need help with cast iron!

[mistylady]

I burned dinner! I don't mean a little well done. Crispy. Stuck like glue. It was russian noodles. I scraped enough off the top to send to work with dh but ....oh my...what a mess.

 

How do I get my disaster fixed? The cast iron is preseasoned (on sale) Lodge skillet with lid. It said no soap on the paperwork tthat came with it. How in the world do I get the gross burned noodles, meat and onion out of this thing? PLEASE HELP!!!!!

[Vic303]

Fill it with water to about half full, or to the goo-line on the side of the pan. Bring to a boil on the stove. Scrape with a wooden spatula, or metal if you have no wooden ones to loosen the crud. Don't boil it dry. Dump the water when it's got a lot of crud floating in it, and repeat until you are done. Also you CAN use soap on cast iron, but you will need to coat it with shortening afterwards to help prevent rust. If it is REALLY bad, it might need reseasoning.

[mistylady]

Thank you!

 

Even the middle layer of the noodles tasted burned. When I goof - I REALLY GOOF!!!!

[Cat]

Awww, don't be too hard on yourself.

[Skagitgal]

Mistylady, In a real crisis,....like NOTHING will remove the mess burned in, you can .. gasp, cough, cough, take an air dremmel tool with a sanding disc and completely clean the inside of the pan. A lot of the newer cast iron is very rough inside. This will smooth it out- more like a Griswold inside. You have to reseason, but that's a small price to pay to save the piece.

[TheCG]

I tend to have good luck making a paste of olive oil and table salt and using that with a sponge and a bit of elbow grease to clean out the inside.

[Amber]

I'm on a cast iron group and several of the guys say that even when they get a pre-seasoned Lodge pan, they will season it Several Times to really get a good surface to cook on. They use crisco lightly, evenly and put the pan upside down in the oven and use higher heat (450-475 degrees F) but this tends to smoke (put a foil liner underneath). One lady said she started hers out at a lower temp for a half hour and then bumped the temperature up to maybe 350 deg. (F) for maybe 45 min. and then up to the higher temperature for maybe an hour and never got a smoky kitchen. That high heat really bakes on the seasoning - as lower temperatures tend to make a sticky seasoning. Be sure to let the pan cool down in the oven after the high temperature. You might do this before you go to bed so you can let it sit overnight to cool. FWIW -- I can go back and find the original post if you would like. I made note of this as I have a couple of new cast iron pans I need to season and one is a pre-seasoned Lodge skillet.

[Shawna]

I would first try the boiling/scraping....that usually gets the bulk of the stuff off the pan. What I usually do then is stick my pan on the stove, heat up it good...like really really hot...and pour some salt in the pan. Using a wooden spoon I *scrub* the pan with the salt while it's blazing away on the stove. You can get an amazing amount of gunk off your pans this way! It takes a bit and seems like you're standing there scraping for forever, but it works great and really doesn't take much time to do.

 

And ITA about using the power tools on it....if all else fails, that'll definitely work!

 

I have found that it takes about 5-6 seasonings to get your pan where it needs to be to cook on it. Pre-seasoned pans are just that---PRE-seasoned. You really need to season them a few more times before they have a good seasoning on them.

 

Good luck!!!!

 

Shawna

[Genoa]

Amber, Thanks for the information about seasoning cast iron, even "pre-seasoned" items. I just received a cast iron covered casserole (not Lodge) which also says it is pre-seasoned, but I think I will try the method you outlined to make sure it is well seasoned. I have had past failures with cast iron, and I'd really like to get this right.

 

Also, a question---from what I read, the seasoning makes the pans virtually no-stick. Does that mean I don't need to put any grease or oil in the pan/pot to keep things from sticking? Specifically, I came across a method of baking bread in a heavy, covered casserole that I would like to try with this cast iron pot. Should I grease the pot before putting the bread dough in?

 

Thanks.

[Mother]

I have an elderly friend who swears by cleaning her cast iron pans in her self cleaning oven. She then reseasons it. I've seen her pans and they are remarkable.

 

I have used the boiling water method when I've had one that was badly burnt on and I've also sent mine out to be sand blasted if they were really really bad. I love cast iron and have a huge collection, mostly picked up at flea markets and etc for small sums of money and they almost always need to be cleaned and seasoned, especially because farmers were known to use old cast iron pans to mix chemicals in. Some of those chemicals may be able to permeate the pot somewhat so I make sure that I thoroughly clean and reseason any I buy of unknown sources. I also always season so called preseasoned ones. They are just so much better......

 

Now, If I could just figure out a way to "season" my cast iron Griswold LP canning stove.

[Amber]

Hi Genoa, to answer your question, I'd probably lightly grease the pan and wipe out gently with a paper towel and then see how it works. Even with my real no stick pans(teflon), I still put a light coating of oil in them.

 

You need to know that to get cast iron to the almost "non-stick" stage they will need to be seasoned over and over, initially maybe 4 times on the high heat method. Once this is done well, they will usually only need maintenance seasoning (see below).

 

Also, as long as there is no puddling of crisco (some use Lard or the pan seasoner from Camp Chef). A puddled bit of crisco during the heating process will flake off later on.

So the coating needs to be lightly done and the pan turned upside down so there is no chance of puddling.

 

I have some really old, well used, cast iron skillets that are black with seasoning over the years. I have very little 'stick' with them. They only really need a short soak and a scrub with a nylon scrubby and they are fine. I will lightly season those and heat them to smoking on the burner and let cool in the oven (my maintenance), they are so well done, that is all I have to do -- unless my DH gets at them with a brillo pad.

 

I recently picked up or was given a few 'new' skillets and two dutch ovens. I will have to really clean the skillets from grunge and rust and then will season the heck out of them. I have two more that are Lodge pre-seasoned and I don't like the feel of them, kinda bumply, so I will season them a few times as well.

 

I am getting quite a cast iron collection and have joined a dutch oven cooking group (camping type with little feeties on the bottom) and I want to learn how to cook with coals outside. Brook says it is easy, but we will see what my inital efforts produce. Eventually I will try campfire cooking with them. Baby steps for right now.

[Amber]

Per Mother: Now, If I could just figure out a way to "season" my cast iron Griswold LP canning stove. Maybe A restaurant grease mop and a slowly moving blow torch! LOL

 

cheekily,

[mistylady]

Well, I need to season mine. I goofed. I put the water in and turned the burner on to let it boil. Got involved in kid activities and forgot about it! Dumb, dumb, dumb.

 

Thank you everyone for the advice and you saved me from making my "How do I seaon it" post! I'm going to give Ambers method a try! Thank you!

[Genoa]

Amber, Thanks for the information! Now a couple more questions: (1) Do you season the OUTSIDE as well as the inside of the pots/pans? It seems like someone told me to do both inside and outside once, but I made a real mess of it. (2) Would you mind telling me where to find the group you belong to? It sounds like it would be interesting.

 

Again, thanks.

[Phatkat1956]

Some of my cast iron have been in my family for over 50 years. When ever I use them and they need it, I wash them with soap and water...YEP...soap and water. Then I place them on the stove to evaporate all the water off and grease them inside and out with plain crisco. Then they go into the oven with a constant gas pilot light. Next day it goes on the wall next to the oven until I use it again.

 

I bake cornbread, spoonbread and biscuits in my cast iron and love it. My pans are basically non-stick but I run a light film of crisco on them with a paper towel before dumping in my batter or dropping the biscuits. If you want a really crispy crust heat the pan in the oven first. I have two tiny little skillets that I use to make pot pies for my son and I...talk about a light and fluffy pie crust. Needless to say, I love my cast iron and am always looking for more...so I can have enough to pass along to all my "kids".

[Belle]

I treat my cast iron exactly the same as Phatkat. That way I know it's clean and I give it a light reseasoning after every use. I've treated them this way for over 30 years and I learned it from my grandmother.

[Genoa]

When you use the Crisco on them, is it just on the inside or the outside, too?

[Buttercup]

Quote:

I treat my cast iron exactly the same as Phatkat. That way I know it's clean and I give it a light reseasoning after every use. I've treated them this way for over 30 years and I learned it from my grandmother.

I do it the same way.. Everytime I use them.. Unless I have just fried bacon or something else.. But I make spaghetti sauce and everything in my cast iron.. I just wash them, warm them up on the stove (make sure your burner is not already on when you put your pan on it.. It might crack, this happened with the chicken fryer my mom gave me just before she died.) After they warm up and completely dry out I coat them with shortening or spray which ever I have.. I have had good luck with both..

Genoa: I usally don't have a need to recoat the bottom of the pan.. But if you are going to season it by throwing it in the oven then yes it is recommended to coat it inside and out..

[Mother]

I treat mine the same way. I use soap and water on them if they need it and have had no problem with it.

 

As for cooking over a fire with them, I'll bump up my posts on open fire cooking, that might help some.

 

 

 

[Amber]

Genoa, yes, like the others, I'd say when you first season the pan in the oven, do it all over, inside and out including the bottom. The main thing is to stop rust from happening. When you correctly seal the pores of the cast iron, rust stops.

 

The one group I joined and get the most info from is on yahoo groups -- dutchovencooking. You have to register on yahoo and sign in. Pick a group, ask to join, wait for confirmation if moderated, then you can either sign in and read online like I do, or let the email messages roll in, and on a busy group that can be too filling (of your email inbox). This group has almost 2000 members. There is a lot of info in their files and past message archives. They are mostly dutch oven but do discuss cast iron because most dutch ovens are cast iron.

 

They have lots of info on seasoning, meaning many different people's methods. I read a lot and when I saw the lady mentioned 'no smoke' in her kitchen, I tried that one -- it made the most sense to me. Interestingly enough, I never saw the guys take up on that even when mentioning their wives complaining of smoke filling the house. A couple of guys use their propane camping ovens or BBQ's outside to get the high heat seasoning. They do talk pros and cons of the self cleaning oven method, but the main consensus is if you have good collectible cast iron, thin walled, then don't take a chance of cracking it in the high heat. Others have had good luck. I'd never do that with my really old pans, as they mean too much to me. The slow warm up, then heating higher and then higher again works well for me for seasoning -- and I used my kitchen timer to help me not forget to change the temps.

 

The main thing is to make sure the pans are washed and dried well without starting any rust, which can happen. You don't want to seal/season rust into the pan and then have to start over.

 

Look up cast iron in the yahoo group home page search box. Look at membership numbers, and when you first click on them before joining, see how many messages show up each month in the little calendar at the bottom. Then you will see whether they are active or not.

 

I just joined another called cast iron cooking and it is rather small as of yet. I think it is based out of Seattle by a group up there. Some of the groups are part of the national group called IDOS (International Dutch Oven Society).

 

Google searches will get you all sorts of info. from all different web pages and sites. You have to do a little research and then weigh what you find to see what works best for you, after you have done proper seasoning, of course.

 

Maintenance of any good implement takes time for care. The beginning seasoning takes the most time, no kidding. BUT, after the initial investment of your time and proper caring, the maintenance only takes a few minutes after every use and wash up. Much easier than taking care of my dogs or cat.

 

 

[westbrook]

cooking with and cleaning cast iron

 

[westbrook]

Cleaning Rusted Cast-Iron Skillet in Coca-Cola

 

??? what do I know anyway ???

 

eweee and people drink this stuff?

[westbrook]

Curing New Pans

 

[westbrook]

Care & Feeding of Your Wok

 

[Genoa]

About seasoning a new pan ...

 

I have a new Lodge pre-seasoned skillet and, per recommendations here, I'm trying to season it further before using. Last night I started by rubbing Crisco, inside and out, all over the skillet. I placed it in the oven, on foil, for 15 minutes at 250 degrees. Then I took it out and drained any excess melted shortening---only a few drops. I'm not sure whether it was necessary or not, but I took a paper towel and wiped it down a little more just to be sure it wasn't on too thick, as I've had problems in the past with "sticky" pans.

 

I then put the skillet back in the 250 degree oven for another fifteen minutes, this time placing it upside down. Following Amber's suggestion about slowly raising the temperature, after the fifteen minutes I turned the oven up to 350 degrees for one hour, then to 450 degrees for another hour. I then let it sit in the oven until completely cool.

 

The only problem I had was that the top edge of the skillet, which was touching the foil, was sticky and had little clumps slightly larger than a grain of salt. I wiped those off as best I could with a paper towel.

 

This morning I rubbed Crisco on the inside only of the pan (including the top edge which was sticky) and am repeating the above process. The only difference is that I am not going to turn it upside down so that, hopefully, there won't be a problem with the top edge again.

 

The pan is getting very dark, but I'm not sure exactly how it should feel. Several people have mentioned how smooth it gets, but mine is certainly not entirely smooth. Do I have to keep seasoning it until it feels perfectly smooth? I'm thinking of seasoning it one more time and then using it a few times for frying bacon before doing anything else with it. (My family will love that, as I rarely buy bacon!)

 

I'm hoping this will work properly, but if anyone wants to suggest anything I'm listening. And, Amber, you mentioned earlier that you could provide a link to the information about seasoning the cast iron. I'd like that, if it's still available. Thanks.

 

I'm at the 350 degree mark right now, and I think I'll go check and make sure a lot of oil isn't pooling in any one place, since I'm keeping the skillet upright this time. Oh, and I also wanted to ask your opinion on only continuing with seasoning on the inside at this point?

 

Sorry for the rambling. My grandmother had beautiful cast iron pans and I've always wanted to have some to use as well, so I'm trying to get it right this time.