Cast Iron

I like a 6 inch for baking banana bread, the larger sizes are too big for a loaf (If I had metal bread pans they would be better - but I have a 6 inch cast iron pan and not metal bread pans). Once in a while I'll put it on the grill for onions. However it is mostly too small. Even where it will work, the 10 inch almost always works just as well.

For dutch ovens, the small one is good because it stacks on the large one. However this is only useful if you are cooking on a campfire where you want to cook different dishes at the same time for a large group. I've never heard of them used for anything else and wouldn't expect them to be.

I do have an abelskiver pan, but since my wife and I eat breakfast at different times I have only used it one time. https://sopuli.xyz/post/20329728

I also have a 10" tortilla press, I have not used it yet, but I keep meaning to. I love good corn tortillas, and homemade ones are the best.

At work I have a round griddle (basically a 9" pan with no sides) because I only have an electric burner and my flour tortillas stick to the element. But I end up using it to make a plate of nachos in my toaster oven more than I use it to heat tortillas.

And then there is my camping wok/fire pit. https://sopuli.xyz/post/23121016

Pizza "stone", it's cast. Way better than a stone

Only unusual one I have by lodge is a 15 inch skillet for bigger batches or unusually large ingredients. It's a maybe twice a year usage, but it's very nice to have instead of trying to make batches of things while also juggling sides and such.

Have a griddle too, but it isn't Lodge, it came with the stove. Kinda nice in some ways, especially since we have a dedicated burner for that kind of thing in the center, between the other ones. But if you aren't going to be doing a ton of short order style cooking, I think it's a waste of space tbh.

I've had smaller pans in the past, lodge and otherwise, and they're handy for one person meals. But not handy enough for me to keep one around with limited storage space. A 6 inch was the sweet spot, imo. Big enough for two eggs, or a single pancake at a time, things like that. But, again, not worth the limited storage space it takes up for me to keep one.

Proper frying pans tend to not be much better than a skillet imo. You have to be a little more careful putting things in, but unless you're frying at monthly, I think it's a pointless thing to have both. If I really want a deeper frying container, a dutch oven gets the job done and isn't competing for space with a skillet the way a dedicated fry pan would. Mind you, a fry pan can essentially replace the skillet, so there's that.

Never had baking/cooking sheets in cast iron, so nothing useful to say.

I have had cast iron muffin pans, and currently have some loaf pans in CI. The muffin pans were too single purpose for our amount of shelf space since we don't do a lot of the kind of baking that benefits from a cast iron version. Only thing it was really great at was cornbread muffins. Super, super dark and yummy bottoms on those.

But the loaf pans are bomb if you make a lot of bread, particularly really crusty sourdough. Preheat the suckers, throw the loaves in, and hello nurse!

If I was setting someone up with essential cast iron, it would be a 12 inch skillet, and a dutch oven (4 or 6 quart). If they wanted more, I'd prioritize a ten or eight inch skillet as the next purchase, expanding up or down in size before switching to a different kind of pan or pot. Hell, I might even say a second 12 inch and a second size of dutch oven might be a better choice than different sized or type of pan. I run into needing multiple full size pans going more than I need smaller ones. 80% of the time, I have my cast iron amd carbon steel skillets both in use, both 12 inches.

The odd sized Lodge pieces I have don't get used much, but they're fun and deliver the goods.

I have a tiny skillet, maybe 2.5 or 3 inches. It makes a fried egg that has brown, crispy edges and fits beautifully on a biscuit. I can only do one at a time, but it's novel and appreciated by the family.

I have the big pan too, 15" I think. It almost takes 2 hands to lift, but it is great for paella or stir fry, any time you need surface area.

And I have the flat, circular pan with 2 handles. I think people use it for a pizza stone, which I have and it works fine. It fits perfectly on the large Big Green Egg, so I use it as a griddle for steak, salmon, veggies, etc. I haven't regretted any Lodge purchase.

I have a ~29cm pan that's maybe 3cm too big for large electric stove elements so it's well seasoned except on the outer 3cm where it can get a bit sticky. I've considered buying one of those tiny pans because it would be perfect for cooking 2 or 3 eggs, which is basically the only thing I use the pan for.

Big Uber big Pretty fucking huge->

I have only used 2 of mine, both medium to large. The tiny ones see no use at all.

You don’t need more. Learn to cook with more thought and then get things that might be helpful.

Why not get a stainless steel (non coated in anything) wok and learn how to properly stirfry before buying a slightly less useful cast iron.