Symbol of the South

Many Southerners grew up eating suppers served straight from a cast-iron skillet. Sometimes it was a smooth heirloom pan, passed down from a grandmother, that was a vehicle for the best biscuits—crisp on the bottom with pillowy layers that cradled pools of butter. Other times, it was a thrift store find that was cleaned, restored, and re-seasoned so devotedly that it became the most used pan for everything from fried chicken to summer berry cobbler. Cast iron has a long history in Southern kitchens, but just how did the cookware become synonymous with the region?

Cast iron’s earliest known history lies in China several thousand years ago