Seasoning Cast Iron

Talk about anything here as long as it is not against the rules.
Post Reply
Darwin
User
User
Posts: 64
Joined: Mon Aug 11, 2014 05:07
Location: us

Seasoning Cast Iron

Post by Darwin » Sun Sep 14, 2014 18:25

If any of you are into cooking in cast iron pots/ovens here is a good article on seasoning them with flax seed oil.

Flax seed oil and seasoning cast iron.
Gulyás
Passionate
Passionate
Posts: 459
Joined: Sat Aug 18, 2012 19:58
Location: Wisconsin

Post by Gulyás » Sun Sep 14, 2014 19:22

Very good article, thanks.
Failure to prepare is preparing to fail.
cogboy
Frequent User
Frequent User
Posts: 189
Joined: Sun May 18, 2014 22:38
Location: New Hampshire

Post by cogboy » Mon Sep 15, 2014 00:57

I might have to try the flax seed oil, to clean up and old pan we just toss them in a a dying woodstove fire for the night. they come out squeaky clean for seasoning.
User avatar
Chuckwagon
Veteran
Veteran
Posts: 4494
Joined: Tue Apr 06, 2010 04:51
Location: Rocky Mountains

Post by Chuckwagon » Mon Sep 15, 2014 01:44

Darwin, are you a "Dutcher"? Good on ya! If you cook with black iron, you can ride my pony and share my campfire any day! :mrgreen: Especially if you make good sourdough biscuits! It's nice to have you with us pal!

Best Wishes,
Chuckwagon
Last edited by Chuckwagon on Mon Sep 15, 2014 11:21, edited 1 time in total.
If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it probably needs more time on the grill! :D
Darwin
User
User
Posts: 64
Joined: Mon Aug 11, 2014 05:07
Location: us

Post by Darwin » Mon Sep 15, 2014 01:57

Yup, I like to cook in black iron. I usually only use them during the winter here, or if I get to go fishing up in the mountains. Not fun cooking outdoors here in the summer. I am not much on breakfast, but I do use them for sourdough in the indoor oven following the Tartine Bakery method. Not much better in life than warm fresh baked bread and Kerry Gold butter. :wink:
User avatar
redzed
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 3852
Joined: Fri Apr 20, 2012 06:29
Location: Vancouver Island

Post by redzed » Mon Sep 15, 2014 06:42

Thanks for that link Darwin. I have a Lodge Pro Grid Cast Iron Griddle that I have never seasoned properly. I mainly use on the barbecue, and there is no better way to do salmon than on that griddle. Recently have been getting a few rust spots on it, so your post motivated me to season it again. Now, just to find time for those six sessions!
ssorllih
Veteran
Veteran
Posts: 4331
Joined: Sun Feb 27, 2011 19:32
Location: maryland

Post by ssorllih » Mon Sep 15, 2014 13:20

I am having to work at getting over the idea that flaxseed oil and linseed oil are the same oil that I use for rubbing into wooden tool handles and work bench tops. I guess that food grade flaxseed oil could be used for wood finishing but linseed oil wouldn't do well as food.
:shock:
Ross- tightwad home cook
Carpster
User
User
Posts: 75
Joined: Fri Dec 27, 2013 01:32
Location: Mo.

Post by Carpster » Tue Sep 16, 2014 02:34

I cook with cast iron every day and I love it! There is no expensive oil in my cast iron and it is a 10.
markjass
Passionate
Passionate
Posts: 416
Joined: Sat May 05, 2012 14:46
Location: Canterbury

Post by markjass » Tue Sep 16, 2014 02:37

I need to give my trusty cast iron fry pan a good clean up. After using, while it is still hot I give it a good scrub under hot water, partly dry it and then return it to the hob to fully dry. I then re-season it. Over the years it has got a bit grubby. The blog writer goes to great lengths with using vinegar and then baking it. I do use vinegar now and then to clean my stove top coffee maker.

Cleaning and re-seasoning cast iron pots reminds me of a story I heard on the radio years ago. A guy use to bury his cast iron ports in his veggie plots so that the worms would clean them. He would leave them there for a year, clean them and then season them. One year he forgot that he had left one buried and drove his rotary hoe over it causing both his hoe and the pan a great deal of damage.
Do no harm. Margerine is the biggest food crime
User avatar
el Ducko
Veteran
Veteran
Posts: 1340
Joined: Sun Dec 25, 2011 04:59
Location: Texas Hill Country
Contact:

Re: Seasoning Cast Iron

Post by el Ducko » Wed Sep 17, 2014 01:24

Darwin wrote:If any of you are into cooking in cast iron pots/ovens here is a good article on seasoning them with flax seed oil.
Flax seed oil and seasoning cast iron.
Good article, despite the error on nitrates in bacon:
article on seasoning cast iron wrote:...many people substitute bacon drippings, but this is a bad idea. If it`s conventional bacon, you`re baking in carcinogenic nitrates...
We all know better, though, Kiddies. Right? (If not, please re-read CW's writings on nitrite and nitrate. ...well worth a re-read.)

Looks like it's time to haul the old cast iron monster out, season it, and give it another go. I only use mine for gumbo, and these days, Beloved Spouse can't eat anything made with a roux. Hey! I know! I'll make another "Sons-of-Bees" bacon batch. Yeah...
:mrgreen:
Experience - the ability to instantly recognize a mistake when you make it again.
Cabonaia
Forum Enthusiast
Forum Enthusiast
Posts: 597
Joined: Fri Apr 20, 2012 02:07
Location: Morgan Hill, CA

Post by Cabonaia » Wed Sep 17, 2014 15:41

We use cast iron every day around here for almost all our frying, sauteing, tortilla warming, etc. Haven't tried flax seed oil, but lard works great. Best way to clean them that I've found is:
1 - Pour out any oil, then wipe with a paper towel. If there is a lot of food stuck to the bottom, add a little water and heat on the stove, then scrape it out.
2- Put a little water into the partially cleaned skiller and heat on the stove as you simultaneously scrub with a scrubber sponge or green 3M pad.
3 - Rinse and return to the stove to dry.
4 - Rub a little lard on and you're done.

If you use this method you'll develop a smooth, shiny non-stick surface.

Any sausage maker will have plenty opportunity to render lard from fat back.

Cheers,
Jeff
User avatar
Bob K
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 2232
Joined: Sun Jun 02, 2013 15:16
Location: Northwest Ct

Post by Bob K » Wed Sep 17, 2014 16:13

I have to agree with Jeff. Lard works great to keep cast iron pans and griddles in great shape.

Also most of the cast iron pans in that article were vintage cast Iron... there is a big difference between them and the more modern pans like Lodge.

I have some old Griswold and Wagner pans that I can keep in top shape no problem. The surface is much smoother.

My Lodge pans I gave away.
Post Reply