I’ve tried leather work gloves and welding gloves but they still let a lot of heat through when handling cast iron from the oven or grill. What can I get that won’t let the heat through.
Silicone grilling gloves (example) seem to be popular these days, have you tried those?
Have you tried putting a cotton work glove on under the welding glove, as a sock so to speak? An insulated glove is what you need, and the welding glove/cotton glove combination works well for me.
Oven mitts?
I have not found an oven mitt which used alone works (bitter experience) for removing cast iron pans from roasting temperature oven.
I’ve been using mitt and dampened kitchen towel.
Might look into handle covers, now that I see this thread…
These look good. From the reviews: “I have grabbed a hot iron skillet off the grill and carried it in the house without any problems.”
ETA: These are grilling gloves, not oven mitts. Significant difference.
You guys have sensitive hands. I’ll grab an oven mitt, welding gloves that I keep around the kitchen for that purpose, or just a kitchen towel. The mitts are heavy duty, not the decorative type that usually lack much insulation. Of course I also have years of cooking experience which has desensitized my hands. I’ll grab stuff out of a deep fryer bare handed.
I’d say combine a kitchen towel and a mitt if it’s still getting to you. And use two hands if it still bothering you, one on the handle and the other on the opposite side of the pan.
I like silicone mitts. You can (and I have) put your hand in a pot of boiling water to retrieve something. I’ve never had any trouble handling very hot cast iron with them.
–Mark
The damp towel will transfer heat faster.
You’re right–I just remembered I did that only once and learned.
The thing is, I always felt it, literally, fumbling and dangerous using towels to grab handles, which is SOP, because I’m too lazy and rushed to fold it halfway decently, and I’m just grabbing this bunch of blanket with an unbalanced weight somewhere in it. Ironically, the moist towel felt grippier.
And the combination of 500° “fuck this is heavier than I thought and my wrist is buckling” is cast iron’s faithful contribution to “is my hand burning yes it is.”
I bought these several years for grilling; mainly for handling hot coals, manipulating the grate, and removing cookware from on top of the grill. I use them inside the house too, for removing pots/pans from inside the oven. They work and have held up very well.
America’s Test Kitchen says these are the best, period: https://www.amazon.com/Steven-Raichlen-Best-Barbecue-Gloves/dp/B0007ZGURU
(If you believe what geeky people in bow ties tell you.)
But the reviews say they are not ideal for the OP’s intended use.
**“I found that this glove, despite being well made and attractive, is no good for holding hot items.”
“[My husband] said they are not for direct contact to any hot iron trays from the grills. They are to protect your hands and lower arms during grilling.”
“Then he lifted the pan off the grill and carried it into the house. About three feet away from the grill, the heat from the pan started to burn through the gloves…We didn’t expect him to be able to hold super hot things indefinitely, but we were hoping that he could at least carry a hot pan 20 feet to get into the house.”**
ETA: That’s three different reviews I quoted.
I was looking at some of the silicone gloves that protect to 280-425 degrees and I don’t think people realize how much heat is in cast iron. I had on welding gloves while camping and I could grab and move burning logs. I grabbed the cast iron grill and within 5 seconds had 2nd degree burns.
ETA: I’m thinking the best plan are the Weber gloves inside the good silicone gloves
Yeah, I’ve always just used a kitchen towel that’s been folded over itself a couple of times and have had no issues with cast iron cookware, and that’s 90% of my everyday cookware.
I’m not sure you understood the OP’s comment that he’s talking about cast iron from the oven or grill. Sure, cast iron on a range top can be moved with just a towel since the handle isn’t exposed to heat and cast iron doesn’t conduct heat very well. Put a cast iron pan, especially full of heavy food, in a 400 F oven for a half hour and then try to lift it with a towel.
(In case it isn’t obvious, DON’T actually do that. Or if you do, don’t blame me for what happens.)
–Mark
Pretty sure I understood correctly.
I’ve been using mitt and dampened kitchen towel.
Water is an excellent conductor of heat, not to mention that you’re creating a steam generator if the damp towel hits the hot iron. Use a dry towel over a damp one.
See 9 and 10.
/nitpick: that’s a quote from me, Leo, uncited in the post this is responding to. that now looks like it was original in Ornery Bob. Be careful–ATMB marathons on this!
Plus: Hi TubaDiva!
Indeed. A dry towel will work fine. Just fold it over enough times. I’ve been doing this for twenty years or so now. I don’t even own oven mitts or, if I do, I have no idea where they are. Folded over so you have eight or sixteen layers (so fold three or four times), you’re fine. The fabric is a very poor conductor of heat. If you need support, get another towel and fold it similarly and slide it under the pan as you’re pulling it out of the oven or grill.