate, would it help?

Nothing like as large as the steel disk you have shown us. Only maybe 1/2 an inch, to an inch wider than the diffuser that is already there as part of the burner???

[RocketScott]

Was able to pay off our mortgage 5 years early!!!!

Right on!

That's a good feeling

[Pablo]

Got a Yahoo Finance alert: "Investors should brace for the Bernie Sanders selloff"

[JohnMBrowning]

/quote]


Looking at yours, there is obviously a diffuser under the grate. Right on the top of the burner itself.

I wonder if you put a larger diffuser disk, there, instead of on top of the grate, would it help?

Nothing like as large as the steel disk you have shown us. Only maybe 1/2 an inch, to an inch wider than the diffuser that is already there as part of the burner???

Yeah, I don't think I could move the flame very far/far enough to make a difference... I still think the solution is to spread the heat with thermal mass/loading - its obvious the pan can't do all of it on its own, so the diffuser plate seems like the logical way to drive the heat radially.

I'm thawing some rockfish for tomorrow... I cooked a fillet a couple of weeks ago in the 10" with panko and oil - it turned out with the classic --- brown, almost over done color from the center ~4", transitioning thru light brown, to the barely any color at the outer edge. I expect with the diffuser that it will come out much more uniform this time. Same goes with bacon.... I have always been cutting the strips in half so that I can cycle the pieces thru the center hot zone --- a full strip results in a crispy middle of the strip with soggy under cooked ends.

Getting an even brown and minimizing any oil/grease smoking is the goal.... Mom raised me to like the "Anderson Crispy" --- brown and crunchy, but not burnt.... okay, maybe a little burnt for some things Amazed I don't have a deep fryer --- have always wanted a Fry Daddy, but the whole 'stay away from deep fried foods' shit kinda keeps me away.... Although this vid made me want one more than ever!!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xHi75sMAPL8
Tell me those don't look like something to die for!!!! If I get brave enough, I may actually try it in a pot on the stove.... the heat diffuser will work well for that too! Until then, these have been awesome....
https://foodwishes.blogspot.com/2018/10 ... pomme.html

[Selador]

Yeah, I don't think I could move the flame very far/far enough to make a difference... I still think the solution is to spread the heat with thermal mass/loading - its obvious the pan can't do all of it on its own, so the diffuser plate seems like the logical way to drive the heat radially.

I'm thawing some rockfish for tomorrow... I cooked a fillet a couple of weeks ago in the 10" with panko and oil - it turned out with the classic --- brown, almost over done color from the center ~4", transitioning thru light brown, to the barely any color at the outer edge. I expect with the diffuser that it will come out much more uniform this time. Same goes with bacon.... I have always been cutting the strips in half so that I can cycle the pieces thru the center hot zone --- a full strip results in a crispy middle of the strip with soggy under cooked ends.

Getting an even brown and minimizing any oil/grease smoking is the goal.... Mom raised me to like the "Anderson Crispy" --- brown and crunchy, but not burnt.... okay, maybe a little burnt for some things Amazed I don't have a deep fryer --- have always wanted a Fry Daddy, but the whole 'stay away from deep fried foods' shit kinda keeps me away.... Although this vid made me want one more than ever!!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xHi75sMAPL8
Tell me those don't look like something to die for!!!! If I get brave enough, I may actually try it in a pot on the stove.... the heat diffuser will work well for that too! Until then, these have been awesome....
https://foodwishes.blogspot.com/2018/10 ... pomme.html

Man! I hope you get it figured out.

And no fair making me feel like I can't live without something I have never seen before, let alone tasted!

[JohnMBrowning]

Try making the ones in the second link with the oven method --- its amazingly simple, and they are fantastic! A cross between a dinner roll, mash potatoes and a tater tot! And they reheat perfectly - perfect with eggs in the morning instead of toast or hashbrowns. You don't even need the muffin pan - any sheet/pan would work - the dough doesn't move from what I've seen.

[Old Growth]

Post war cast iron pans are usually made of cast with recycled iron/steel. They are usually a lower quality iron and cast thicker.

Early cast iron heats much more evenly and is much lighter/pleasant to handle. Just something to ponder when you see the old Griswold stuff and wonder why its so much $. Not just because of the collectors, but because of its quality.

I still think that burner is way to small and it would drive me nuts. I would have to change it out. Your just wasting gas and time heating up a plate every time you use it.

My stove has a very large diameter burner, two med and one simmer. I have it running on propane also.

[Old Growth]

Notice the spoon I put in for thickness reference? Much thinner than today’s stuff. Tons smoother also. Expensive, but very much worth it.

Try one sometime. You will be impressed.

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[JohnMBrowning]

I still think that burner is way to small and it would drive me nuts. I would have to change it out. Your just wasting gas and time heating up a plate every time you use it.

Yeah - thats my conclusion too... but they were all like that for the longest time... This is only the second gas stove I've used in all the places I've lived, and it seems to me anything that was pre 'gourmet style' (before early 2000's) stove was the same --- three 3" burners with a smaller simmer burner.

I assume bigger burners would be better, but I wonder what the trade off/down side would be? A cold center on low heat? And I don't know what the right/perfect size would be. A new stove just isn't on the plan since this one works just fine --- I just need to make it do what i want. If I can get the steel plates for free/cheap, cool - gas is cheap, so its just a matter of preheating the pan while you're prepping -- so far its not that bad.

[Wacarry]

In Vegas for Furniture Market and a customer’s wife won $12,000 on a slot machine. Made my day, made her
Month!

[SporkBoy]

Chilling with the wife and "friends".

[MadPick]

Chilling with the wife and "friends".

Dude . . . that is amazing.

[leadcounsel]

Was able to pay off our mortgage 5 years early!!!!

Great JOB!

I paid my last two mortgages off over 20 years early!

[I sold them.]