Yes, you have to season it when you first get one but after that I only do it once in a while, the coating tends to build up with use.
To me, it’s worth it. The alternative is buying non-stick pans where you can’t use metal utensils and when the coating starts to wear you might as well throw it in the trash and buy another one. Cast iron will last pretty much forever if you take care of it. Also, they tend to be very thick and heavy so they heat evenly.
I like the “thick and heavy and heat evenly” part.
I use an induction cooktop and it’s DESTROYED so many of my pans and pots. Because the heat is super concentrated in the middle and the pan is so thin, at best it’s always burn in the middle, at worst the whole bottom literally arcing up so the pan is not “flat” anymore, super frustrated to use.
Yes, you have to season it when you first get one but after that I only do it once in a while, the coating tends to build up with use.
To me, it’s worth it. The alternative is buying non-stick pans where you can’t use metal utensils and when the coating starts to wear you might as well throw it in the trash and buy another one. Cast iron will last pretty much forever if you take care of it. Also, they tend to be very thick and heavy so they heat evenly.
I like the “thick and heavy and heat evenly” part.
I use an induction cooktop and it’s DESTROYED so many of my pans and pots. Because the heat is super concentrated in the middle and the pan is so thin, at best it’s always burn in the middle, at worst the whole bottom literally arcing up so the pan is not “flat” anymore, super frustrated to use.
It sounds like cast iron would work well for you. I have a wok with a flat base that must be 1/2" thick.
The other positive about cast iron over non-stick… No forever chemicals getting cooked into your food.