You know "Tasty," those people who make all of those super delicious videos you see on facebook about how to cook awesome new recipes that you hadn't ever thought of before?
Well, they use cast iron skillets for cooking a lot of the food they prepare. It sears meat really well, and it can move seamlessly between the stove and oven.
The thing about cast iron, though, is that a lot of people are intimidated by it. They're fantastic cooking tools, but you have to know how to take care of them or else it can turn into a rusty mess. For anybody who wasn't ever taught how to handle a cast iron pan or skillet, it's easy just to go for the ceramic or "non-stick" option instead.
But it turns out that caring for cast iron is actually pretty easy, if only you know what the rules are!