Cool Stuff, Great Stories: Butter Pat Industries and Cast Iron Chris

‘COOL STUFF, GREAT STORIES’ IS A RUNNING COLUMN WHEREIN MASTER DISTILLER BRIAN J. ROAN SHARES THE COOL THINGS HE’S DISCOVERED FROM OTHER PASSIONATE CREATORS.

(This essay was originally published on the Inkwell Whiskey Quill & Ink blog.)

Would it be shocking to learn that a master distiller would have a passion for cooking and baking? Part of me thinks the reaction should be, “Don’t you have enough going on?” Another part of me thinks it makes a lot of sense that a love of creating spirits would align with a love of creating other delicious treats. Either way, the truth is that I love cooking, and despite the fact that I’m an overloaded single father, I take a lot of pleasure in cooking with just a touch of old school patience and care—the kind you have to exercise while using cast iron.

I’d been cooking on cast iron for a decade before I came across the TikTok of Cast Iron Chris. His channel focused on rescuing and rehabbing long-neglected and mistreated pieces, as well as educating people on the proper handling of cast iron cookware. At the time, I’d always subscribed to a lot of the old wives’ tales about cooking on cast iron. For instance, I never used soap for fear of ruining the seasoning, which, like so many people, I assumed was some magical layer of char. My pan was fairly non-stick, but also probably far below where it could have been. Cast Iron Chris’s videos sent me down a rabbit hole of research and education about polymerization and cleaning and maintenance. I was happy to feel like I had gotten a better handle on the proper use of my favorite kitchen tool, but…

Well, my first cast iron pan was pretty cheap. Not just in price point, but seemingly in craft and quality. Yes, I had been using it for years, and yes it had made many a great meal, but that didn’t mean it couldn’t be improved upon. So one day I left a message on one of Cast Iron Chris’s videos and asked him, “What modern cast iron would you recommend?”

His answer?

Butter Pat Industries. I’d never heard of them before, but I was pretty excited to check out their web site and see that not only did they make gorgeous stuff, but they were located in Maryland, too. I’m a sucker for local stuff, so of course I was eager to try them out. Their incredible origin story didn’t hurt either; founder Dennis Powell cracked his grandmother’s cast iron and when he wasn’t able to repair it he set about figuring out how to make more like it—cast thin and smooth without over machining. It required an uncompromising search for the best way to do things, shunning what’s easy or comfortable, which is something I can get behind as a creator.

There was some initial sticker shock at the price, but quality is worth paying for, and I was also fortunate enough to discover them right on the verge of a massive sale, their Second Best Sale. I was able to snag a “restaurant-grade” pan for 50% off the retail price. They warned that these pans wouldn’t be “perfect,” but I have to say if this is what they consider flawed I can’t even imagine how nice the top grade ones must be.

This pan was light, thin,. smooth, and beautiful. It had a kind of brass/bronze patina to it. I feel like it’s rare to get a skillet and just want to run your fingertips over every inch of it to admire the craftsmanship, but this piece screamed for it. It took me a week to build up the courage to even bake anything in it. I started with cornbread, which was delicious as hell and released from the pan as though it had been floating above it when I cut it, no extra seasoning required on my part (the pan comes pre-seasoned). I washed it with warm water and a bit of soap, and it was smooth and ready to rock with hardly any scrubbing at all. I finished it up with a maintanence layer of Cast Iron Chris’s compound (which is a proprietary blend of oils and beeswax), and it’s ready for its next tour of duty. The cook and clean left a few darker spots on the cook surface, and I’m actually excited to see how the pan darkens and gains character as I use it more and more.

I decided to buy the Heather, a ten-inch pan to match the size of my current pan, and I am already looking forward to saving up to buy some lids and a 12-inch Joan. Heck, look me up in ten years and I might have one of everything they make, all of them carefully maintained with Chris’s compound, which helpfully doubles as a seasoning agent as well should I ever need to strip one down and start over again.

Take a look at the pictures and video below and check out these great creators to support them and their incredible work.