Cast-iron skillets are an incredibly versatile kitchen tool for frying eggs, searing steaks, and even grilling brownies (yes, brownies!). In this roundup, we've gathered some of our favorite ways to use cast iron skillets, from making a wild mushroom Dutch baby for the ultimate brunch to whipping up a skillet fruit crisp that can be adapted for any season. These long-lasting pans can be used to make breakfast, dinner, and everything in between — start here with our favorite cast-iron skillet recipes.
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Sausage, Kale, and Potato Skillet Supper
"This is a single-serving recipe, but it can easily be doubled — just use a bigger skillet so you have plenty of room," says Klancy Miller, cookbook author and founder/editor of For the Culture.
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Skillet Brownies on the Grill
These brownies take on a deliciously smoky flavor on the grill from "baking" in a skillet set over hot coals. After you're done grilling dinner, prepare to make brownies by adding a few more lumps of charcoal to maintain a grill temperature of around 350°F. Pull the skillet brownies when they're still a bit moist in the middle for a fudgy center and smoky brownie "bark" around the edges.
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Wild Mushroom-and-Swiss Dutch Baby
This puffy pancake gets an extra-savory touch from grated Swiss cheese and a hint of Dijon mustard, while a combination of mixed wild mushrooms, shallot, and arugula tops it off. Use room temperature milk and eggs to give the Dutch baby a higher rise than you'll get from fridge-cold ingredients.
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Strawberry-Rhubarb Cornmeal Skillet Cake
Juicy strawberries and tart rhubarb stud the golden brown top of this simple skillet cake. The mix of all-purpose flour and fine cornmeal gives this dessert a pound-cake-like density, while goat cheese and buttermilk keep the crumb nicely tender and moist.
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Smoky Skillet-Grilled Chicken with Crispy Bread
This hybrid skillet-on-the-grill method lets you capture all the delicious juices that the bird gives off as it cooks, while still allowing the chicken to absorb plenty of barbecue flavor. Smoky charcoal, plus the rich, deep notes of smoked paprika and chipotle chile, add plenty of depth.
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Carrot and Spring Onion Toad in the Hole
The traditional toad in the hole consists of whole sausages cooked in an egg-and-flour batter. This recipe delivers a taste of the British classic but stars tender baby carrots and spring onions for a flavorful, vegetable-forward spring variation.
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Queso Flameado
In this irresistible snack, charred poblano pepper and pureed cilantro and serrano chiles serve as a built-in salsa, layering spicy, garlicky flavors into the rich, melted cheese. Flaming it with tequila makes the whole thing a little extra. The pickled carrots on top add acidity and brightness.
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Latke Breakfast Hash
This eggy, savory breakfast is a terrific way to use up leftover latkes, however unlikely. Pastry chef Caroline Schiff loves to fry up latkes the way her great-grandmother did, using a dash of pimentón for extra depth.
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Skillet Chicken and Chorizo Paella
While Spanish paella is traditionally made in its namesake pan, this cast-iron variation is a great alternative — and it can also go straight from stove to table. The recipe builds layers of flavors as you saute aromatics in the same pan you've used to sear the chorizo and chicken.
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Spicy Peel-and-Eat Skillet Shrimp with Garlic
Grill unpeeled raw jumbo shrimp by placing a large cast-iron skillet on the grates. The shells help insulate the delicate shrimp from the heat of the grill so they cook evenly without becoming tough.
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Mixed Berry Crisp with Matzo Streusel
Sweet-tart berries, tossed with just enough sugar and lemon juice, get topped with salty-sweet crumbled matzosand baked in a large cast-iron skillet.
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Kimchi Cheese Jeon (Kimchi Cheese Pancake)
In her episode of Chefs at Home, chef Rachel Yang makes her own homemade Napa cabbage kimchi, and then shows how to use kimchi at varying stages of fermentation in a range of dishes. One of her favorites is this irresistible kimchi pancake, in which tangy, lightly spicy kimchi is balanced out by plenty of cheese.
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Quick Skillet-Roasted Chicken with Spring Vegetables
Tender carrots, onions, turnips, and mushrooms simmer in a mixture of chicken drippings and butter in this simple, speedy dish.
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King Oyster Mushroom Steaks with Pesto and Almond Aillade
Chef Julia Sullivan employs a duo of cast-iron skillets to prepare the tender, crispy-edged mushroom steaks at Henrietta Red in Nashville; one for cooking the mushrooms, the other for pressing them flat so they cook evenly. Buttery roasted almonds balance the sharper notes of garlic and lemon in this rustic French sauce.
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Cheddar, Corn, and Jalapeño Cast-Iron Cornbread
Chef Tiffany Derry's cast-iron cornbread combines sharp, tangy cheddar with a fresh jalapeño pepper for a kick that’s just right.
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Blackened Skillet Pork Chops with Beans and Spinach
A stellar homemade spice blend amps up the flavor of this super simple meal, which comes together using just one pan. You cook the pork chops in a cast-iron skillet until they're blackened, then remove them from the skillet to cook the beans and spinach. The finished dish goes perfectly with a smoky, dark-fruited Malbec.
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Platanos Foster
Pastry chef Paola Velez gives Bananas Foster, the classic flambéed dessert, a Caribbean twist by swapping out bananas for plantains and adding warm spices and coconut water to the caramel sauce. Rum raisin ice cream is the perfect accompaniment to the caramelized plantains.
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Crispy Skillet Latke with Kale
For Ashkenazi Jews, latkes are the heart and soul of Hanukkah. Instead of frying batches of traditional pancakes, here the whole lot of shredded potato batter is pressed into a sizzling frying pan and finished in the oven. The oversized pancake emerges golden with a tender center and crackly shoestring curls around the perimeter.
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Buttery Cast-Iron Shrimp with Winter Salad
Shrimp are seared and glazed in chipotle-honey butter in this warm seasonal salad from chef JJ Johnson. He serves the shrimp over gently sautéed radicchio and endive, which mellows the chicories' bitter edge without losing their color or delicate crunch.
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Cast-Iron Blackberry Galette with Whipped Mascarpone
This galette is great baked in a cast-iron skillet because it's easy to transport and serve. The secret to the sturdy crust is the buttery brown sugar oat crumble, which absorbs the jammy blackberries as they bake.
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Tater Tot Casserole
The secret to this casserole is the layer of creamed spinach in the middle. It adds richness to the dish, as well as a nice contrast to the crispy, crunchy Tater Tot top.
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Phoenicia Diner's Breakfast Skillet
Phoenicia Diner in Phoenicia, New York, offers an impressive list of breakfast “skillets.” This creamy egg scramble studded with smoked trout is meant for one, but it can be easily doubled or quadrupled.
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Porterhouse Steak
For a perfectly tender and crusty steak, chefs and brothers Bryan Voltaggio and Michael Voltaggio salt their meat up to 12 hours beforehand and let it sit, uncovered, in the refrigerator.
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