Samuel Groves Pre-Seasoned Cast Iron Double Coated Non-Stick Heavy-Duty Black Skillet Long Life Strong Effective 8" 22cm Frying Pan with Handle Great for Every Day Use

Superb! This was the only non-pre seasoned cast iron skillet pan in this size I could find on Amazon. Nice size, 8" cooking plate and 9" rim, with is dimpled on one side for pouring liquids. I have no idea how anyone can justify spending £200 on a Skeppshult pan, when this is made from the same materials, the truth is when Iron is stripped down it’s intrinsically the same despite the price, the two important considerations are flatness and stability, and this little pan has both.I'm not sure why so many customers go wrong with these? Admittedly the pan comes un-packaged without any instructions, but the net and YouTube are replete with videos on how to season cast iron pans. Completely unseasoned pans tend to be better quality, this one is extremely solid and flat, (very important) it has a good sized handle. These do need preparation before use.All unseasoned pans come with an anti-rust coating from the manufacturer, and this needs to be removed before the pan is seasoned, this is nearly always the reason people end up with disasters' on their hands, if this is not completely removed the pan may end up being seasoned with this underneath and the pan with be ruined, although you can always salvage iron, but it requires a lot of elbow work!Don't season iron pans on the hob! Always use the oven, that's why they're designed the way they are. The pan needs to be cleaned in very hot soapy water with a light scouring pad, nothing too heavy like wire wool, once cleaned it needs to be thoroughly dried, with no traces of moisture. Now coat the entire pan, inside & out including handle with a high smoke point oil, such as Walnut oil, Flax Seed oil etc., remember iron is porous, this is why a high smoke point oil is required, take your time with this stage and make sure the coating is thorough, consistent and even, once coated wipe down with kitchen roll, pre heat the oven to around 400f/Gas mark 6, place some foil on the bottom to catch any excess oil drips, (there should be next to none if you have wiped the pan properly) and placed the pan upside down in the oven on the top shelf for one hour, after an hour remove from the oven and let it cool down naturally, this is very important, as the oil with have fused into the pan and created a natural non-stick coating.The pan is now ready to cook anything you choose! Perfect for searing meat at high temperatures, this is one of the main benefits of using iron as opposed to Teflon non-stick pans; it has excellent, stable heat properties, great for frying eggs quickly. You will still need to use oils to cook, but a simple wipe at end of cooking should clean the pan for future use, remember not to clean the pan with any detergents or abrasives and it should be good for years, also every time you cook and the clean the pan will build up more non-stick properties.

great pan. needs a little prep work before use. gives off a bit of a smell as you do this prep work but after this the pan is seasoned and ready to use. Instructions on how to season the pan are simple. heat until the pan it is smoking hot, rub a little oil in with tissue paper and leave to cool. carry out this 3 or 4 times and the pan is ready to use.

This pan was a pain to start with. I got an induction hob and needed a new pan and thought I would try a cast iron one. It was like learning to cook all over again. It needed weeks of seasoning and use till the eggs stopped sticking and it cooked evenly but I stuck with it and now its my favorite pan.It doesnt scratch the induction hob.Great for pancakes. Its a bit big for 2 eggs.I might buy a smaller version in the future if they do one.

Make you sure you season it before use! YouTube has guides and it's easy.Great customer service, quick delivery, a solid product at a good price.

Don't waste your time. I tried to season it (and I know what I am doing - I've been using cast iron skillets for years). It was a complete mess. The factory applied pre-seasoning ran and turned in to a sticky mess. So I tried to bake it off. No joy. Then it started flaking off in clumps. And the casting is very poor too.Straight in the bin with this one. And the 10 inch I bought at the same time.

Excellent Value

I decided to give this little pan a go after reading a review, which gave detailed instructions on how to care and season it. I absolutely love it! Yes, it smells funky when it arrives, but give it a good scrub and season as per the review, and bingo! It's easy when you know how, don't be frightened of it, follow the review here or You Tube it. I can't believe how excited I am about this little pan, gonna get me a bigger one! :-)

Right size for hob, larger ones heat unevenly. Good weight. Seasons well. Only complaint is that the cooking surface needed more smoothing before seasoning which i did with some emery.Overall good pan.