Evidence index · Cookware

Cookware: where collectors and r/BuyItForLife agree

Only the cookware that collectors and r/BuyItForLife have independently backed. A product one group praises and the other has never mentioned does not appear here.

collectors is who the advice is aimed at; r/BuyItForLife is a community we read.

10 people on record as collectors and r/BuyItForLife make 99 quoted claims about cookware across 16 sources. Membership is recorded with its own evidence — for a person by the trait they are on record holding, for a community by the source it was said in — and authority is scoped to cookware rather than to fame.

Which cookware do both collectors and r/BuyItForLife recommend?

Endorsements and objections about cookware from collectors and r/BuyItForLife, together, strongest evidence first.

Lodge cast iron skillet

4 voices 20 claims 4 objections

12:33 supports Kent Rollins speaking on Cowboy Kent Rollins Chef

so let's talk about Lodge and folks accessibility is number one because you see it everywhere and it's in stock all the time you ain't gonna have to wait and they have so many different pieces of Lodge cast iron that you can buy whether it's a skillet a griddle a dutch oven they have you covered on all of it

use-case fit Tested it Don't Buy a Cast Iron Skillet Without Watching This! Which Cast Iron Brand is Right for You?

Cites availability, versatility

9:02 objects Kent Rollins speaking on Cowboy Kent Rollins Chef

now of all the Skillets here the one that probably disappoints me the most in seasoning the way it comes to you or the way you buy it out of the store is Lodge with that rough finish on it

performance Tested it Don't Buy a Cast Iron Skillet Without Watching This! Which Cast Iron Brand is Right for You?

Cites seasoning durability (against), surface finish (against)

11:33 supports Kent Rollins speaking on Cowboy Kent Rollins Chef

so we're going to start off right here with Lodge and we're going from cheapest to highest start gazer field finex and Marquette

value Tested it Don't Buy a Cast Iron Skillet Without Watching This! Which Cast Iron Brand is Right for You?

Cites price

Field cast iron skillet

3 voices 27 claims 10 objections

1:00 supports Big Lew BBQ & Other Things I Want to Do! Collectors was given the product

and i'm impressed with it really really nice skill skillet only about six pounds guys

Two judgements rest on this sentence:

handling Tested it cites base and rim, handle, shape and form, weight
recommendation Tested it

Field Company No. 10 Skillet Follow Up Review

Big Lew BBQ & Other Things I Want to Do! was given the product. Stated in the source: “i do want to thank the field company for sending it to me for a review” Kept and labelled rather than dropped: a paid endorsement is still evidence, and you should be the one to decide what it is worth.

i will say when i dump the potatoes out that first day i'm gonna dump the shrimp creole out um not shrimp creole what they'll make shrimp a two-fade right um and the gravy from the pork chops and stuff i'm gonna dump the leftover out uh that did well because it's real thick

also this is kind of nitpicky but i've got an induction stove and both skillets that i have my other number 12 skillet same size bottom they fit on that burner that over there that i use my number 10 skillet on but with the other one since this sides flare out i've got to kind of duck under and look to see if it's…

so anyway the that's what i got to say about the field skillet i used it and if i didn't like it i would have quit using it i continued to use it all week it was a labor of love it wasn't tough it wasn't tough to decide hey i want to cook something else in this skillet

i'm i'm really satisfied with the skillet

anyway i think you would be too if you're in the market for a premium cast iron skillet my recommendation is go with field

0:00 supports Big Lew BBQ & Other Things I Want to Do! Collectors was given the product

folks and your family will fight for this frying pan at your funeral

durability Tested it Field Company No. 10 Skillet Follow Up Review

Cites acid resistance, durability, seasoning durability

skillet was easy to clean that night too and just getting some more good seasoning layer on there with that skillet

i was already trusting the seasoning coat to use acidic foods like lemon butter uh they were delicious and all that fond on the bottom of the pot went into my shrimp a2 faders a pound of shrimp a little more than a pound of shrimp in there also a can of rotel tomatoes but you can see the seasoning on the bottom was…

i've used it as much as i can look how black it is came sort of charcoal gray did get a little bronze that first day or two but it blackened up real quick it's as seasoned as i've ever had a skillet i've only had it a week

but look how easy it seasoned in one week it's not that charcoal gray color it's black all right almost like a mirror finish

1:30 supports Kent Rollins speaking on Cowboy Kent Rollins Chef

when I picked it up the very first time out of the box the thing that I liked about it was it was similar to the design of old authentic cast iron folks this is a pretty good lightweight skill it's sort of like the old stuff was made

appearance Tested it Don't Buy a Cast Iron Skillet Without Watching This! Which Cast Iron Brand is Right for You?

Cites appearance, surface finish, weight

getting on down the field I think the thing that really impressed me the most about it was the weight sure but they had such a good machine finish on there to it

What do collectors and r/BuyItForLife say about cookware in general?

Not a recommendation for a specific product: technique, materials and what to look for in cookware. Citable on its own terms. There are 52 of them; the 40 with the strongest evidence are below.

12:03 supports Kent Rollins speaking on Cowboy Kent Rollins Chef

always told you that cast iron is an investment it's going to outlast everything else you got each one of these Skillets if you take care of it will last you a lifetime and you can pass down from generation to generation to generation

durability Tested it Don't Buy a Cast Iron Skillet Without Watching This! Which Cast Iron Brand is Right for You?

Cites durability

10:33 supports Kent Rollins speaking on Cowboy Kent Rollins Chef

cast iron has notoriously been blamed for it's too heavy you know but folks cast iron was built so many years ago for one reason uh to cook with but also heaviness is heat retention

performance Tested it Don't Buy a Cast Iron Skillet Without Watching This! Which Cast Iron Brand is Right for You?

Cites heat retention, weight

1:00 supports Kent Rollins speaking on Cowboy Kent Rollins Chef

now these are all companies that are made in America and that's the number one thing that we stand for

recommendation Tested it Don't Buy a Cast Iron Skillet Without Watching This! Which Cast Iron Brand is Right for You?

Cites country of manufacture

13:06 supports Big Lew BBQ & Other Things I Want to Do! Collectors

um i do have an eight that dates to the roosevelt administration that i use a lot one that dates to the other roosevelt administration that i use a lot actually predates that one and uh it's got a gate mark on the bottom

durability Owns it Field Company No. 10 Skillet Follow Up Review

Cites durability

8:33 objects Chef Matt speaking on I Want To Cook Chef

it's got this nice stainless steel interior but the outside well this is aluminum and that means that this would not work on an induction stove

use-case fit Owns it Why I Won't Buy An Induction Range: Should You?

Cites induction compatible (against)

7:02 supports Chef Matt speaking on I Want To Cook Chef

it only requires a feris magnetic material something like cast iron which is well it could be centuries old can work on an induction burner

use-case fit Why I Won't Buy An Induction Range: Should You?

Cites induction compatible

4:32 objects Chef Matt speaking on I Want To Cook Chef

I see a lot of like nonstick pans that are all scratched up and they just they're really janky pass on those you're not going to want to cook on those nor are you going to want those in your house

Two judgements rest on this sentence:

recommendation
durability cites coating (against)

Thrift Store Cookware | What To Buy, What To Avoid

14:34 objects Prudent Reviews Cookware Reviewer

They can still cook extremely well, but I wouldn't spend hundreds of dollars expecting them to outperform a good modern skillet.

value Tested it I Tested Every Cast Iron Skillet, These Are the Best & Worst

Cites price (against)

1:00 objects Kent Rollins speaking on Cowboy Kent Rollins Chef

you're not going to find that on a lot of iron anymore you go to the store and you buy some it feels like gritty pavement

performance Field Company Cast Iron Skillet Follow Up Review

Cites surface finish (against)

0:30 objects Isaac Morton speaking on House Beautiful Collectors

The cast iron market wasn't really delivering what it had a hundred years ago, and there wasn't a good reason for that. And most modern cast iron is rough and has this sandy surface, it's difficult to clean and it's not quite as enjoyable to cook on.

Three judgements rest on this sentence:

appearance cites surface finish (against)
handling cites ease of cleaning (against)
performance

How Smithey Ironware Makes Cast Iron Skillets I Beautiful Things I HB

0:30 supports Isaac Morton speaking on House Beautiful Collectors

This piece was really beautiful, it was well-polished. The surface was super smooth. It made me a cast iron junkie.

appearance How Smithey Ironware Makes Cast Iron Skillets I Beautiful Things I HB

Cites appearance, surface finish

8:33 supports Chef Matt speaking on I Want To Cook Chef

but well it works great on gas

performance Owns it Why I Won't Buy An Induction Range: Should You?

8:33 supports Chef Matt speaking on I Want To Cook Chef

this little pot this whereever I bought it for $3 at a thrift shop in Texas and I just get so much enjoyment cooking with this

ownership Owns it Why I Won't Buy An Induction Range: Should You?

2:31 supports Chef Matt speaking on I Want To Cook Chef

and this is a especially true when you are working with highly conductive cookware such as copper where the reaction is immediate

performance Owns it Why I Won't Buy An Induction Range: Should You?

Cites heat conduction

4:31 supports Kent Rollins speaking on Cowboy Kent Rollins Chef

where ever you get your good cast iron look for that good milled finish

performance Field Company Cast Iron Skillet Follow Up Review

Cites surface finish

0:31 supports Isaac Morton speaking on WCBD NEWS 2 Collectors

in particular their smooth surface um weren't being manufactured anymore

appearance Smithey Ironware: Casting memories through iron and steel

Cites surface finish

7:33 mixed Chef Matt speaking on I Want To Cook Chef

same goes for non-stick cookware I have some that does work and some that doesn't

use-case fit Owns it Why I Won't Buy An Induction Range: Should You?

Cites induction compatible

7:33 mixed Chef Matt speaking on I Want To Cook Chef

something like stainless steel well some stainless steel cookware will work and some won't just depending on if the manufacturer has made it compatible with an induction range

use-case fit Why I Won't Buy An Induction Range: Should You?

Cites induction compatible

3:31 supports Chef Matt speaking on I Want To Cook Chef

these pans are vintage this has got to be probably 50 or 60 years old and yet it still works great

durability Thrift Store Cookware | What To Buy, What To Avoid

Cites durability

0:31 supports Isaac Morton speaking on WCBD NEWS 2 Collectors

That's what really got me interested in cast iron is looking at old heirloom pieces that I thought had really nice cooking qualities

performance Smithey Ironware: Casting memories through iron and steel

3:01 supports THE FOOD-DEE Professional Kitchens

these pans are built to last they will last your generation your kids generations you can pass them down to your great grandchildren and they'll still be around and still working great as long as you take care of them these things are meant to take a beating from my years of cooking we use cast iron pans and carbon…

durability Owns it Don’t Make this Mistake! Follow These Rules for Carbon Steel Cookware & Cast iron

Cites coating durability, durability, repairability

if you do for some reason scratch the coating off your pan and leave a big gouge in it don't worry it's not the end of the world all you need to do a little secret here all you need to do is cook with it that's it as you cook with it the oils are going to polymerize back to the pan and rebuild up that scratch piece…

your pan is rusted that's it it's over pans ruined throw it out get a new one no all you need to do is give it a good cleaning scrub all that rust off heat it up re-season your pan and continue cooking with it that's it hand recovered

8:02 supports Quality Collapse

When the stainless lining eventually wears through after 20 years of daily use, you send it to a shop and they pour a new lining. The copper itself is permanent.

repairability Passing on someone else's experience The Only 5 Cookware Brands That Still Last (The "Buy It For Life" List)

Cites repairability

7:02 supports Quality Collapse

A $60 carbon steel pan will outlast a dozen nonstick pans.

value Passing on someone else's experience The Only 5 Cookware Brands That Still Last (The "Buy It For Life" List)

Cites durability, price

But the most expensive cookware you can buy is the one you have to buy twice.

0:00 objects Quality Collapse

We showed you how the cookware brands you used to trust now coat cheap aluminum with Teflon that flakes into your food within 3 years.

durability Passing on someone else's experience The Only 5 Cookware Brands That Still Last (The "Buy It For Life" List)

Cites coating (against), heat resistance (against), safety (against)

Those chemical coatings are fragile. You cannot use metal utensils. You cannot get them too hot. And no matter how careful you are, within 3 years, the coating scratches and flakes off.

6:01 supports Quality Collapse

Professional chefs do not use nonstick pans in restaurant kitchens. They use carbon steel. It is lighter than cast iron, but just as durable.

recommendation Passing on someone else's experience The Only 5 Cookware Brands That Still Last (The "Buy It For Life" List)

Cites durability, weight

2:30 supports Quality Collapse

We have seen cast iron skillets from 1920 that are still being used daily.

durability Passing on someone else's experience The Only 5 Cookware Brands That Still Last (The "Buy It For Life" List)

Cites durability

We have seen carbon steel pans from the 1950s that are still in professional kitchens today.

0:00 objects Quality Collapse

How your grandmother's pans lasted 40 years, but yours die in two.

durability Passing on someone else's experience The Only 5 Cookware Brands That Still Last (The "Buy It For Life" List)

Cites coating (against), durability (against), rust resistance (against)

They have thin enamel that chips the first time you drop the lid. The cast iron underneath is rough and porous. After 1 year of use, the enamel cracks and moisture seeps into the iron causing rust spots that leach into your food.

8:32 supports Quality Collapse

A $400 copper saucepan that lasts 50 years is cheaper than replacing stainless pans every decade.

value Passing on someone else's experience The Only 5 Cookware Brands That Still Last (The "Buy It For Life" List)

Cites durability, price (against)

2:00 supports Quality Collapse

The oil bakes into the pores of the iron, creating a natural nonstick surface that does not leach chemicals into your food.

performance Passing on someone else's experience The Only 5 Cookware Brands That Still Last (The "Buy It For Life" List)

Cites heat control, heating speed, non-stick surface, safety

The difference is responsiveness. Carbon steel heats up fast and cools down fast, giving you precise temperature control.

2:31 supports Autodidactically Yours Food Writer

put it back in the oven for about 10 more minutes you're gonna have the crispiest crust you've ever had from a homemade pizza

use-case fit Owns it Black Carbon Steel Pan in JUST 6 MONTHS (3 EASY STEPS)

Cites heat retention

21:45 objectssupports Cook Culture Cookware Reviewer

to prove how phenomenal these kind of pans are and that they can so easily be used by anybody to get rid of Teflon in your kitchen nobody needs it

Two judgements rest on this sentence:

objects recommendation
supports use-case fit Tested it cites ergonomics

DEEP DIVE! Testing the New Matfer Carbon Steel Induction Ready Pans

10:04 objects Prudent Reviews Cookware Reviewer

The big drawback is durability—ceramic non-stick coatings wear down fast.

durability Tested it Best Non-Toxic Cookware? I Tested All-Clad, Made In, Le Creuset & More

Cites durability (against)

8:02 objects Quality Collapse

Critics will say it is high maintenance. They will say it tarnishes and dents. They are right. Copper is soft. You have to polish it.

durability Passing on someone else's experience The Only 5 Cookware Brands That Still Last (The "Buy It For Life" List)

Cites durability (against), maintenance (against)

2:00 objects Quality Collapse

Critics will say it is heavy. They will say it requires maintenance. They are right.

handling Passing on someone else's experience The Only 5 Cookware Brands That Still Last (The "Buy It For Life" List)

Cites maintenance (against), weight (against)

2:31 objects Autodidactically Yours Food Writer

now this is obvious for anyone who's done any research on using a carbon steel pan you obviously do not want to put tomatoes or vinegar in the pan right

durability Owns it Black Carbon Steel Pan in JUST 6 MONTHS (3 EASY STEPS)

Cites acid resistance (against), seasoning durability (against)

another weird one raw spinach i did some research on it afterwards and apparently there is a acidic element in spin it raw spinach that strips the seasoning from the pan when you cook it in there

9:05 objects Cook Culture Cookware Reviewer

induction and carbon steel can be a bit problematic as most people have found out that have spinning pans or have seen a video where pans spin induction plates can be a problem I have already kind of proven that once in a video lots of people do complain about their pants becoming Spinners

performance Tested it DEEP DIVE! Testing the New Matfer Carbon Steel Induction Ready Pans

Cites induction compatible (against), warp resistance (against)

okay so clean and cool cool zero spinning so that is great that cheap what I think is kind of crappy induction cooktop I have been able to make spinners out of other carbon steel with that cooktop um it does make spinners these guys didn't that's a tremendous result so super stoked

6:01 objects THE FOOD-DEE Professional Kitchens

it is very important you don't soak your carbon steel pans to remove stuck on food they may be well coated but water will get to the metal and rush your pans if you leave it there so don't do that

durability Don’t Make this Mistake! Follow These Rules for Carbon Steel Cookware & Cast iron

Cites coating durability (against), rust resistance (against)

don't use a scouring pad when cleaning your carbon steel it will take off the seasoning if you scrub too hard

1:00 objects THE FOOD-DEE Professional Kitchens

everyone assumes that carbon steel or cast iron pan is super nonstick it's just not the facts are you if you're coming from teflon to a carbon steel pan you're going to want to make sure you give it a good seasoning and set your expectations it's not going to be super nonstick

performance Don’t Make this Mistake! Follow These Rules for Carbon Steel Cookware & Cast iron

Cites non-stick surface (against)

6:31 objects Prudent Reviews Cookware Reviewer

The stainless steel pan I ran through the same test started developing dark spots after the first round that I couldn't remove with vinegar or Barkeeper's Friend. By the third round, those spots were starting to eat into the steel, and I could feel the indentations with my fingernail.

durability Tested it Finally, a Nonstick Pan That Actually Lasts a Lifetime

Cites rust resistance (against)

4:31 objects Prudent Reviews Cookware Reviewer

For comparison, I ran the same test on a traditional non-stick pan, and the knife cut right through the coating.

durability Tested it Finally, a Nonstick Pan That Actually Lasts a Lifetime

Cites ease of cleaning (against), scratch resistance (against)

I've tested other non-stick alternatives that perform well, but over time, residue can build up on the surface and cause sticking if you don't keep it clean and smooth.