Cast iron myths from Serious Eats

[RonB]

I thought some here might find this interesting. The article even goes into how to care for cast iron:

https://www.seriouseats.com/2014/11/the-truth-about-cast-iron.html

[lonnie mac]

Well at least I am not nutsoid! I've always washed my irons with a bit of soap and use metal utensils exclusively.

[HawkerXP]

Thanks! and we also want to thank you RonB for your tortilla soup recipe. Loved it! As it started to get eaten we just kept adding ……. can o corn, can o black beans...chunks o chicken………………. you get it. Thanks.

[RonB]

You are quite welcome. I'm glad you liked the soup.

[Troutman]

Hey RonB, PM about that recipe

[Attjack]

I occasionally wash mine with soap but not often. I also use metal utensils sometimes but usually bamboo.

[barelfly]

Yep, that article made think a little differently about cleaning when I found it. I’ll use a dap of soap with the really gunked up stuff if needed. But I do use metal, but try not to constantly rake the surface, although I’ve been told by my grandmother it helps smooth out the surface over time.

[NapMaster]

When I mention the will, it's not about money. Hopefully she leaves you a real memory like a cherished pot or pan. Maybe a knife. Then you pass that down when it's your time. Old folks are cool. Now that I think about it, I'm sorta old. 👍

[klflowers]

Thanks for the compliment NapMaster

[ecowper]

I got my grandmother’s CI Dutch oven :-)

[Attjack]

To clean my CI I use either a cheap plastic putty scraper or a bamboo scraper under hot water. Then a dedicated scrubber, the kind that you could use on you non stick pans, that never touches soap. Then it goes right on the stove to dry and I then rub it with flax oil and let it heat until it smokes. After that I cut the heat let it cool some and wipes any excess oil off. I do this every time.

[Red Man]

That’s hardcore. I scrub mine with soap and a mesh scrubbie. Then I towel dry immediately and spread on a thin layer of avocado oil.

[lonnie mac]

I'd like to know when all this new CI care came about. No metal, no soap etc... Blow dry, then heat dry, then rub gingerly with homogenized Keto Nut Butter...

I gotta lot of CI, my most favorite pan, daily use is probably 80 years old passed down from grandma to grandma. They had lard, and a metal spoon and soap.

[klflowers]

And how do you get it’s butter

[Attjack]

You milk it.

[Troutman]

I’m with you Lonnie, what a bunch of bull. It’s cast iron, I’ll say it again CAST IRON. It’s built for abuse.

[Willy]

Thanks, Ron! Always good to bust some myths AND get a better understanding of, well, anything.

[Murdy]

I think my Grandma had about 2 pans that weren't cast iron. As I recall it, she treated them pretty much as described in the article . They did fine.

[Polarbear777]

My old lodge gets soap and a plastic scrubbie and just doesn’t care. It’s also pretty smooth from metal utensil use over decades.

The newer super smooth pans don’t seem to hold seasoning near as well.

[Steve B]

Thanks for the post Ron. I had been kinda babying my CI's. Never using soap and a dedicated nylon scrub brush to clean. But I always thoroughly dry, heat on stove and apply a small amount of Crisbee before storing.

[FireMan]

My 10” Stargazer is not stored, or is stored on the stove, used near daily. In using my CI & carbon wok I almost don’t use soap. There might be a little left in sponge/rag. I have a plastic scraper that I use a little. I find there is no need for anything extra curricular. Heat & hot water does the job. I don’t use anything extra or exotic in the drying process except heat. I may once in awhile put a dab of olive oil in a tissue in the drying process. My wok I’ve been using for 12 or so years, my Stargazer about 2 (when it came out). I have a Griswold 12 & an Erie 12, both 70 yrs plus, same care. And yes I use metal spoons & spatulas, it is iron. A little care & proper use & you’re good to go. They are iron!

[ecowper]

My grandmother had tons of cast iron. My whole childhood, anytime I was at her house, she was cooking with CI .... and she used exclusively metal utensils as far as I can remember .... because there’s that distinctive sound and it’s embedded in my memories of grandma’s house. She washed everything in hot soap and water and used scratchy pads on them. I have her Dutch oven and it is the greatest cooking machine ever known to man. I treat it just like she did.

[IowaGirl]

I'm pretty matter of fact about my cast iron too. Soap and water to wash ... yes. Brief soak to loosen a stubborn spot ... yes. Metal scrubby to remove stubborn spots, yes, if a short soak doesn't do the trick. Dry promptly ... yes.

Season with a wipe of oil before storage -- never. If the pan is already well seasoned, it doesn't need it. Also if you don't heat that oil to polymerize it, the residue can attract dust and mice if you live in an old country house like I do.

Metal utensils when cooking ... yes. Acidic foods ... yes but only briefly. I don't use cast iron to do a long cook with acid foods such as spaghetti sauce. That's a good way to remove the seasoning.

[FireMan]

Ya know mice have ta eat to. 🕶

[IowaGirl]

Yeah, but not in MY kitchen!

[Dick Anderson]

What about beans? Seems like I have heard that a long been cook would ruin seasoning, but I haven't had that problem, I don't think?

[Mr. Bones]

Haven't had any issues with long CI bean cooks, here...12-18 hours total cook / hold ain't uncommon...

[mnavarre]

Only time I've had a problem was with a freshly re-seasoned dutch oven and making frijoles charros. Damn tomatoes took that flax oil crap right off.