Jan 29th 2010 08:02 am Now in tablet form!
Of the many bad limericks I’ve committed over the years, this is one of my favorites.
Cookware. What I wanted to say on the fascinating subject of cookware has already been said here, mostly. I favor hearty one-pot dishes, “peasant dishes” or “braising” in the cookbook vernacular. A heavy Dutch oven with lid is an almost essential vessel for cooking many of these dishes.
For years, I have favored Le Creuset, enameled cast-iron cookware made in France since 1925. I invested in several pieces over 15 years ago, and it remains fine stuff today. The problem with Le Creuset, though, has become the price! “Invested” is a word I chose carefully. I thought I was paying a lot in the early 1990′s, but today I cannot bring myself to pay what they demand for their wares. I have discovered that in France they can cost even more! Upwards of $200? We are talking about pots here.
However, Le Creuset has an even older counterpart in the United States: Lodge Cast Iron cookware of South Pittsburg, Tennessee. For over 100 years, Lodge has been manufacturing the black cast-iron pots and pans which have been so properly extolled in your comments here. I, myself, have an old black skillet that I intend to be buried with. Or cremated in.
What I really wanted to mention, though, was Lodge’s line of enameled cookware that rivals Le Creuset’s. I own a couple of these pots. They perform well and and are a lot cheaper, but, alas, Lodge’s enameled cookware is manufactured in China. I didn’t set out to pit one society against another or to discuss the moral hazards of modern globalization, but there it is.
Posted by jimmyjohnson / Vintage A&J
29 Responses to “Now in tablet form!”
Carissa on 29 Jan 2010 at 8:34 am #
I live in NE PA and while you can go and buy a Lodge cast iron pan in the store it is much more common to go to an antique shop (or better yet your Grandmother’s kitchen) and get a Griswold pan. These are cherished and passed down (since they only get better with age!) and are my all time favorite cooking vessel. They work great on the stove, in the oven, on a grill and over a campfire.
Steve from Royal Oak, MI on 29 Jan 2010 at 9:08 am #
Jimmy:
Fortunately for you, you will never be left without a pot to….whatever in.
Nancy in Bucks County on 29 Jan 2010 at 9:57 am #
Living north of the Mason-Dixon line, never heard of Lodge skillets. Looks like some great recipes on their website. Looking forward to some cornbread, Tennessee style.
I agree with your take on the pricing of cookware these days. The popularity of the Food Network has got to be a factor in that. Will those inflated prices continue in this economy? Time will tell.
Ron in NW IL on 29 Jan 2010 at 10:16 am #
Guess I see now why a shortage of disposable wealth leaves one without a pot…., or a window.
Bob, near Mark on 29 Jan 2010 at 10:37 am #
I initially began using cast iron Dutch ovens (the type with feet and lipped lids) for cooking on camping trips. They’re great for campfire cookery, or for cooking on your charcoal grill in the back yard. As an added bonus, they work inside in the kitchen, too.
Do a Google search for
campfire dutch oven cooking
and you’ll find tons of hints, recipes, etc.
emeritus Minnesota biologist on 29 Jan 2010 at 10:52 am #
About today’s comic. Some will be happy to know that behavior like Arlo’s, and Janis’s willingly putting up with it, can last at least six decades.
Totally off the subject, the musically inclined might enjoy this. Type “opera en el mercado” into a search engine, click on the youtube site that comes up, and sit back and enjoy. You may want a hankie.
Ohio Betty on 29 Jan 2010 at 1:12 pm #
Thanks for the shout-out to Lodge, Jimmy!
I’ve been using their dutch ovens for camp cooking for close to 10 years – one-pot lasagna for dinner in one oven and dump cake for dessert in another – clean up with some boiling water and a stiff bristle brush. You can’t beat it for tastiness OR ease of maintenance.
We have an 11-inch Lodge skillet that I use at home for wonderful frittattas and pancakes. Plus, we just bought a small, 2-quart dutch oven that’s perfect for two-person dinners. Ummmm … “two-person dinners” as in the right amount of food for two people to eat — *not* that we could fit two missionaries in the little dutch oven.
Can’t really say enough good things about the folks at Lodge and their products. Thanks for letting the world (or at least the best people in the world) know about them!
P.S. Ditto on the “opera en el mercado” recommendation. You won’t be sorry, unless you don’t have a hankie handy.
Staco Nik on 29 Jan 2010 at 1:49 pm #
I too have a lot of Le Creuset and find the pricing concerning. If you go to Chef’s Catalog they have at least one piece on sale. Also the sale rack a Macy’s sometimes have a good price if you don’t mind the color. I recently picked up a $175.00 grill pan for $45.00 but the color is pea green. I quit using Lodge when they went to China.
Bob, near Mark on 29 Jan 2010 at 2:48 pm #
Ohio Betty,
I like to use a bamboo wok brush to clean my Dutch ovens. You can clean under very hot running water, and not have to get your hand down into the heat. Do a web search for bamboo wok brush, and you’ll find them. I just pick them up at an Asian market in Boston (they’re a lot cheaper than on line sources. I wrap a large rubber band close to the scouring end of the brush to keep the bristles from bending too much under heavy pressure. The somewhat sharp ends of the stiff bamboo bristles really dig into any burned-on bits of food.
David Cadogan on 29 Jan 2010 at 3:04 pm #
My paper at home carries “Arlo and Janis”. My paper in Florida, the excellent “St. Petersburg Times,” does not. I have just written a letter to the editors asking them to consider carrying it.
Re. cast iron pots and pans: I rescued a wonderful 12″ cast iron pan that was about to be tole painted. Sacrilege!
Boise Ed on 29 Jan 2010 at 4:28 pm #
emeritus Minnesota biologist referred to “behavior like Arlo’s, and Janis’s willingly putting up with it,” but what’s to put up with? He’s being good to her by giving her a taste of the good stuff in progress, and her response is to insult him.
And regarding today’s retro strip, it’s because of the com and the dot that we have this delightful forum.
Debbie in Alabama on 29 Jan 2010 at 5:03 pm #
There’s a Lodge Cast Iron Factory Store in Commerce, Georgia, on I-85.
Bob, near Mark on 29 Jan 2010 at 5:27 pm #
Boise Ed,
Re the Friday, January 29 newspaper strip:
I don’t think that Arlo’s only reason for wanting to give Janis a taste of his cooking is because he thinks it’s good. Considering where she is sitting, he probably just wanted an excuse for a loving peek.
Bob from Minneapolis on 29 Jan 2010 at 5:34 pm #
emeritus Minnesota biologist – thanks for the YouTube suggestion!
Correct me if I’m wrong, but I think that was performed in Italian in a Spanish market. I don’t speak either language, but it was interesting to realize that my listening experience was closer to that of the live audience than I had thought at first, since they were also hearing something that was (while undoubtedly familiar) not in their native tongue.
Of course, music is a universal language, etc., etc., but still. . . I wonder how the reactions might have differed had this been done in an Italian market?
Claire on 29 Jan 2010 at 6:08 pm #
Boise Ed: Maybe he makes dreadful messes & she’s being sarcastic because she’s on cleanup detail. Thanks to emeritus Minnesota biologist for the wonderful link. I want to shop at that market!
Ghost Rider 6 on 29 Jan 2010 at 7:08 pm #
The “opera en el Mercado” was indeed lovely, but I kept wondering how the reactions might have differed had this been done in the middle of the local WalMart.
Also, the next YouTube video selection I got was “The Foxy Flight Attendant Bikini Rap.” I’m still trying to decide what the connection is.
K in ND on 29 Jan 2010 at 7:22 pm #
GR6:
I was wondering the same thing myself.
Has everyone seen the second option, the Sound of Music in the Antwerp airport? That’s rather interesting, too.
K
Michele on 29 Jan 2010 at 8:25 pm #
Do you realize that Lodge has an outlet store in Sevierville, Tennessee. It’s about 1 mile off I-40 and the prices are great.
Craig T on 29 Jan 2010 at 8:52 pm #
Only the enameled Lodge cookware is made in China; the regular and pre-seasoned “Pro Logic” stuff is still made in Tennessee.
You can get it anywhere in the country, at hardware stores if not at normal cookware places.
The outlet store is great. South Pittsburg is not far from Chattanooga. The front of the place is a regular store, but there’s a back room full of blemished items at a considerable discount.
emeritus Minnesota biologist on 29 Jan 2010 at 11:06 pm #
Ohio Betty and others: Glad you enjoyed the Traviata video. Sorry about what sometimes shows up when you go to certain sites.
Bob, near Mark: Thanks for pointing out where Janis was sitting. She well knows what Arlo is up to, but she often encourages it. Ages ago, JJ had a strip where Arlo suggested they vacation where topless swimming was common, and Janis thought briefly, and then basically said,”When we can we leave?”.
Bob/Mpls: I’ve been told that, in most countries [European countries anyway], opera is generally translated into the local language. I saw Rossini’s “Der Barbiere von Siviglia” in Frankfurt am Rhein in ’52-’53. In America, it’s usually done in the original language. In some light German language operas ["Merry Widow", "Fledermaus"] where there is spoken dialog, American companies often do the dialog in English but the arias in German. I’ve also been told it’s just as well to leave opera in the original language, because librettos are often not that skillfully done.
One exception is Gilbert & Sullivan. Who wrote the libretto for Verdi’s “Aida”, Mozart’s “Don Giovanni”, Smetana’s “The Bartered Bride”? The info is generally available but nobody cares; it’s the music and acting that are important. But W.S. Gilbert was Britain’s major playwright in the 1870s-’90s, and Arthur Sullivan probably its leading composer. Gilbert’s words make a difference, at many levels, and Sullivan’s music is superbly suited to Gilbert’s lines. They didn’t like each other, but Savoy Opera is good stuff, again at many levels. If all goes well this spring, wife and I will attend the only one we have not yet seen live [I think], their first opera for which the music is still known, “The Sorcerer”. It is not their best, but it’s fun. It will be in Mpls. at the Conn Auditorium, adjacent to Plymouth Congregational, on Nicollet. Type “Gilbert and Sullivan Very Light Opera Company” in a search engine for details. We’ve been to several GSVLOC productions, and have generally been well pleased.
curmudgeonly ex-professor on 29 Jan 2010 at 11:16 pm #
eMb:
I agree with you whole-heartedly on the G&S materials; rarely does one observe such a great match between the music and the lyrics and even the intent of the passage (serious or comic, for instance). Whether it is a D’Oyly Carte production or not, the listening is absolutely great!
Ghost Rider 6 on 30 Jan 2010 at 12:05 am #
eMb:
I didn’t mean I minded seeing the “The Foxy Flight Attendant Bikini Rap” video; I was just puzzled as to how it ended up between the two other videos. And by the way, it didn’t appear to me that any of the young ladies in the “TFFABR” video would need to use their seat cushions “as a flotation device, in the event of a water landing.”
Jean from Dahlonega GA aka Trapper Jean on 30 Jan 2010 at 7:41 am #
No offense to Gilbert & Sullivan, but back to today’s (Saturday the 30th) A&J:
“Who said “you cooked, I’ll clean?” My Mom taught me early on to keep the mess contained, though not exactly the way one would expect. Mom could get every pot and pan she had dirty, and have dishes piled in the sink, and that was just a simple dinner for three. I learned to keep a pan of hot soapy water for cooking utensils, and to put pots & pans in soapy water as soon as possible to make washing easier. My husband has thanked me for that often as he usually washes up after dinner.
Michele-Every time I see Sevierville Tenn mentioned I think of Sharyn McCrumb’s excellent Ballad Books (http://www.sharynmccrumb.com/) They take place in the small fictitious town of Hamlin, but Sevierville is often mentioned.
Kathy G on 30 Jan 2010 at 9:42 am #
I was given my Le Creuset’s dutch oven when I got married over 32 years ago it is my favorite thing to cook in from mac and cheese to roasts..I remember it was pricey then but god does it last and I swear the food justs keeps getting better. I will be looking for Lodge Cast I am always looking for good cook wear
Mark in Boston on 30 Jan 2010 at 11:58 am #
Who wrote the libretto for “Don Giovanni”????
How can anyone ever forget Lorenzo Da Ponte, the librettist for several scandalous works (my favorite opera title is “Cosi fan tutte” or in English “They All Do It”), Jewish-born Catholic priest and professor at Columbia University in New York?
John in Richmond Texas on 30 Jan 2010 at 12:20 pm #
opera en el mercado didn’t do anything for me, I still like youtubing Howard Keel doing They Call the Wind Maria and very young Statler Brothers doing Shenendoah
emeritus Minnesota biologist on 30 Jan 2010 at 8:57 pm #
Mark:
That’s true. I had heard it but forgotten it. Perhaps Da Ponte’s librettos are excelllent. But you never hear “Da Ponte & Mozart”. You now hear “Lerner & Loewe” but in the 19th century, my guess is that listing the librettist first rather than, saying “Princess Ida, by Sir Arthur Sullivan; libretto by W.S. Gilbert”, was a new thing, and recognized an unusual phenomenon, an excellent play set to excellent music. Gilbert wrote the libretto, then Sullivan wrote music for it. Then they both tinkered, “and did it very well”. After the first performance, they often tinkered some more. They didn’t do that for their last two operas, because they were hardly speaking, and it shows.
A relatively unusual thing about G&S is that, except in “Trial by Jury”, there is spoken dialog where most previous operas comprised arias plus sung recitative. “Fledermaus” does this, as does “The Merry Widow”. Both of these German operas are done by the Met and other American companies, but most decline to do G&S. I incline to see this as snobbery.
Mark in Boston on 31 Jan 2010 at 3:36 pm #
Mozart’s (or Schikaneder & Mozart’s) “The Magic Flute” is another opera with spoken dialog. Technically it’s a “Singspiel”, which is basically the equivalent of our “Musicals” like “West Side Story”, “Show Boat” and so on. Occasionally — VERY occasionally — an opera company will put on a classic musical, or a group of people more closely associated with opera will record one. (I would have said “Musical Comedy” but West Side Story is a tragedy, not a comedy.)
Gilbert & Sullivan and “Fledermaus” and “The Merry Widow” are also sometimes called “light opera” but I’ve never heard “Magic Flute” referred to as a “light opera”.
Jeff in Ann Arbor on 01 Feb 2010 at 10:34 am #
About eight years ago, I replaced all but one of my Le Creuset pots and pans (bought ~35 years ago) with a set of beautiful heavy, commericial quality, anodized aluminum Calphalon, made right down the road in Toledo, Ohio. At least they were. When I bought one for our daughter this Christmas, I was disheartened to see that they are now made in China.
The reason I replaced the Creuset was that the white enamel inside had chipped and flaked off over the years and was very rough. Even with oil, food stuck. But I didn’t get rid of the big dutch oven, which I still use despite the broken down enamel.