Most versatile piece of cookware?

I come to you with a question today, in your opinion what would the most versatile piece of cookware be, in context, what kind of thing would be most capable for cooking the greatest variety of things? in a lot of different situations? A wok? cast iron skillet? good ol Pot for stew? Something equally at home on a campefire and can be used on a stove, discuss.

Other urls found in this thread:

americastestkitchen.com/guides/cook-it-in-cast-iron/busting-cast-iron-myths
twitter.com/SFWRedditImages

A clay pot or dutch oven is up there too

Cast iron.

>devil trips

a big knife

I think a rondeau is a good option if you can only have one pan. A bit of a cross between skillet/saute pan and a pot, fits in the oven easily but at home on a stove, too.

Things I've used a cast iron skillet for:

>shallow frying e.g. fried chicken, home fries
>pan-searing e.g. steak, sausages, burgers, hot dogs
>roasting e.g. whole chicken, vegetables
>deep dish pizza
>griddle e.g. pancakes, eggs, bacon, sausage, ham, grilled cheese, etc.
>baking sheet e.g. biscuits, cookies
>cornbread
>pan-fried dumplings (add a bit of oil, put in the dumplings, pour in hot water, cover, let water boil out, serve)
>homemade tortillas

Cast iron will work on any stove although they warn against using it on glass-top electric stoves because of scratches and cracking, I believe. Otherwise, you can bury it in coals, gas, electric, and if it is hot enough outside, leave it in the sun and fry an egg in it. I've also used it on my charcoal grill right above the fire. And you can use it as a weapon in a pinch.

Cons:

If you're used to handles being cool to the touch (and in a kitchen you should assume NOTHING is safe), then you might burn yourself. But you deserve it for being an idiot.

Letting it soak is generally a bad idea. Better idea: add some water and let it boil. Then try to scrub whatever is burned on. That will remove damn near everything.

Terrible heat distribution. Don't believe me? Put a very large tortilla in the pan and watch the center cook. Fun.

Cast iron is the most versatile, but wok is the better cookware. The design is fucking perfect*, and stir fries are the most versatile dish. You learn one technique, and you have thousands of dishes at your disposal. Pick a protein, aromatics, vegetables, and a sauce. Serve with rice. Meals can be thrown together in minutes.

*food falls back to the center, small cooking surface but large opening to aid in stir frying, light weight, can be used to make soups and deep fry so not a one trick pony

I should step up my wok game.

Two things about your cons
Using rock salt and oil as an abrasive also works very well.

And the pan will heat up unevenly BUT if you're patient and let it fully heat up all the way it will actually hold the MOST consistent temp.

You're supposed to heat cast irons in an oven, then transfer to the stove.

>Using rock salt and oil as an abrasive
if you need an abrasive to clean your cast arn, it's not seasoned properly. properly seasoned cast arn is nonstick

Damn that seems like overkill but I could see why that would work for some applications. I can't tell if I'm being memed or not... Fuck this place.

Yeah I know but sometimes people complain about their cast irons sticking and this is a good way to clean and improve the seasoning at the same time. Once your done with wiping out your salt and oil you've left behind a thin layer of oil perfect for heating up and seasoning the pan.

I wish I would have saved it. I reverse image searched it at the time, and there weren't any results -- which doesn't necessarily mean anything, but I'm assuming it was a picture of user's actual kitchen. They had a comfy wok station in a corner with all their sauces and spices lined up and ready to go. The utensils hung on the wall, and the stove had a single wok burner and no oven. I imagine most of their meals came from there.

I hate our kitchens in America. They are fucking terribly designed and under-powered. I'd prefer to have a kitchen where I can do one thing and do it well. An outlet to plug in a rice cooker. That's all I need.

if you need to improve your seasoning, it's not seasoned properly. muh cast arn after making an omelet

Go away. Nobody likes you.

muh cast arn after making an omelet, then wiping it clean with a paper towel

Ok. I know that. Have you never had to rehabilitate a pan?

americastestkitchen.com/guides/cook-it-in-cast-iron/busting-cast-iron-myths

Its science

the one i posted came from a barn at my grandparents' farm. i rehabilitated it by throwing it in a fire. after it cooled, i washed it with soap and water. then i coated it with a very, very, very thin layer of lard. into a 350ยบ oven for an hour. after an hour, i cut the oven off and let both oven and skillet cool overnight. that was 15 or so years ago. haven't had to do anything to it since.

>all that exposed iron
It's not seasoned properly, mate.

Funny how the people using cast iron never know what the fucking they're doing.

Good for you. I re seasoned my parents cast iron pan they'd fucked up and somehow built up all these nasty carbon lumps idk wtf they did really. Scrubbed it all off with the salt and oil and skipped your soap and water and combined it with the thin layer of fat step.

yep. you sure don't

That's interesting. I don't think a stainless steel would bake an oven recipe as well as a cast iron would tho, would they? Why is that?

This is the only correct answer in this thread. Shallow enough to use as a skillet; deep enough to make a stew at a pinch, and fits easily in the oven. Pop the lid on for a nice long simmer. No upkeep (unless you're a fag that needs it shiny) unlike cast iron. You're all morons.
Too many cast iron fags in this thread to bother listing them all.
and all the other fags
How the fuck are you going to make a stew in this? Would you take this camping? Where's the lid?
Put a wok in the oven, see how that works, dipshit.
So many fucking amateurs and idiots that think grandma's old cookery has a level of authenticity that will raise their cooking from shit to mediocre. You rescued it from a barn and brought it back to life? Was that whilst drinking craft bear and oiling your moustache?
Seriously, why the fuck do I come to Veeky Forums?

An if it's too hot?