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The Best Cast-Iron Skillet Handle Covers

When your cast-iron skillet is too hot to handle, can these covers help you out?

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Published Mar. 1, 2018.

The Best Cast-Iron Skillet Handle Covers
UpdateDecember 2018
Our winning cast-iron skillet handle cover, the Lodge Nokona Handle Mitt, has been redesigned. The new version is also made of smooth leather but has spiral stitching that runs up the sides (meant to be reminiscent of the baseball gloves Nokona also manufacturers). We tested the new version by putting it through the same battery of tests: We timed how long it took for the mitt to reach an uncomfortable temperature when covering a cast-iron skillet handle on the stovetop, used it to transfer a full skillet in and out of a hot oven, and checked for any melting or scorching as we used it on a skillet over an open flame. In all the tests, we compared its performance to the old version.

The new mitt’s heat resistance was identical to the old winner’s (it stayed below 110 degrees for about 3 minutes in the oven and for 8 minutes on the stovetop) thanks to a thick liner made from aramid, a heat-resistant synthetic fiber. The new leather stitching was a bonus—it provided a more secure grip than the old version and felt much sturdier and safer to hold during high-heat tasks. We had a few quibbles: The mitt was a bit hard to get on and off the skillet handle, and—ironically—we needed to use a potholder to steady the hot skillet while we wrestled the cover onto the handle. We also don't recommend you keep the mitt on the skillet during cooking, as it started to singe within 2 minutes, but we found this to be true with all the cast-iron skillet handle covers we tested. The Nokona Leather Handle Mitt is our new winner, and we have updated the chart below accordingly.
See Everything We Tested

What You Need To Know

We love cast-iron skillets for their superior heat retention, which allows them to excel at searing, browning, and shallow-frying. But because they get and stay so hot, they can also be tricky to handle—not just while they're on the stove or in the oven but long after they're off or out of the heat. Handle covers promise to protect your hands from the hot metal, making these pans easier and safer to use. Most covers can't be put in the oven, though they can be used to remove pans that have been heated there; instead, they're intended primarily for stovetop cooking projects.

Instructions on how to use these covers differ. Some manufacturers recommend that they be used like potholders, slipped over the handle only when you need to maneuver the skillet and then promptly removed. Others say that they should go on the handle and stay there throughout your meal preparation, preventing you from accidentally grabbing the handle unguarded. Since these instructions are not always made clear to consumers, we decided to test handle covers both ways, investigating five models priced from about $7.00 to about $16.00, in various sizes, shapes, and materials (four were made from silicone and one from leather with a synthetic lining).

Beating the Heat

We soon learned that it was not a good idea to keep any cover on the skillet handle throughout use. As long as the cover stays in contact with the handle, it will steadily absorb the handle's heat. When we put each cover on a cast-iron skillet handle and heated the skillet over a medium-high flame, all models reached 110 degrees—the temperature our testers found too hot to grip—within 18 minutes. In practice, that means that the most heat-resistant covers give you just enough time to make fried eggs, but not enough to pan-fry pork chops or complete the first steps of many other cast iron recipes. What's more, some of the models melted or scorched when left on for longer than 5 minutes while the skillet was on the stovetop.

The covers fared better when used like potholders, put on the handles only when needed and then taken off. After heating the cast-iron skillets over a medium-high flame for 20 minutes—this time without the covers—we put the covers on and used them to take the skillets off the heat, as if to scrape the contents into a bowl. All the covers stayed under 110 degrees for at least 30 seconds, ample time to grip and lift the skillet, and our first- and second-place models were comfortable to hold for considerably longer—6½ and 2½ minutes, respectively.

Similarly, the covers did a decent job when used to remove a cast-iron skillet holding a roast chicken from a 450-degree oven; each m...

Everything We Tested

Good : 3 stars out of 3.Fair : 2 stars out of 3.Poor : 1 stars out of 3.
*All products reviewed by America’s Test Kitchen are independently chosen, researched, and reviewed by our editors. We buy products for testing at retail locations and do not accept unsolicited samples for testing. We list suggested sources for recommended products as a convenience to our readers but do not endorse specific retailers. When you choose to purchase our editorial recommendations from the links we provide, we may earn an affiliate commission. Prices are subject to change.
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The mission of America’s Test Kitchen Reviews is to find the best equipment and ingredients for the home cook through rigorous, hands-on testing. We stand behind our winners so much that we even put our seal of approval on them.

Miye Bromberg

Miye Bromberg

Miye is a senior editor for ATK Reviews. She covers booze, blades, and gadgets of questionable value.

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