Welcome!


This is a membership forum. Guests can view 5 pages for free. To participate, please join.

[ Pitmaster Club Information | Join Now | Login | Contact Us ]

Only 4 free page views remaining.

Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Seasoning cast iron...the plot thickens

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

    #31
    I may get trashed for this... But my wife bought a cheaper set of skillets for our travel trailer. It had extremely rough surface from the factory. I took 60 grit palm sander to it and knocked down the peaks. Not to the point of being smooth, but not nearly as high peaks. Did three cycles of heating, using olive oil (didn't know I needed flax), put in the oven upside down and cooked to 325 for 35 minutes, let cool in the oven. It looks good, haven't cooked with either one yet.

    Comment


      #32
      Huh. I've always used peanut oil, for the last 40 years.

      Comment


        #33
        I use either generic veg oil or inexpensive olive oil, because its what I have. Never had a problem, so until I do probably not going to get flaxseed just for the cast iron.

        Comment


          #34
          Been using flax for a while and had no flaking as of yet.

          Comment


            #35
            I am re-seasoning a lodge cast 12 inch and a lodge carbon steel paella pan this weekend, i have a lodge griddle that is next up. Mine were gumming up and sticky almost look like sap had dripped all over them. But it was my poor understanding of seasoning them both pre & post cook that was the issue. I was really nervous about stripping them of all seasoning and starting over. I wish I would have taken photos of the process, I will likely document my griddle, and am now interested in looking for steal deals on old and bad shape cast iron pans. I did the Oven cleaning method of removing the old seasoning. Wow does that strip it over everything, when I saw them come out, my doubt and fear rose quite a bit. But, I am in my 4th coating of flax seed ( I am doing one more), crazy how easy this process is. They look so good, very happy I did this. I definitely over oiled them before, and literally did very little correct with them. I think if nothing else, this process has taught me more about these pans needs for cooking. I am baking them at 400 for 2 hours each layer.

            Comment


              #36
              I've never tried flax seed oil: too perishable, too expensive, takes more coats that I like to do (lazy).

              I know everyone has their own technique and battles can be fought over this, but here is what I do: I use lard or bacon grease, same as Grandma. Into the oven at 350 for 1 hour, then to 400 for 30 minutes, then to 450 for 30 minutes. Only need to do it once, then I use the cast iron piece for frying for the first few cooks before cooking other things. Skillets, domed lids, and Dutch ovens go in upside down so any excess oil I missed can drain off.
              Last edited by 58limited; September 8, 2019, 12:16 PM.

              Comment


                #37
                Grape seed oil. Hmmm - would that be the Grapes of Cast??

                Comment


                  #38
                  Richard Cruz If you have a sticky surface there are two culprits. Too much oil and/or not enough heat.

                  When you are applying your oil, make sure to re-wipe it to ensure all the excess oil is removed. It will feel like you are wiping all the oil off the surface but there will be a micro layer of oil on there surface of the iron. That is what you want for your next seasoning layer.

                  After heating, (I go to about 450-500) Make sure to let the pans cool as slowly as possible. (That is why kamados are great for seasoning cast iron) The slower it cools, the better your seasoning layer will be. Without going too far into the weeds here....basically, the slower it cools, the better the polymer lattice will bind and set up. Then the tougher your layer of seasoning will be.

                  Comment


                    #39
                    Spinaker. It was all of those, to much oil, to little heat after applying the oil, and never turning them upside down. But, that is how we learn, and my pans will be better for it
                    Last edited by Richard Chrz; September 9, 2019, 01:06 PM.

                    Comment


                      #40
                      Keep it simple. These (CI) are tough old coots from before modern technology. Season em once, especially if they’ve been preseasoned. You shouldn’t have to strip than do multiple layers. I think ya might be over thinking the care of Cast Iron. After you season em, fagettaboutit, cook, cook, cook. We have a friend who cooks with two skillets she’s been cooking with for 40 years, one of em was her mother’s. She’s never stripped em & never reseasoned em. I’ve got a couple of old timers 70 to 80 years old, from my mother-in-law, never touched em except to cook with. My Stargazer, I added one seasoning to the pre-job and that’s it for over two years, & I use it a lot. Simple my man, simple. Cook on! 🕶
                      PS. A little story with my mother-in-law. All her life she cleaned them with the rest of her stuff in the sink with plenty of soap. My wife learned well from my MiL. It wasn’t until about a dozen years ago I learned how to treat the beauties. I started off the same way you did, treating them precisely with kid gloves. They are the ultimate take a beating & keeps on ticking item. Now, well, I don’t use soap, but hot water & a scraper if needed & let em go. Dry em on heat from a burner, not high, just to dry. Same as I do with my woks.

                      Another PS. I realized this was an older thread, message was for Richard Chrz . Thank you vera much (in my best Elvis voice).
                      Last edited by FireMan; September 9, 2019, 11:47 AM.

                      Comment


                      • Mr. Bones
                        Mr. Bones commented
                        Editing a comment
                        Yup.

                      #41
                      I bought a new cast iron griddle from Lodge last month when they were on sale. Triple seasoned they said. Tried to gook a pancake. Stuck like a fly on Miley Cyrus' .... well, you know.

                      I immersed the griddle in a solution of sodium hydroxide (2-3 lbs./gal) at 190°F for a couple of hours and that took the griddle to it's base metal.

                      I then spent the better part of the week seasoning it with a total of 10 layers of flax seed oil.

                      The outcome is that the inside of this things looks and feels like black glass. It's so beautiful, I think I'll leave hung on the wall like a work of art.

                      Comment


                        #42
                        I've got a 10 to 15 year old Lodge 12" skillet that we never intentionally seasoned - it just got seasoned through use - I sure knew nothing about seasoning when I got it. We just knew to oil the pan each use at first. My new Lodge dutch oven came pre-seasoned, but I was sure to oil it well the first few uses as well, and now it seems pretty non-stick. I think that factory seasoning is marginal at best. Certainly nothing like your 10 layers of flax seed oil!

                        Comment


                          #43
                          The last few Lodge pieces I've bought have actually had pretty good seasoning straight out of the box. A couple layers of avocado or grapeseed oil on the cooking surface, just done on the stove top, and good to go. Granted, my griddle took a bit more work, but really not that much.

                          Comment

                          Announcement

                          Collapse
                          No announcement yet.
                          Working...
                          X
                          false
                          0
                          Guest
                          Guest
                          500
                          ["pitmaster-my-membership","login","join-pitmaster","lostpw","reset-password","special-offers","help","nojs","meat-ups","gifts","authaau-alpha","ebooklogin-start","alpha","start"]
                          false
                          false
                          {"count":0,"link":"/forum/announcements/","debug":""}
                          Yes
                          ["\/forum\/free-deep-dive-guide-ebook-downloads","\/forum\/free-deep-dive-guide-ebook-downloads\/1157845-paid-members-download-your-6-deep-dive-guide-ebooks-for-free-here","\/forum\/the-pitcast","\/forum\/national-barbecue-news-magazine","\/forum\/national-barbecue-news-magazine\/national-barbecue-news-magazine-aa","\/forum\/national-barbecue-news-magazine\/national-barbecue-news-magazine-aa\/bbq-news-magazine-2019-issues","\/forum\/national-barbecue-news-magazine\/national-barbecue-news-magazine-aa\/bbq-news-magazine-2020-issues","\/forum\/national-barbecue-news-magazine\/national-barbecue-news-magazine-aa\/bbq-news-magazine-2021-issues","\/forum\/national-barbecue-news-magazine\/national-barbecue-news-magazine-aa\/bbq-news-magazine-2022-issues","\/forum\/national-barbecue-news-magazine\/national-barbecue-news-magazine-aa\/current-2023-issues","\/forum\/national-barbecue-news-magazine\/national-barbecue-news-magazine-aa\/current-2024-issues","\/forum\/free-deep-dive-guide-ebook-downloads\/1165909-trial-members-download-your-free-deep-dive-guide-ebook-here"]
                          /forum/free-deep-dive-guide-ebook-downloads/1165909-trial-members-download-your-free-deep-dive-guide-ebook-here