If you've got problems with you cast iron sticking or there is a residue that builds up- we've got the answers of why that's happening and how to fix it! There are two main reasons - the cast iron isn't hot enough when seasoning and too much oil is being used.
VIDEO HERE (5 minutes)
Good video. Timing is weird as I did this yesterday, only difference was I was 1st seasoning a couple of slightly rusty old skillets. I put them in the oven and set the oven to self-cleaning which is about 500F for four hours. Oven was clean, and anything in/on the skillets was ready to be cleaned. I used 1000x steel wool with a little vegetable oil and rubbed off the rust and knocked down some light bumps. Washed with soap and water, then a touch of vegetable oil again but applied with a paper towel, light coat. Turned out really good, matching our older cast iron skillets for glean.
ReplyDeleteMe too. In the last couple weeks I seasoned two Lodge, American made, a 10.5" and a 12". I did mine three times as they were new. Same same little bit a oil and in the oven. I used 450 upside down for and hour. After third round they were perfect. I made butter milk biscuits this morn and had sausage gravy with fired eggs. Nutten cooks like cast but there is a learning curve if you've never cooked with them.
DeleteWithout watching the video I can tell you your cast iron is sticky because you use vegetable oil instead of bacon grease. Wash it with soap, scrub it out and cook bacon in it.
ReplyDeleteI get grief from people who get worked up over using soap and water on cast-iron pans because I can't refrain from telling them that the pan I use was my Mama's, she cooked in it for more than fifty years, my now ex-wife did the same for twelve years, and now I've had and used it for seven years, and every time it's been used it was washed in warm soapy water, dried with a towel, allowed to air dry for at least an hour, then re-oiled and put away.
DeleteRe-season process: burn it out and then use a brass scrub to remove all other residue. I use beef tallow to re-season. Very light coating and a 500 degree oven for half an hour, cool, coat and repeat until a smooth carbon coating has taken hold. Cooking bacon in the oven also helps the re-season.
ReplyDeleteI have a 14" no-name pan that had a third of it surface rusted. I had it glowing in a very hot fire where I did a light coating of beef tallow and then followed my process. That was some 20 years ago for a pan that I bought at a flea market for $8. I now can cook an over easy egg in it now as it is non-stick as any Teflon pan.
My wife has a cast iron muffin pan which has rusted significantly. We're at a loss as to how to get the rust off while leaving a seasonable surface. Any advice?
ReplyDelete[rocketride]
See the post above from Anonymous about his refurbishing a couple of rusty skillets.
DeleteFast way, I'd say get one of the round-shaped wire brushes you can chuck into a drill. Use that to get all the rust you can off, then wash thoroughly, dry, then do the seasoning.
DeleteOtherwise, either a wire brush or sea salt and a cloth to scrub it out.
Very entertaining as well as educational. I loved the hyperbole about too much oil. And this guy's accent and "authentic" grammar takes me back to a good place in my past. -Joely
ReplyDeleteMe too, that last.
DeleteI never use soap on my Lodge pans. Just hot water. I have a very thin steel spatula that I use to scrape any grease or bacon residue off, and use very little oil on them for storage. I cook the bacon first. Then the hash browns, and after scraping it down, and wiping off the residue, the eggs cook, in my opinion better than Teflon. Now I'm hungry!
ReplyDeleteOne of the sounds of my youth: Waking up to eggs & bacon from our own barnyard, sizzling & popping in Grandma's skillet.
ReplyDelete& the old burbling electric percolator, all history now.
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Cast Iron is about all I cook with for the most part. They can get gnarly with buildup no matter how diligent you are. I also had one that my daughter gave me that had a hundred years of grease buildup. That said, they are easy to reset.
ReplyDeleteGet a pile of coals going in the grill. Scoop coals into the pan, set it on the other coals, put the lid on and walk away. A few hours later, all that gunk is burnt off. Hit it with some sandpaper, clean with SOS. It'll look like fact'ry. Then re-season.
To strip down a badly damaged pan I spray with oven cleaner and let let it sit for an hour. Then wipe off and hit it with a wire wheel. Lastly, heat the pan on the stove, coat with Crisco, wipe, off the excess, the 400 in the oven for an hour. Repeat the last step as needed.
ReplyDelete