OT - Seasoning cast iron

HeavyG

Wide range of opinions and practices when it comes to seasoning cast iron cookware. I've seen discussions on which method or oil to use in some cast iron oriented groups make the lump discussions here look pretty tame.

I know that some folks here are familiar with and fans of Cowboy Kent and his videos and a couple of his videos have been linked to on this forum before. He posted a new vid yesterday that I was watching this morning and thought some others here might be interested in seeing:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjXRn7CSvXo#oo

@Focker should probably just go right to the 3:00 mark.

Personally, I have no idea what the "holy grail" of cast iron seasoning oil or method is. I do know tho that the more often you properly use and care for your cast iron/carbon steel pans the better they get.

NPHuskerFL

Been using Crisco for years. Or just bacon fat. As of late I'm liking the Crisbee Stick or Puck. 
But, I'm in the camp that any animal fat, especially if it has been clarified, works great. 

Focker

Saw that vid yesterday.  Was a little saddened, when I saw my boy Kent with a flax bottle on the table. 

I used EVOO for a while.  Then listened to the folks at the Griswold Wags forum and changed to grapeseed for the foundation.

Pans would be stay brown with the EVOO. Grapeseed gets that nice, carbonized, shiney, jet black.  Not one has flaked out, and I've done enough to form a conclusion.

After the initial grapeseed coats, I use ghee, lard, butter, EVOO..touch up with Pam or grapeseed as needed. 

Cast Iron requires constant care, attention, patience.  Have tried just about everything available through the years, and I think I have it dialed in.  At least my old pieces look like I know what I'm doing. 

JohnH12

Quite some time ago I called Lodge and asked what they use since they say their cast iron is preseasoned. They said flax seed oil.
I normally just use some canola or vegetable oil after cleaning.
I did like the tip in the video about cutting open some gel tablets to get the oil. I may try that sometime.

fishlessman

i just use some rancid lard in the back of the fridge or bacon. preseason doesnt work for me, flax doesnt work, ill just stick with what my great grandmother did. i dont have a problem with seasoning, but watching others at camp with my pieces is an eye opener, bacon or eggs in pan then turn the burner on, soaking in the sink, using my good fillet knife in the pan...its easy to see why theres so much problems with cast iron out there

TN_Egger

Good info here on cleaning.  Additionally, many resources for the collector (identifying, restoring...)

http://www.castironcollector.com/#

YEMTrey

Whatever @Focker is doing works.  

etherdome

Flax here. No issues whatsoever.

Robusto

Grandma used lard, therefor, so do I.  Her 100 year old skillets and waffle irons are jet black and slicker the owl excrement.

On a side note, anyone else notice that the cast iron on the old Griswold skillets or Dutch ovens is much smoother than the new stuff.  I think this is part of the problem with keeping cast iron seasoned.  My newer pans (Lodge and 1 Emeril brand) are rougher and don't seam to season as well or stay seasoned nearly as long as my Griswolds.

Hungry Joe

I always used Crisco and never had a problem. Recently tried grape seed oil and like that a little better because it has a higher flash point and I felt it worked well.

Today I bought some flax seed oil for a wok. Guess I see how that works.

I get bored at times.

blasting

@Hungry_Joe

You may not be board for long.  Soon you'll be stripping the flaking flax seed oil and re seasoning that wok.  jk - that was my experience, but wish you better luck.

Hey, did you get the lodge wok?  I have one that is done seasoning, but hasn't been put in service yet.  lotta metal in that baby.

smokeybreeze

I always tell people new to cast iron to season them by frying a lot of food in Crisco in the pan. Leave the Crisco in the pan to cool. Heat and fry. Repeat until the Crisco needs to be tossed out. Repeat until well seasoned.

Frying potatoes keeps the jetsom to a minimum, but any food works. Decades ago, when my son wouldn't eat much beyond chicken nugget and french fries, I seasoned a lot of cast iron this way.

GrateEggspectations

A note for those using flaxseed oil. It does not blacken the way Crisco does, but this is not a sign you have not seasoned correctly.  

I was once chided on this forum for spots of "brown discolouration" on a flaxseed oil seasoned cast iron pan and was informed that this was symptomatic of the "iron not having been hot enough" during seasoning (http://eggheadforum.com/discussion/1204327/next-level-cast-iron-seasoning/p1). After many trials, I conclude that this is categorically false.

Upon receiving the feedback, I took a MAPP torch to the brownish spots for extended periods with no further darkening in colour. When I eventually stripped the pan bare and repeated the exact same seasoning process with Crisco, that same pan was uniformly jet black.

Flax will not blacken a bare pan the way Crisco does, so do not expect it to (and do not equate brown spots with a botched seasoning). 

While I initially liked the flax finish, it began to flake significantly only weeks after application. Personally, I will not be revisiting flax. 

Focker

Robusto said:

Grandma used lard, therefor, so do I.  Her 100 year old skillets and waffle irons are jet black and slicker the owl excrement.

On a side note, anyone else notice that the cast iron on the old Griswold skillets or Dutch ovens is much smoother than the new stuff.  I think this is part of the problem with keeping cast iron seasoned.  My newer pans (Lodge and 1 Emeril brand) are rougher and don't seam to season as well or stay seasoned nearly as long as my Griswolds.

I concur.
The Lodge and others, seem to darken much faster.  But nothing compares to the Griswold stuff.  I would swear this latest large logo Griswold DO is Al, but it's Fe.  They're ore, fit, and finish, was perfection IMO.  It's my duty, to breathe life into these neglected pieces of culinary perfection.  The labor conditions of loose pattern molding back then in those foundries was terrible, hot as hell, and literally backbreaking.  Reminds me of wearing full Nomex and a respirator in July, in an industrial coatings plant.  Erie burnt down to the ground.  We had a couple of good fireballs from a spark while flushing a blender with Toluene.  Blew one guy off the catwalk, and doors open at the front of the shop.  Ammonia spill was another doozy, not by me. 

If I can keep a few, for the right price, from hitting the scrap heap...mission accomplished.

MaskedMarvel

@Focker mind showing the bottom of a Griswold so we know what to look for?

Focker

MaskedMarvel said:

@Focker mind showing the bottom of a Griswold so we know what to look for?

Sure.  This is the large block logo GRISWOLD pictured here, circa 1920-1930s.  And also a large slant logo where the GRISWOLD is in italics, they are slightly older than the block logo.   Another commonly found Griswold is a small logo, which was circa 1950s, towards the end of the Griswold run.  The small logos are not as desirable, but make a great user pan.  There are many more Erie skillets, but the 3 I mention are the most commonly found.

1voyager

@Focker - Do you usually find these beauties at garage sales? I've seen a few at Goodwill stores but they are crazy expensive, around $50 for the slant logo.

Kayak

I notice no one seems to post pictures or discussion of cast iron grill pans. They seem like a nightmare to keep clean? Any tricks to cleaning one that may not have had a thick enough season to prevent a little sticking...?

GrateEggspectations

Kayak said:

I notice no one seems to post pictures or discussion of cast iron grill pans. They seem like a nightmare to keep clean? Any tricks to cleaning one that may not have had a thick enough season to prevent a little sticking...?

Maintaing cast iron of any variety is actually pretty simple:
- keep it dry (as Finex's founder says, "we've never seen a dry pan rust") -including thoroughly heating it to dry after any exposure to water
- try to clean in a manner that will minimize stripping the seasoning (e.g., clean with chain mail - https://www.amazon.com/Ringer-Original-Stainless-Cleaner-Patented/dp/B00FKBR1ZG -, minimize soap, use plastic scrapers, etc.)
- reseason as needed

Of course, building seasoning prior to putting CI into service greatly aids in the process, as it keeps food from sticking to begin with. 

HeavyG

Kayak said:

I notice no one seems to post pictures or discussion of cast iron grill pans. They seem like a nightmare to keep clean? Any tricks to cleaning one that may not have had a thick enough season to prevent a little sticking...?

If by grill pan you mean the type with the raised ridges then yeah...they are a pain in the butt. I quit using mine because cleaning them was too much of a hassle.

The chain mail cleaners are nice (and great for ceramic/glassware also) but those grill pans need cleaning between every single ridge, every single time.

DoubleEgger

Personally I think the chain mail cleaners are hard on the finish. I prefer a regular kitchen brush. It doesn't take much to clean a well seasoned pan. 

HeavyG

DoubleEgger said:

Personally I think the chain mail cleaners are hard on the finish. I prefer a regular kitchen brush. It doesn't take much to clean a well seasoned pan. 

You just need to ease off on them then Superman!

Carolina Q

All I have are Griswold and Wagner. Not a Lodge fan - too thick, too heavy, too rough. Still, kudos for staying in business for all these years when the others closed their doors.

Bought most of mine at antique shops and they were already seasoned from years of use. I put in whatever oil I want for what I'm cooking. When done, I wipe it out with a paper towel and then wash with a green scrubby and hot, soapy water. Rinse and dry immediately and wipe on a small amount of canola.

I used to use a stiff brush and hot water, but one day I saw my 101 year old mother using soap on hers. I asked her about it and she said that's what she's always done. True or false is anyone's guess as her memory ain't what it used to be. Still, I've been using soap for a couple of years now and all is well. 

HeavyG

Modern dish soaps/detergents are of no harm to cast iron or seasoning.

northGAcock

HeavyG said:

Modern dish soaps/detergents are of no harm to cast iron or seasoning.

I agree as long as they are well rinsed.

NPHuskerFL

HeavyG said:

Modern dish soaps/detergents are of no harm to cast iron or seasoning.

Blasphemy

Focker

1voyager said:

@Focker - Do you usually find these beauties at garage sales? I've seen a few at Goodwill stores but they are crazy expensive, around $50 for the slant logo.

I have found one at a garage sale.  For those, I do a creepin' drive by and look at the tables.  If I see anything, I pull over or turn around.  Most times I roll on by.

Majority are found at antique stores actually.
The DO and waffle iron were from CL.

A few cheap fleabay BIN snipes.

$50 for a #8 slant with a heat ring isn't terrible.  I saw a large block logo aka EPU the other day for $45.  Like @blasting mentioned, sources are drying up a little, as time marches on.  So that $45 is tempting.  10 years ago, I would've laughed.  Fortunately, I have a #10, #8, #6, #5, and #3 EPUs. 

The fleabay kicker is shipping, usually around $15.  Or damage either before or during that process.  Warpage, cracks, hard to give the spin and ring tests.  But I sniped a beautiful #16 large logo slant round griddle for $60!  (Smiley face above).  They are over triple that now!

I need to hit up estate sales.  Have yet to explore that area.

But cruise around, shops, flea markets, garage sales, fleabay cl, estate sales, I promise you it won't take long to come across something worthy of dropping the hammer on.  HTH

Focker

As for cleaning,  Ringer and hot water, (soak if bad), do the trick, don't even need soap.  Even bought a second Ringer for the bbq camp tote.  They are worth every single penny.

1voyager

Thank-you.

Focker

No problem, best of luck.  

CTMike

@Focker,

Would you mind explaining what the ring and spin tests are?

Thanks.