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The Best Cast Iron Skillet? - Review of Lodge, Field Co, Stargazer, Butter Pat
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Aug 23, 2023
Get our FREE guide to smoothing cast iron HERE: https://kentrollins.com/grab-our-free-guide/ All the skillets featured have a 8.5" cooking surface. We've listed all the cast iron skillet companies and links below. Please check with the companies for any current promotions, etc. Lodge: 10.25", 5 lbs 6.4 oz, handle : 4 3/4": http://www.lodgemfg.com/ Stargazer: 10.5", 5 lbs 1.5 oz, handle: 7.5": http://www.stargazercastiron.com/products/ Field Company: No8, 4 lbs 6.9 oz, handle: 5.5": https://bit.ly/2yoUoYh Butter Pat: 10" Heather, 4 lbs 14 oz, handle: 4 5/8": https://butterpatindustries.com/collections/frontpage/products/h-type-heather =================== Want more recipes and tips? Sign up for our emails: http://kentrollins.com
View Video Transcript
0:00
Hey folks y'all been asking for it so we're going to deliver it a side-by-side comparison of the
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Butterpats, Stargazer Field, and Lodge Skilits. Stick around you don't want to miss this and I promise you
0:16
Welcome to the barn and got my beautiful wife with me again today. I'm a blessed man. I guarantee
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something I want to say for we go on any further is I thank you so much all of you
0:30
for your concern about my mustache. Take a good look here. It is coming back
0:34
I mean, Bertha got it, and it's on its way back. So give me a little time
0:39
It will get there. We've been doing a short cast iron series
0:42
As we have promised, we are doing a side-by-side comparison of some major USA-made cast iron brands
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Butter Pat. Yep. Field, Stargazer, and Lodge. We did contact Butterpat, Field, and Stardt, and
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Stargazer and asked them if they would provide us a skillet and they were very generous to do
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So we're not being paid by those companies to promote or say anything about their products
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but they did provide the skillets for an honest review. For the lodge skillet, we just went and purchased one
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The categories that we were comparing these skillets in are weight, seasoning and finish
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handle design, overall design, and finally price. There you go. You ready
1:27
Yes, we are much anticipated episode. I've been waiting for weeks for this
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This lodge, they're calling this their 10.25 skillet. However, all of these skillets have about an eight and a half inch cooking surface
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Lodge's weight is five pounds, six point four ounces, and this does come in as our heaviest skillet
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So the next one we're going to talk about is a big one in cast iron
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It is that. It is the seasoning and the finish. The lodge that I have, and I have a lot of it, it is a pre-season base
2:06
Sure, it's blacker than any of these other skillets. It's got that nice black color
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But let me tell you, folks, this is like a truck bedliner when you run across here
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And I'm a firm believer, just me, you have to start with a smooth surface to end up with a smooth surface
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I've always just took orbital sanders and 60-grit paper and got down to the smooth
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and then start it over. How do you feel that over time it builds and accepts seasoning
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Well, I've sanded a piece down and started over. And it finishes back pretty quick
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But it is definitely a whole lot easier to clean after I did away with their pre-seasoned
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and then started with a slick finish. Anyone is interested in the way that we smooth
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and then rebuild that seasoning. We'll put a link below. It's a free guide that we've created
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And it's pretty easy to follow if you do have lodge or interested in buying some lodge
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So next we're going to talk about the Stargazer seasoning and finish
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Well, as soon as I pulled it out of the box, I seen that good slick finish and it had a good bronze color to it
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And we fried a little bacon, as y'all seen, and then we scrambled an egg in there. I was impressed with this skillet in the way that it accepted the seasoning that we put back on it
3:16
and the way it performed with what they already had on it. And I even think that we maybe felt it cleaned up a little bit better than the other skillets did
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They do sell this seasoned and unseasoned. There's an $8 difference. We recommend go ahead and go with their seasoning
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They've already started it for you. And it was a really good seasoning. Yes. When you run you cross, you hand across this and a hand across this
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I mean, you can hear it, folks. Hear this? There is a difference. Yeah
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Field skill. And I do have to say from our unboxing my favorite seasoning was on the field I would say the Stargazer the field and the butter pat all had equal smoothness But to me the field had a hand feel to it
4:05
I ran my finger across it, and I could see my fingerprint and the oil come through
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and it felt like somebody had personally oiled and seasoned the skillet right before it got here
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The thing that I really liked about it as well as the Stargazer and the Butter Pat, too
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it had the feel of old iron, of Wagner and Griswold. Yes. The Butterpats? Butterpats
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And so the thing that was unique about Butter Pat I saw was that because it's the only one that it's hand finished, there are none of those swirl marks that you can see on all of them
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Or feel. And feel. This one was just like wax car. Yeah
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I mean, it was sleek finish. Yeah. We're going to talk about the handle design because all of them, that is kind of where they are all differentiated
4:49
Yes, it is. And we'll start back here with lodge. That is about a four
4:54
three quarters? Yeah, four and three quarters inches. When I grab a hold to this, it's automatically
5:00
here. Short handle too is going to make this skillet seem a little heavier when it's a shorter
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piece of leverage that you're trying to pick up. It feels good in my hand. It's heavy, but I do like
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that. It's just a classic design and it feels good. And maybe it's because we have cooked with
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lodge quite a bit. Yeah, and the Griswolds and the Wagner's were sort of that thing. They all kind of have the same design. Stargazer. From the skillet now
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This is seven and a half inches. So you gained three inches. You gained a lot. Okay
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Now when I first seen this, my automatic thought, and y'all heard me say it, this is for
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a cooling design. But also, folks, there is one other feature that they have here that I overlooked
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You can lay a spatula or a wooden spoon right here. The more I used it, the more I picked it up, I got to sort of thinking, hey, this thing
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is all right. It does have the longer handle. It is cooler. I can grab it bare handed
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We have noted, like when we did cook with it, it took a lot longer for the this handle to get hot while cooking
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So that was a big advantage. For me, however, I don't like the handle
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I have a smaller hand. It's a little too wide. And it just doesn't feel, because then I have to grip it so hard
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This edge here starts cutting into my hand. You do have this on a campfire and stick it there
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You're further away from the actual fires. I ain't burning the hair off your knuckles
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Next is the field. five and a half. This feels good. Yeah
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It has a little more roll to it, which makes it a little easier to grab a hold of, big hands or little
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Does it feel good in your hand? Oh, cast iron feels good in my hand all the time, but I do like the way this skill it feels
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It is longer than the lodge, this one is. It also has just a flat coming out, and so maybe that does help with my hand
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The butter pat. Yes. About four and five-eighths. Four and five-eighth maybe
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Yeah, I was close. It doesn't feel as good as the lodge or the field
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And why is that? This cuts into me here, this design. With not being a solid handle
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Without being solid or being maybe a little more rounded. To me it feels pretty similar to the old handles that were on the griswold and stuff
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It's just this edge, if it was rolled down, just a little sharp, if it was rolled down just a little
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Overall, my completely favorite handle is the field. Really? Yeah, but I do, you give me more time to use this one
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You probably grow onto that? Yeah. Okay. And that gives me a little more room, you know
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I would say my favorite is either the lodge or the field. The only reason I would lean toward the field is because it is a lighter skillet
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and so I don't have as much weight holding me down. Let's talk about the overall design of these skillets
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And since, we kind of did a little, we did the magic shield game
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But let go ahead and start with field The thickness of the wall reminded me so much of Griswold Wagner where it has no poor spout but it flared enough that I have poured gravy from any direction in the world
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Sometimes when you just have a flared edge on these and you go to pouring gravy across
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a chicken fried steak that beat Bobby Flay's butt, it's going to drip down the pan
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What I liked the most about the field is it was very, very simple design. Yeah
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a straight handle, a nice thin wall. Stargazer next. Okay. This is probably the most unique skillet
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I like that you can put your whole hand through it. I don't know why
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It's not like I'm walking around. You carry that through the airport. Airport, Norman. But I just like that it's there and that if you want to do it, you could
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I do like that it has a more rolled, flared out edge versus the other ones
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But like I said, for me, the handle's not my friend. Just the other thing too, this is the deepest of the skillet. Yes
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Like a two and a quarter depth, field is one and three-fourse, Lodge is nearly two, and butter pat is just over one and a half maybe
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Lodge does have a horseback, which I like, it's little. I would have liked to see that more pronounced
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The wall, however, is significantly thicker than the other ones. Yes. That will go into the weight factor
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which I don't like, but I did like the handle. It's just a classic handle
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If it was a little longer, it would be a good deal. It would. And now we'll finish off overall design with the butter pat
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The thing I love the best is the thin wall. Yeah. And then also the por spout
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It has the most pronounced por spout, which I do like. This is kind of a little unique design for them
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It's different than anything we've seen. But it does give you a little..
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Yeah, you've got a leverage point. The handle's not much. my favorite, actually the longer I hold it, it does start hurting. I don't feel like it's very
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ergonomic. That's a big word. I really like these poor spouts. I really did. I like the way
10:04
the design of the skilly wood, I'd roll the edges just a little. To me, this is a skillet that
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hey, it's user-friendly. Yeah. To nearly everybody. How much will it affect your wallet or credit card
10:17
Yes. Yes. But one thing about cast iron, when you buy good quality cash
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It is an investment. Every time you cook out of it, it's giving you something back
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The lodge, now I picked this up at Walmart, I told you, and it was $20
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The Stargazer, it comes in two styles, like we said, unseasoned, it's $80
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Seasoned, it's $88. But they also have a military discount. Yes, so if you go on their website, they do offer a 15% discount field, and their skillet is $100
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Yeah, but they do have a $15. send off now going on. Oh, do they
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Yes, ma'am. Their promotions may change. So check their website or contact them
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I think I did see maybe that if you sign up for the lodge email, you do get a coupon
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All right. So you could check that. And then finally, Butter Pat is $195
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So let's just go through and do a quick kind of pros and cons
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To each skillet. When Lodge changed and went to the pre-seasoning that they do now, to me it didn't do anything
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but create me more work to get what I was after. Yes. Now the old lodge that I have, I wouldn't take nothing for it
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It has served me well. The biggest con to lodge is the rough pre-seasoning and its weight
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Yeah. The pros to lodge, it's inexpensive. It's available nearly everywhere. They have different sizes
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Lodge is the only company currently making... Quality. American-made cast iron Dutch ovens
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So if you're looking for that, we do recommend their Dutch ovens. The only thing that I really disliked about this skill is
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and it very little was I might have squeezed this handle in just a tad Yeah You know and it would have made it a little easier I like that it cooler You know I love the design I like the flare on the lid Yeah It does pour a little better than the field
12:05
The thing I really love about this skillet is its weight and it's finish
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I could take my finger and rub across there and I knew that this skillet was going to finish well
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It was going to perform well, clean well. I would have liked to have seen a poor spout on here
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They just kept it real simple. this handle does feel really good to me
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The butter pat. And I'm just going to say it right out of the gate. The biggest con to this one, it's its price
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But you do have to remember that it is completely handmade. This to me would be something that a collector, an officiant auto would have
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It's such a classic piece of American cast iron. I'm not a big fan of the handle
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I do love, love, love, love the poor spout. First thing that got me when I run my hand across this and better than any of them was the finish they had on it
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You know, it was like glass smooth. And that's how I know that a skillet is going to perform well
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Okay, but I'm going to play devil's advocate here a little bit. Do you feel that there is a big enough difference between the Stargazer at 88 and the Butter Pat at 195
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Not necessarily, no. And I'm not belittling these people or telling them that tell you that don't buy one
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No, and that's the thing with Butterpat is because there's not a machine involved, that's where you're getting the extra cost
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Like I said, I would say this is the skillet for the collector, for somebody that's really hard to buy for
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That's where I think your Butterpat market comes in. I would give a maybe final recommendation
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If you are new to Cast Iron, I would probably recommend either the Stargays
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or the field because they come with a really great pre-seasoning. A lot of people who are just new to cast iron don't understand how it works and how the
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seasoning works and they get frustrated. For more ease of use out of the beginning, I would maybe suggest one of those, would you say
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The lodge is a good one. It's just the pre-seasoning is so rough. I wouldn't give that to somebody right out of the bat and say, here, this is what cast iron
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is like because you have to put a little more love into the lodge. Remember what you're looking for
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But first of all, remember, it's all made in the USA by hardworking people here
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Yep. And so the biggest takeaway is there are all different styles of skillets, all different price ranges
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We hope this helped you. Maybe find out what works best for you. Are you going to pick a favorite
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Oh, like an overall favorite? That's what people have been asking me. Oh, they want an overall favorite
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They wanted a favorite, Shand. Is it not me? You're always my favorite
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Oh, man. I think I'd have to go with the field. Simple, light, and the handle is good
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If I was saying that I had to go and buy one skillet, it would be a field
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Yeah. But I haven't cooked with this skillet long, but I am really liking it
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I think you're kind of, yeah, like as you have talked about it more and more, I think the Stargazer is growing on you
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We thank y'all for stopping by the barn. Thank you for your concern about my mustache
15:14
I was really, it was just heartwarming, all the sympathy and, support that I got over at Shamed
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Somebody said like, ooh, that guy does a really good impression of Kent Rollins. I hope you enjoyed this little series we did on Cast Iron
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What do you do, Kent? You reach over there and you hit that subscribe button
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There you go. And you'll get there. God bless you each and every one. See you down the trail. Hey, folks, y'all been asking for it, so we're going to give it to you a side-by-side
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comparison of the butter path, the stargazer the field, and lodge cast iron
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You don't want to stick around. Oh, you don't want to? You don't want
15:49
I told you we should have went with the first one. Dorky butt
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Please do not watch this video. Sorry. Okay
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