nnot a camp oven but good deal on Lodge

[junglejim83]

Glen,
I hear you you on the weight considerations. Until I had my kid last year, I considered going into the woods with more than an alcohol ultralight stove and 1 liter aluminum pot excessive. But I do love cast iron cooked food.

As I get used to the FGRV becoming base camp it would be silly for me to not carry a little extra weight. I've already traded my 25lb pack for a 1000 lb trailer.

Tom,
What size dutch oven do you use when camping? I am having trouble wrapping my head around packing my 6 quart/20lb dutch oven.

[Bobbie Mayer]

I need to get a cast iron skillet. I baked naan at our last campout and it would have worked so much better with a skillet that retained heat better (but was delicious anyway). I wonder if I can find one that uses the same lid as my DO? (Which I think is a 5 quart tall.)

Oh that reminds me my extra camp oven lid turns over to work as a griddle. But it needs some work- I'll have to tell the story of why in another post!

[Tom Trostel]

Jim,
I travel with a 8" Lodge (2 qt.) when it's just the 2 of us.

[Casita Greg]

Lodge cast iron is well made, but also I agree that they are a bit rough on the cooking side "out of the box." I have several, and the first thing I do is spend some time in the garage with my vibrating sander, and sand the interiors smooth as a baby's butt. Then I wash, dry and do a proper seasoning on them. It really quickens the seasoning and greatly increases the non-stick characteristics of the pans. I also have some "classic" cast iron skillets which I love as well. I love my Erie's and Griswalds. One thing I've noticed is that many of the older cast iron pans are a bit thinner and lighter, not an undesirable asset. They're still heavy enough to retain good residual heat but aren't quite as "clunky" as most of today's cast iron products are.

[EllPea in CA]

Originally Posted by Bobbie Mayer

I need to get a cast iron skillet. I baked naan at our last campout and it would have worked so much better with a skillet that retained heat better (but was delicious anyway). I wonder if I can find one that uses the same lid as my DO? (Which I think is a 5 quart tall.)

Oh that reminds me my extra camp oven lid turns over to work as a griddle. But it needs some work- I'll have to tell the story of why in another post!

Bobbie, I would like to know more about baking naan in a cast iron skillet!

[Bobbie Mayer]

I just used a recipe I found that didn't require yogurt (as I didn't have any) and mixed and let it rise (in the DO in the sun) and then my plan was to bake pieces in the DO over coals but it wasn't getting hot enough, so I ended up just cooking in the frying pan over propane. I think it would have been easier in a cast iron pan over propane, though. It was surprisingly easy and turned out tasty. Took a few minutes per side to bake but I kept the pieces warm in the DO (since I was no longer using it to cook them).