The Lodge Classic is also a great option if you want something more substantial, and the value is incredible.
Cites price
Articles · Where two groups agree
What food writer and beginners both recommend
Food writers and beginners share only two picks, and just one carries any ownership figure: nine months, from a single owner.
About Food Writer and Beginners.
We have not used any of these ourselves. We read 16 sources and structured what 5 people said. Of the 16 quotes below, 5 are complaints. Every one of them links to the person who said it and the second they said it.
Based on 5 people, 16 sources and 73 recorded claims.
The answer
Food writers and beginners agree on two pans: the Lodge cast iron skillet and Matfer's carbon steel pan. Prudent Reviews, a cookware reviewer who discloses an affiliate interest on some of its claims, calls the Lodge Classic "a great option if you want something more substantial." On the Matfer, Autodidactically Yours is the only one of these 5 people quoted to state an ownership length, nine months, in 2021. Neither pan's non-stick performance is settled: it is praised by 4 people and faulted by 3.
The 4 quotes behind this, from 3 people · 1 objecting
i bought it in april it's now january so after a few mishaps there's been about six months in between this being a stripped silver pan and now being completely black
Cites seasoning durability
Owned 9 months
i have a new larger style mat for carbon steel pan here that i got for christmas and i've used about less than 10 times and you can already see the seasoning is developing on it
this cooks perfectly fine. Like needs nothing. It is rough. Yeah, it is.
Cites surface finish (against), non-stick surface
bad is in the pan. It's probably the cook is you.
It's heavier and the surface is rougher, but it holds on to seasoning better and it still passed the egg test with no sticking.
Cites surface finish (against), non-stick surface, seasoning durability, weight (against)
| Product | Cited in favour | Cited against | Voices | Declared interest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Matfer carbon steel pan | non-stick surface (1), seasoning durability (1) | safety (1), seasoning durability (1) | 3 voices | none declared |
| Lodge cast iron skillet | base and rim (1), handle (1) | handle (1) | 1 voice | none declared |
Where people disagree
- Papa Mau says of his Lodge that "this cooks perfectly fine," needing nothing else, while Prudent Reviews found the same rough surface needed a full seasoning cycle before it stopped sticking to eggs.
- Prudent Reviews groups Lodge among the skillets that "hold their seasoning well," but Uncle Scott, relaying his mother's experience seasoning a Matfer, says the pan had not taken on color after an hour and a half using the traditional method.
- Handle comfort splits within the Lodge line itself: Prudent Reviews faults the Classic and Chef Collection's handle as too wide and sharp against the hand, but says the Blacklock's longer handle avoids that complaint.
The 6 quotes behind this, from 3 people · 3 objecting
Quoted earlier on this page. Hear it at 5:01.
Cites surface finish (against), non-stick surface
Quoted earlier on this page. Hear it at 6:02.
Cites surface finish (against), non-stick surface, seasoning durability, weight (against)
The skillets with the rougher surface, the Calphalon, and the two Lodges hold their seasoning well.
Cites seasoning durability
now my mother's case she followed the mat for directions to a tee she used the potato peels salt and oil method and cook those twice and as matter of fact she ended up cooking them for like an hour and a half and at the end of the hour and a half the pan still had not changed color she had a spot of seasoning in the…
Cites seasoning durability (against)
The biggest issue for me is the handle. It gets very wide where it connects to the skillet, then it narrows toward the end, and the edges feel sharp and dig into your hands.
Cites handle (against)
Matfer's carbon steel pan is the second pick these two groups share, and it carries real doubt: Prudent Reviews will not recommend it "because of the ongoing recall situation," after French regulators found elevated arsenic and chromium levels in testing.
Matfer is appealing the ruling and says its pans meet EU and French safety standards when used as instructed. Based on 3 recommenders across 8 sources with no declared interest, it appears to season much like cast iron once broken in. Autodidactically Yours, the only owner among them, went from a stripped silver pan to fully blackened in nine months, and reports the pan cooks non-stick without a problem once seasoned. Uncle Scott, relaying his mother's experience with the older seasoning method, says her pan had not changed color after an hour and a half. None of these 3 recommenders reports owning one longer than nine months.
The 6 quotes behind this, from 3 people · 3 objecting
The two pans I don't recommend are Matfer because of the ongoing recall situation and De Buyer Mineral B because of its limitations while cooking in the oven.
Cites safety (against)
This pan passed France's national safety standards, but regional regulators found that the pan released excessive levels of arsenic, chromium, and iron when cooked in a highly acidic solution for 2 hours.
Cites safety (against)
Matfer is appealing the decision and says the test conditions don't reflect real-world cooking. They also point out that their pans meet all EU and French safety standards and are safe when used as instructed.
this pan already cooks non-stick no problem and yours should too if you're using it properly
Cites non-stick surface
Quoted earlier on this page. Hear it at 3:06.
Cites seasoning durability (against)
The Lodge cast iron skillet is the pan these two groups agree on most, and its best-known complaint is the handle: Prudent Reviews says on the Classic and Chef Collection it "gets very wide where it connects" and digs into the hand.
Prudent Reviews found it had the best heat retention of the 12 skillets tested, and that it stayed flat through an induction warp test at 425°F for two minutes. The redesigned Blacklock trades the same rough surface for a longer handle and roughly 2 fewer pounds. None of these 4 recommenders states how long they have owned one; none carries a declared interest, across 50 claims.
The 5 quotes behind this, from 1 person · 1 objecting
Despite the lighter construction, it actually had the best heat retention of all 12 skillets.
Cites heat retention, price
On the lower end, Victoria and Lodge Chef Collection are my two top picks.
It also stayed completely flat after I heated it on a powerful induction cooktop at 425° F for 2 minutes, which was not the case with some of the others.
Cites warp resistance
The Lodge Chef Collection has the same rough cooking surface as the Lodge Classic, but the walls are a quarter inch shorter and more sloped, which makes it easier to slide a spatula under food near the edges. The handle is also slightly longer, the walls are thinner, and it's almost 2 lb lighter.
Cites base and rim, handle, weight
How long each one lasts
Only one of these two products has an owner's own duration on record. Autodidactically Yours went from a stripped silver Matfer to a fully blackened one in nine months, in 2021, the only ownership figure either pan carries. Prudent Reviews' one 2024 sentence gives Lodge, Calphalon and Stargazer years of use, and gives a shorter span only to Field and Smithey, neither of which is Lodge or Matfer. No other figure gives Lodge a duration.
The 2 quotes behind this, from 2 people
I’ve been using Lodge, Calphalon, and Stargazer for years, and Field and Smithey for several months, and all 6 skillets perform really well.
Who wants what
Five people carry all 73 claims behind these two pans, and most wear more than one cohort tag: the same voices are logged as Cooking YouTube (3 of 5), Home Cooks (3 of 5), Cookware Reviewer (2 of 5), Food Writer (2 of 5), and Gear Review YouTube (2 of 5). Chef, Collectors and Beginners each account for one. Food writers and beginners do not disagree with each other as groups anywhere in these claims: the split that shows up runs between the two products, not between the two audiences.
What the evidence suggests
- Choose the Lodge if a product recall history concerns you: Prudent Reviews declines to recommend the Matfer over an ongoing French investigation into elevated arsenic and chromium levels.
- Choose the Lodge if a wide, sharp-edged handle bothers you: Prudent Reviews faults the Classic and Chef Collection's handle as too wide and sharp against the hand, but says the Blacklock's longer handle avoids that complaint.
- Choose the Lodge if you cook on induction and worry about warping: Prudent Reviews found the Lodge stayed flat on an induction cooktop at 425°F for two minutes, in the same test where some other skillets did not.
The 4 quotes behind this, from 1 person · 2 objecting
Quoted earlier on this page. Hear it at 1:30.
Cites warp resistance
What the evidence doesn’t tell us
Prudent Reviews holds 46 of these 73 claims, 63% of everything these two cohorts have said about either pan. None of the 5 people quoted states owning the Lodge for any length of time, and only one, Autodidactically Yours, gives an ownership figure for the Matfer, nine months. Whether either pan holds up past that point is not something any of these 5 people has said.
The quote behind this, from 1 person
Who says so
Authority here is scoped to the subject, never to how large someone’s audience is. Where we hold no domain expertise for a person, the page says so rather than implying one.
Prudent Reviews
Our mission at Prudent Reviews is to help you find the best products for your home. We take the stress out of shopping by testing, analyzing, and comparing the top products. Our reviews, comparisons, and product guides are in-depth, carefully researched, and completely unbiased. Since launching, we've helped millions of people across the globe find the best products and improve their lives at home. If you have questions or want to partner with Prudent Reviews, email Andrew@PrudentReviews.com. As an Amazon Associate Prudent Reviews earns from qualifying purchases.
Autodidactically Yours
I'm curious. Whenever I encounter something, I like to know what it is and how it works. It doesn't matter if it is a machine, culinary process, social organization, or work of art. I'm fascinated by just about everything. Once I understand something, I like to share my excitement about it with others. I've gotten pretty good at that by working as an educator for ten years. I recently moved away from that profession, so this channel is my new outlet where I will share my adventures on becoming an amateur expert in cooking, technology, and other topics. This channel is operated by Jake Nabasny, PhD. You can find my free cookbook and other texts at my personal website: https://jake.nabasny.com/
Papa Mau
Cooking with Healthy and Durable Cookware: Cast Iron, Carbon Steel, Stainless Steel, etc I’m PapaMau, a dad with roots in Argentina, living in Australia for the past 15 years. I’m here to inspire families to choose healthier, long-lasting, and undeniably cooler cookware that's making a massive comeback. Specializing in cast iron and carbon steel, I create How-To and Tutorial videos to help you care for your cookware, master cooking techniques, and replace Teflon with sustainable, durable alternatives. I share cooking tips, tools, and recipes to help home cooks impress family and friends—whether in the kitchen or around the fire pit. Together, let’s cook better, eat healthier, and make the world a better place, one meal at a time. Join me on this journey to make cooking an adventure and forge unforgettable memories with cookware that’s built to last! 🔥
Uncle Scott
Our Motto: You can never have too much great cookware and kitchen gear. Our Philosophy: If you have great equipment and great ingredients, with a little practice you can cook any dish in the world. At USK, we make recipes, review frying pans, deep fryers, knives, grain mills, gadgets, pots and pans, and anything else you might find in a high-end kitchen. We teach people how to season carbon steel and cast iron pans, show people the proper way to cook eggs, tell a few jokes, and cook delicious meals. We really like high quality brands such as De Buyer, Falk, Matfer, Lodge, Smithey, Mauviel, Le Creuset, live, Staub, Breville, and others. And, importantly, Uncle Scott buys all of the products he reviews with his own money, and unlike many cookware channels, no free items are accepted for review. This keeps Uncle Scott's reviews genuine, trustworthy, and unbiased. Any sponsored videos or affiliate sales links are clearly labelled.
What this piece cites evidence about
Every product, brand and category named in a claim behind this article, not only the ones with a section of their own above. Where we hold a full page for one, it is linked; the rest are named as text because the evidence has not cleared that bar yet.
Sources
Short quotes and deep links only. We publish no transcripts, and every quote above opens the original at the second it was spoken.
- Best Carbon Steel Pan? I Tested de Buyer, Lodge, Matfer & More
- Best Cast Iron Skillet? I Tested Lodge, Smithey, Field, Stargazer, & Calphalon
- Best Non-Toxic Cookware? I Tested All-Clad, Made In, Le Creuset & More
- Black Carbon Steel Pan in JUST 6 MONTHS (3 EASY STEPS)
- I Tested Every Cast Iron Skillet, These Are the Best & Worst
- Matfer Carbon Steel Pan Seasoning Problems Solved
- The Uncomfortable Truth Behind Lodge Cast Iron Pans
How this page was made
The prose above was written by a model from a fact sheet assembled out of the evidence, then checked line by line: every quote verbatim against the evidence table, every name against a claim, every number against the sheet. Prose that fails is not published. It is derived data, not testimony. The testimony is the quotes.
Verified 2026-09-17