The Cast-Iron Skillet

Zekauskas Family Cast-Iron Skillet, Philadelphia, 2021

A well-seasoned, cast-iron skillet may be one of the greatest joys in a kitchen. Beyond a useful culinary tool, it’s also something of a work of art. Affordable, durable, and practical, almost all American families had one in their kitchens for generations.

Somewhere around the turn of the 21st century, when I had my first apartment, Aunt Ann gifted me this cast-iron skillet. It was at least 50-years-old at the time — a mid-20th century beauty — curved, solid, and heavy.

“Suzy, you need to learn how to make a good cornbread,” Aunt Ann had said, as she lifted the pan into my hands. She had plucked it from the kitchen archive in the basement of her Upper West Side brownstone — shelves of pots, pans, glassware, and dishes from decades of home entertaining and from her long career as a food stylist

I promised her that I would try my best, but, truthfully, for awhile, we used it to make wonderfully delicious nachos for football Sunday afternoons. I had learned how to cook — really cook — from an early age, which included watching with amazement countless reruns of The French Chef on PBS with my dad. And while Aunt Ann had told me how to use this pan and how to keep it well, something about this particular cast-iron skillet intimidated me. There was so much history within those layers of seasoning. It had been hers — it had seen things: family gatherings, photo shoots, Friday night suppers.

With Aunt Ann’s urging, I became more confident. I learned to embrace the flavor power of the cast-iron skillet, and came to appreciate its ability to retain and distribute heat. It was non-stick, almost magically. I learned how to use this one simple but remarkable piece of cookware to take basic ingredients and transform them into something special. Over time, I was stir frying vegetables; searing steaks; baking spinach and goat cheese frittata for Sunday brunch; and, yes, making a good cornbread.

—Suzy