Nothing will elevate your cooking faster or cheaper than cast iron. If there is any amount of frying, braising, roasting or stewing in your future, then flimsy imitators simply suck.

Pros:

• Holds on to heat while you’re cooking (meaning, the pan’s temperature rebounds quickly after adding new batches of ingredients)
• Distributes the heat evenly, even on crappy stoves, preventing uneven cooking
• Keeps finished food warm
• Is oven-safe to, like, a billion degrees
• Is low-stick with a little maintenance
• Is dirt cheap in many cases
• Is pretty enough to bring to the table

Cons:

• It’s heavy. Yes, but that’s what kids and spouses are for.
• It’s expensive. Not always! See below.
• It takes a long time to heat up. Perhaps, but like your prom date, the results are worth waiting for.
• My food sticks. If you can afford a good, enameled dutch oven, problem solved. Plus, there are now pre-seasoned pans on the market.

Cold hard facts, four. Weak excuses, zero.

We like the…

Lodge Logic 12-Inch Pre-Seasoned Skillet

Twelve inches of tough load for under $19. Low-stick out the box. Yes please.

Chefmate 6.5-qt. Cast Iron Casserole Dish

After Cook’s Illustrated named the $40 5-quart version a best buy, on par with Le Crueset, food nerds everywhere swooped down to Target and bought one, including me. Now it seems the only model left is the 6.5-quart which, honestly, is more useful size-wise. The 5-quart is great but tight on space.

Mario Batali 6 Quart Italian Essentials Enameled Cast Iron Pot

Another Cook’s Illustrated best buy for under $110. We received one as a wedding gift and could not be more excited about a 10-pound pot. We’ve made everything from quick chilis to deep fried lumpias to sinigang with great results. It’s our go-to pot for most any recipe.

One interesting note. We found Ikea’s Senior model dutch oven beautiful, and at $50, a steal. But! Only the outside is enameled. The inside is raw and particularly rough. Not recommended.

Each Tuesday we’ll post our Eatgeek Essentials — tools, tips and techniques we can’t live without. This week, the 8″ chef’s knife. Banzai!

A lot of people say they don’t like cooking. But what I think is, they don’t like spending half an hour wrestling with a carrot.

Simply put, you’ll use your knife more than any other piece of kitchen equipment. So treat yourself to one that actually works!

Tips for selecting and buying:

Avoid buying online. It’s hard to know how the knife will feel in your hand. Much like true love (or herpes) you’ll just know when you have it. If you’re cheap Chinese like me, grope in-store then buy online.

Put price in perspective. Chances are, you will have this knife for a lifetime. The $100 now won’t seem so bad in 10 years…maybe. Your tattoo on the other hand…

Look for “high-carbon steel” or something similar. It’s easier to sharpen and holds a good edge. Never buy a “stainless steel” knife. It’s too hard (literally) to sharpen. Once the factory edge goes away, you’ll have a permanently dull letter opener.

Start out with a chef’s knife (8″ or 10″; at 12″ you’ll be ripe for manhood jokes). Add later maybe a paring knife and a serrated bread knife. That’s all you need!

Knives we’ve tried and liked:

• Tramontina Professional (chiz-zeep!)
• Wusthof Le Cordon Bleu (light, super-sharp)
• Wusthof Classic (heftier, also super-sharp)
• Henckels Four Star (balanced with a smooth-but-grippy sealed handle)