Wagner Cast Iron
Cast Iron Cookware has been in use for several hundred years. Wagner Ware is one of the old time brands that are still in use today. Back in 1881 Bernard P. Wagner of Sidney, Ohio began designing Wagner Cast Iron for his Wagner Manufacturing Company – or as it was called, Wagner Ware. Although Wagner Ware is still manufactured and available today, the old pieces are prized by collectors. Cast Iron pots and pans have been handed down for generations from mother to daughter. Wagner Cast Iron doesn’t wear out – with a little care and seasoning you can take an old rusty pan and go right on using it for another 25 years.
Mr. Wagner developed a proprietary blend of metals for his cookware especially suited for cast iron cooking. The even heating and heat retention makes this cookware superb for every cooking job. Deep frying, searing, baking, grilling – all easily accomplished because Wagner Cast Iron is naturally non-stick. You can use cast iron on your stove top, in the oven, on your barbeque grill and it is just made for a campfire.
I come from a long line of Southern cooks that believe that certain foods just don’t “turn out right” unless they are cooked in a cast iron pan. I have an old Wagner Cast Iron Skillet that I inherited from a friend that I literally use every day of my life. Fried Chicken, fried green tomatoes, and fried catfish all need a cast iron skillet to taste “just like Mama made ‘em”. That’s because, chances are, Mama was cooking all those southern specialties in a cast iron pan. Try to make everyone’s favorite country fried steak in a regular frying pan…it’s just not the same. So many generations of Southern cooks have fried chicken in a big old cast iron skillet that a large, deep skillet is now universally known as a “chicken fryer”.
]]>
And then we come to the Queen of Soul Food. If you were raised right, you know it by its other name – cornbread. I’m telling you cornbread cooked in a glass Pyrex dish or a metal baking pan is not really cornbread. Real southern cornbread has to be made in a cast iron skillet. You have to put some oil or bacon grease in a skillet and let it get hot in the oven. Carefully pour in your cornbread batter and put it back in the oven. After about 25 minutes you will have something out of this world…brown and crunchy on the bottom, melt in your mouth tender on the inside. Only a dutch oven full of collard greens can rival it.
There are many varieties and styles of Wagner Cast Iron. Some of the pans you should try in addition to your standard skillet are:
Grill Pans
Griddles
Dutch Ovens
Muffin Pans
Corn Stick Pan
A grill pan is the perfect way to sear a steak on your stove top. A cast iron griddle makes short work of breakfast – pancakes, French toast, bacon and eggs all come out perfect on a griddle. And don’t forget the hash brown potatoes. Of course, the one pan no cook should ever be without is a Cast Iron Dutch Oven – it is simply a large pot with a tight fitting lid that can go from stove top to oven for anything that needs a nice, slow cook. It is the perfect choice for pot roast, roasted chicken, and that game day favorite, chili.
Whether you are a seasoned cook or are just getting started in the kitchen, don’t forget to give cast iron a try. You will find that cast iron will become your very favorite cooking pieces in no time. And when you are out shopping, keep your eyes open for used or antique Wagner Ware. You can’t wear it out and you will have delighted children and grandchildren when you are ready to pass it on!
Lynette Royal is a writer who specializes in Southern cooking and living the good life, Southern Style. You can check out her latest website at wagner cast iron where she talks about the benefits of cooking with cast iron including cast iron grill pan, griddles and much more.
Article Source
