Reader TJ questions the mind that packed a cast iron frying pan and a glass coffee pot in the same box, without adequate padding:
I’m sure you get a number of these, but here’s another one because I know I don’t get tired of them. A word of advice to anyone planning on making a purchase from Amazon.com that I overlooked myself; do not order anything glass with anything heavy, as they most likely WILL package them together.
Two weeks ago I placed an order with Amazon. My order included some kitchen items: a strainer, some bakers cooling racks, a French press coffeemaker and a cast iron skillet. In my own stupidity I figured Amazon had been in this business long enough to know to package a glass coffee press and a cast iron skillet either in separate boxes, or with enough protection from one another.
Well, as you can tell from the attached photos, they were placed in direct contact and of course the coffee press shattered into about 20-30 pieces. At least they used the right size box, right? Well, joking aside, since I placed a “Free-shipping” order I’m told it will take over a week for them to get me a replacement. So, just as a warning to others, the best advice I can give is carefully select how you place your orders, because Amazon won’t think twice about packing a fragile item with a weighty one.
TJ
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@magilacudy: They’re also carried at a lot of hardware stores with kitchen gadget sections, like Do-It-Best and places like that. And at camping/hunting/outdoorsy stores (REI, Gander Mountain). They’re so heavy that the extra couple bucks you might pay locally is typically offset by the cost of shipping from an online merchant.
The lodge pans are great. When I ordered mine from Amazon, though, the handle had come through the packaging and was outside the box.
See what can happen when you combine orders to reduce shipping? I think someone needs to be re-trained at the Amazon packing facility in the proper use of cushioning material and how to stack items.
Simply securing the frying pan and putting the french press on top with packing material would eliminate this.
Are you sure the the french press isn’t supposed to look like that?
OK, I have nothing to contribute about Amazon/shipping (that blows!). But as a cook, it gives me cheer to see so many folks extolling the virtues of cast iron pans!
But here’s a tip for those of you using these pans and having difficulty with the seasoning: don’t wash it. Ever.
Instead, right after the food has gone from pan to plate and the pan is still hot (that’s the important part!), run the hot pan under hot water and give it a quick wipe with a high-temp resistant scrubby (those Chinese fiber scrubbers are excellent for this). The water turns to steam on contact and if the pan was seasoned to start with, and foodie bits will come right off with that surface blast of steam. Shake the water off the pan, put it back on the stove to cool down and dry, and it will be ready and waiting, perfectly seasoned, for the next meal. You don’t need to apply any additional oil, or re-season. Ever.
Worried about germs/bacteria? Think about it. The pan was hot enough to flash steam during the rinse. There ain’t gonna be no baddies that survive that.
Bonus tip: don’t add your oil, butter, lard, margarine, etc. (cooking oil in whatever form) until the pan is hot. These two steps will guarantee an ever-better seasoning to the pan. My cast iron skillet will slide out an omelet like it was coated with fresh teflon. Only, no teflon!
Cheers.
Time until OP writes back to say they sent a pot AND another skillet and same thing happened in 3…2…1…