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Caring for Cast Iron

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Cast Iron

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A few months ago, I started thinking about cast iron a little differently. We all know what it’s good at. High heat. A hard sear. Live fire. It’s the pan you reach for when you want to push heat.

But what about the opposite?

What about the kind of cooking that usually feels more delicate like custards, puddings, cheesecake? The kinds of recipes that call for water baths, careful temperatures, and a lot of steps that feel easy to mess up.

I wanted to see if cast iron could handle that too.

The short answer: it can. And in most cases, you don’t need the water bath at all.

Why water baths exist

A water bath does one thing well: it evens out heat. It surrounds the custard with gentle, consistent temperature so it cooks slowly and doesn’t curdle. It also adds a bit of steam to keep the surface from drying out.

It’s effective, but it’s also the most cumbersome part of the process. Boiling water, balancing pans, wrapping dishes, hoping nothing leaks.

Why cast iron changes the equation

Cast iron already solves most of those problems. Because it heats slowly and holds temperature, it buffers against hot spots and sudden swings in heat. Once it comes up to temperature, it stays there.That stability is exactly what custards need. Instead of relying on water to regulate the oven, you can let the pan do the work.

The Method

Once you remove the water bath, the approach becomes simpler:

  1. Lower the oven temperature: we bake custards low and slow, usually around 215–225°F.

  2. Cover the pan: wrap the skillet tightly with foil, then pierce a few small holes across the top. This traps just enough steam to mimic a water bath, without introducing another pan or extra liquid.

  3. Give it time: custards aren’t rushed. The lower temperature means a longer bake, but a more forgiving one.

What to look for

Custards don’t always tell you they’re done visually. The edges should be set. The center should still have a slight wobble.

If you want to be precise, a thermometer helps:

  • Flan: ~170-175°F

  • Crème brûlée: ~170-175°F

  • Cheesecake: ~150–155°F

Once you know the range, it becomes repeatable.

What we’ve made so far

Using this method, we’ve tested a few of the classics, all in cast iron, all without a water bath:

  • Flan de Naranja: A smooth custard with a layer of caramel, baked in a skillet and flipped to serve. 

  • Crème Brûlée: Low and slow, finished with a crackly sugar top. 

  • Cast Iron Cheesecake: A smaller-format cheesecake with a graham crust, baked without a springform pan. 

  • Brownie Pudding: Somewhere between a custard and a cake, traditionally baked in a water bath. In cast iron, we skip it—letting the pan’s heat retention do the work while a small dish of water in the oven adds just enough ambient steam. 




A few things that help

  1. A well-seasoned skillet improves release and overall results.
  2. A probe thermometer removes the guesswork and is a tool we generally feel like every home cook or baker should have.
  3. Oven temperature matters more than you think. Even well-calibrated ovens can run hot or cold, which makes a difference when you’re baking low and slow. An in-oven thermometer helps you understand your true temperature and keeps results consistent.
  4. Keeping the foil tight and slightly elevated prevents it from touching the custard.


The takeaway

This isn’t about rewriting custard recipes. It’s about removing a step. Lower the heat. Cover the pan. Let it cook slowly.

The result is the same, smooth, just-set custard, without the water bath, without the extra equipment, and without much to worry about.

That’s the kind of cooking cast iron has always been good at. Every so often, it reminds us why—and shows us something new.