25 cast iron recipes

Cajun-style blackened burgers crusted with cayenne, fennel, white pepper, and garlic. Cooked in a screaming-hot cast iron skillet for a charred peppered crust and finished with a Worcestershire pan sauce.

Blackened Cajun prime rib: a 10-pound roast seasoned with pepper, garlic, and onion, roasted, chilled, then sliced into steaks and seared in a white-hot cast iron skillet until charred and crusty.

Cajun prime rib roasted with a thick crust of black pepper, garlic, and onion, then chilled and sliced into steaks for blackening in a screaming hot cast iron skillet. A two-day showstopper.

Cumin-crusted chicken breasts seared in cast iron, sliced over a fresh tomato, cucumber, and jalapeno salad with a warm red wine vinegar dressing. A high-protein, low-fat dinner in 40 minutes.

Butter-dipped pork chops coated in a fiery Cajun spice blend and seared in a screaming hot cast-iron skillet until crusty and charred. Warning: this generates serious smoke and even more serious flavor.

Real butterscotch pie made the old-fashioned way with brown sugar and butter melted in a cast iron skillet, topped with golden meringue. No pudding mix, no shortcuts, just pure caramelized flavor in every slice.

Pan-broiled flank steak: a screaming-hot cast-iron skillet, coarse salt as the only seasoning, and 8 to 10 minutes total cook time. Two ingredients, fast, and sliced thin against the grain for a tender result.

Pepper-crusted fresh tuna loin seared in a screaming hot cast iron pan, sliced thin, and served with a soy-sesame-ginger dipping sauce spiked with five spice. This Japanese-inspired tataki appetizer is ready in 20 minutes.

Steakhouse pan-broiled steak done right in a cast iron skillet, salted ahead and seared in its own beef fat for a deep crust, then finished with a quick red wine and brandy pan sauce mounted with butter.