Black residue on cast iron skillet
shezzy_in_sj
18 years ago
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barbara9093
18 years agoowbill
18 years agoRelated Discussions
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Comments (18)Gee, I should have picked up on this topic earlier! Re: Grandmas's cast iron - she had her egg skillet, about 6" diameter that she "oiled" with a chunk of bacon fat on a fork before each egg. She'd sometimes break an egg but none ever stuck to that skillet. As for seasoning and cleaning; the initial seasoning of a new or renewed piece is the most important. As mentioned earlier, you can cook ANYTHING in cast iron. Mom used to make the best pineapple upside down cake in her 10" skillet. My own method of cleaning after cooking anything in my cast iron skillet, is simply to pour some water into it the minute I've removed the contents, turn off the burner and shove it to the back of the stove until I'm doing the after meal clean-up. I dump the contents (NOT a large amount of oil, of course), give it a scrub with a sponge or scrubber as needed, rinse with very hot water, dry with a paper towel and give it a quick squirt of Pam or whatever. I LOVE my cast iron; an eight inch egg skillet, a 10 inch everything else skillet, a 12" flat griddle and a dutch oven. The 10" skillet was a wedding present, the griddle was my Mom's and the egg skillet and dutch oven were purchased at a thrift store. My BIL talked my DH out of the 18", 6" deep skillet we used for fish frys. Those were some fun times........ cora...See MoreBlack residue on cast iron skillet
Comments (13)Nancy, The absolute BEST way to clean old cast iron pans is with electrolysis. This is not a procedure for most people. The procedure can be obtained by a google search. There may be some shops in your area that use this technique of cleaning. People that are into restoring old automobiles, antiques, etc. often use this technique. Electrolytically cleaned cast iron pans will often look just like the day they were manufactured. Some of the better sellers of old cast iron on eBay use this process......."oldcatsiron" is one seller that comes to mind. Often these super-nice, great performing pans can be purchased at a great price. Regarding the cleaning of your pan with oven cleaner....it will eventually get all of the old seasoning off. Make sure to keep it wet with oven cleaner and let it sit a several days before washing it off. Soaking the pan in a lye bath will significantly speed up the cleaning process; however, that too is not a procedure for most people. Griswold and old Wagner cast iron pans are much superior to what is available today. I have written about this and the care & cleaning of cast iron in the thread that I have linked below. Dan Here is a link that might be useful: The Care and Cleaning of Cast Iron...See MoreAm I abusing my cast iron skillet?
Comments (30)Yes, you ARE abusing your cast iron if you are using soap on it. The 'black residue' is SUPPOSED to be there, and acts as a non-stick agent. The MORE of it you can get built up, the better non-stick properties you will have. I would not suggest using any food type oils on your cast iron, as they will turn rancid and sticky. I use mineral oil, as it will not turn rancid or cause odd flavors. I have a Lodge cast iron wok, and it has never been touched with soap, (except for initial washing). I used high temp flat black spray paint on the exterior. Conventional stoves do not typically get hot enough to properly use a wok. I would not use a steel wok on your glass cooktop. That ring you will need to use to keep it "flat" will concentrate the heat not only on your wok, but on your cooktop as well, which will crack (glass tops), or burn thru the metal on conventional tops, if you use your wok a lot. I pre-heat my cast iron wok for about 15 min on high, to sear the meat, but once that is done, and I add veggies, etc., it rapidly loses the stored heat, and the stove top cannot produce enough heat to keep the wok properly heated. As to steaming in your cast iron cookware, I personally dont see the problem. I steam frequently, and have never had a problem. If you properly care for your cast iron cookware, rust should not be a problem. Besides, iron is GOOD for you, even if its rust, lol. As to cleaning, I went to restaurant supply place, and got a plastic handled brush, (made with coconut fibers), and that is all I use to clean my cast iron stuff with. I put water in the wok, and bring it to a HARD BOIL, then transfer to the sink, and scrub away with the stiff bristled coconut brush. I rinse it out, and return it to the stove and put the burner on HIGH for several minutes, and I just store it. IF I know it will be in the cabinet for a long period, (Yeah, right, lol, like cast iron stays away for long), I will put a LIGHT coating of MINERAL OIL on it. This is just what I do, your mileage may vary, read your owners manual, and the usual disclaimer language, LOL. Feel free to email me if I can be of further assistance. Regards; bluelytes@yahoo.com...See MoreCast Iron Skillet--Cannot Season it?
Comments (23)love2weed, I agree that the pan should be cleaned well first, then seasoned. I don't have a self cleaning oven, so that's out, but I have used spray on oven cleaner, put the pan in a garbage bag and left it overnight. Then you have a clean pan and you can start from scratch with seasoning. I also use shortening to season cast iron, some oils seem to get rancid to me. I rub all over, inside and out and put the pan in the oven upside down with foil under it to catch any drips. 350 for a couple of hours (maybe 3 or 4 if I forget), or 400 for an hour or so will start it off nicely. The very best seasoning method I've found is making french fries. Heat the oil hot enough to fry the potatoes and make a couple of batches. That oil soaks right in and in a couple of uses, you have a very nicely seasoned pan. I love cast iron, I have a set of skillets that I got in 1974 and they are nearly as slick as teflon. I'm still working on that old yard sale pan I got a couple of years ago, a Griswold "chicken fryer", but it's coming along... Annie...See Moreteresa_nc7
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