CuisinelCast Iron Skillet - 12"-Inch Frying Pan with Assist Handle + Red Silicone Grip Cover - Pre-Seasoned Oven Safe Cookware - Indoor/Outdoor Use - Grill, Stovetop, Induction, BBQ and Firepit Safe

Hello!Not so rough, at last the 10" one, which is the one used so far; can wipe with a paper tower without any problem. Maybe the manufacturer paid attention on coarseness complaints. Just a little water before putting on the stove, and it was wonderfully hydrophobic.First thing cooked out of the box, an omelet, with some oil and butter; just a little stick around part of the border. Second thing, fried eggs; almost no sticking.The first time we ever cooked with cast iron long ago, was frying eggs. They stick so hard, that it looked like part of the iron. After viewing so many videos and reading so many tips, what was wrong? We figured out fairly quickly: the heat. The pan was so hot, that the eggs began to cook before landing on the pan; yes, exaggerating, but it was too much heat for eggs. After long cleaning that mess, next eggs barely started to cook when dropped on, they started to get white very slowly, no sizzling at all. Sizzling = stick when dealing with eggs over cast iron.Haven't made anything else yet (like a steak) but felt the necessity to write the review right away, because seasoning it with a little oil after cleaning was not a problem with a paper tower; it got eventually destroyed, but not to the extent that cannot be used in about three pieces to be able to finish the seasoning; then have to get rid of all those paper tower flakes, which was fairly easy hitting with a kitchen tower.Maybe we were lucky, but these units are great (just tried the smaller one from a set of two) and we are very pleased with the quality and the price. Remember, keep heat extremely low for some cooking, and you will be able to move the eggs around the pan, turn them over for a while, and get then perfectly and flavored cooked.Highly recommended, but you must learn how to use and care for them.Update: yes, you are right, 'paper towel', just one, 'not a tower of paper' which would mean 'a lot of paper towel'. I know you got it and ignored it, but it looked very funny to me when realizing it, lol.

This set of pans is an incredible value, like I thought they might be bunk Chinese made knock-offs.....but these are the best cast iron pans I've ever used. They are a tad thinner than lodge, but also much smoother than lodge, and I found these to actually be bonuses.The thickness of these was much better for distribution of heat and making the pan responsive to temp changes on the range.....heavier can be a real drawback sometimes when heavy pans retain too much heat to cool while cooking for certain steps. And these earent light weight, just thinner than lodge or le cruset. The smoother surface though, was also a WONDERFUL difference and meant I had a truly non-stick can cook scrambled eggs no problem, with no annoying to clean residue pan, in just 2! uses/conditionings. You can actually was these pans with soap (no soaking of courses) because the polymer/ fatty acid layer takes so solidily to the surface. Just beautiful. Not a chore to clean these pans, and they take oil beautifully too, cling to a nice thin layer....which again I think is do to the smoother texture. The preconditioning from factory is much lighter than lodge as well, but another bonus because I find theirs tacky with a tendency to flake off. No such inferior mass production here.Hands down one of the best purchases I've ever made for my kitchen. I've already told my professional level chef mom about them, and she was like, "the only cast iron I've ever gotten to be a true substitute for non-stick is your grandmother's lodge pan" and we think it's because lodge just takes that long to build up or they used to be made different. In any case......these pans are just oodles better, and come with oven safe lids and handle covers.Don't sleep on this brand, they know what's up.

Get these. This is a nice investment. These cast iron pans are nice and heavy. They are awesome with holding heat at a consistent rate. The silicone handles are very nice and easy to slide on and off. The lids themselves are heavy and the silicone on the handles are great. I haven't put them in the oven with the silicone handles on them as of yet. The pans are already pre-seasoned. I used one out of the box and imo I would wipe out the pan with hot water, dry it well, then season the pans again before using for the first time. I did more seasoning with the other 2 pans and that made it so much better when I cooked in them. The 12 inch pan with food in it, you will definitely need 2 hands to move around the stove or oven because of the weight. They will rust (my son washed the pan by mistake and left it to dry! AH!) I cleaned it and seasoned it again. It's fine now. The only thing that I wish is that the back of the pan was completely smooth as I am using an electric stove. I would for sure buy another set.

I’ve been working with just my regular pans and knew I would really use this pan. Love the handle-guard and the pan is well made, heavy as expected. Ramps up the look of cooked items. PreSeasoned, this size is perfect for about any cooking needed.

I gave four stars because I think these are great skillets for the price, but I’m also comparing to my $200 enamel skillet so keep that in mind. I mainly needed a skillet for camping and use over hot coals and open fire (which one I’m not taking a $200 skillet and you can do that with an enamel). Got this set and I’m very pleased with them. You just need to put the work into preseasoning them even though they claim they are already. First few used definitely do something with grease/fat to assist that to make them more non-stick. 8” is great for personal sized omelet in the morning and 10” would be great if just by yourself for other items but I’m usually with other people and have since added the 12” to my collection (which I got with the cast iron lid - recommend getting the cast iron lids to make them like small Dutch ovens almost). I love the rubber removable handle covers and work great when camping but still be careful as they can get hot as well.