How Do You Cure Or Season A New Cast Iron Skillet?
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I want to buy a new cast iron skillet, but need to know which brand is best, how you tell a good one from a not so good one and how to cure it before use. Also which brands to look for or to stay away from. Thank you.
1. Heat the oven to 250o – 300o
2. Coat the pan with lard or bacon grease. Don’t use a liquid vegetable oil because it will leave a sticky surface and the pan will not be properly seasoned.
3. Put the pan in the oven. In 15 minutes, remove the pan & pour out any excess grease. Place the pan back in the oven and bake for 2 hours.
Repeating this process several times is recommended as it will help create a stronger “seasoning” bond.
Also, when you put the pan into service, it is recommended to use it initially for foods high in [animal] fat, such as bacon or foods cooked with fat, because the grease from these foods will help strengthen the seasoning.’
As for brand names, the only one I know of that is good if not the best quality, is LODGE.
I would suggest buying an older pan. You can often find these at thrift stores, flea markets, garage sales, and antique stores. You can also find them on eBay, but the shipping charges would be expensive because of the weight of the skillet. Brands to look for are Griswold and Wagner.
If you want a new pan, I would suggest Lodge. All new (not old pots) cast-iron pots and skillets have a protective coating on them, which must be removed. American companies use a special food-safe wax; imports are covered with a water-soluble shellac. In either case, scrub the item with a stainless steel scouring pads (steel wool), using soap and the hottest tap water you can stand.
You season a cast iron pan by rubbing it with a relatively thin coat of neutral oil (I stress a light coat of oil). Use vegetable oils (canola, sunflower, etc.), shortening (like Crisco shortening) or lard for seasoning your cast iron pans. Aynthing else will leave a greasy film on your pan.
Place the cast iron pan, upside down, in the oven, with a sheet of aluminum foil on the bottom to catch any drips. Heat the pan for 30 to 60 minutes in a 300 to 500 degree oven. Once done, let the pan cool to room temperature. Repeating this process several times is recommended as it will help create a stronger “seasoning” bond.
Unless you use your cast-iron pans daily, they should be washed briefly with a little soapy water and then rinsed and thoroughly dried in order to rid them of excess surface oil. If you do not do this, the surplus oil will become rancid within a couple of days.
How to Care for Cast Iron
Cast iron has a porous surface. The seasoning process serves to fill and smooth the surface of the pan. It’s true that the more you use and season a cast iron skillet, the more nonstick the surface becomes. Here is how you season a new or used cast iron utensil:
If the pan is new, be sure any adhesive label is completely removed.
Wash with very hot water, rinse and dry the utensil.
Grease the inside surface with Crisco or other solid shortening. A medium-light coating, as you would grease a cake pan, is sufficient.
Put your greased utensil in a preheated 300°F oven for 1 hour.
Remove, cool and store the pan.
A skillet or other utensil can be seasoned as often as necessary to maintain a good surface. For example, after making tortillas and, after all that heat, the surface of your skillet looks dry, just season it again before you put it away.
Until the pan is very well seasoned, either by many uses or repeated seasonings, do not attempt to cook foods with a high acid content (tomatoes, for instance). The corrosive nature of high-acid foods will not react well to unseasoned cast iron. Once a pan is well-seasoned, however, you can use it for just about anything.
Refrain from using soap or detergent in the cleaning process. Seasoned cast iron utensils may be cleaned very nicely with boiling water and a stiff-bristled brush. A short-handled brush with stiff nylon bristles used only for cleaning cast iron skillets is a good idea. And often, say after making cornbread, brush the skillet vigorously, wipe it with a damp sponge, and dry it with a paper towel. It is important to dry cast iron utensils well after use; they will rust unless thoroughly dried. Cast iron utensils will darken with use, turning from a steely gray, when new, to dark gray or black.
Not a lot of different brands that I’ve noticed. The heavier the better for heat retention.
To cure, wipe with cooking oil (inside and out) and place in a 4-500 degree oven for an hour or so. Remove, cool and repeat a few more times.
Every time you use the pan after that, wash thoroughly, let dry and then wipe the interior with a teaspoon or so of cooking oil (should be wet looking) before storing.
The pan will gradually blacken and become less and less sticky.
We have about 7 or 8 cast iron pans from 6 to 16″ and use them all on a regular basis. Two of them were left to me by my grandmother and are more than 60 years old. When properly cured these will last more than a lifetime!
Actually if you haven’t already made your purchase I suggest you look in to the new cast iron that is already seasoned for use when you purchase it. It’s a little more expensive but worth it.
The best way to season is to coat your skillet (inside & out) with a very thick coat of shortening and put it in the campfire for about 10 to 20 minutes; works perfectly. My family has done this for years & years – probably great great great grandma’s passed this on down.
First, let me say, I LOVE CAST IRON! That is all I use. “Lodge” is the best brand. Stay away from the Chinese imports, they tend to oxidize. Also, they may crack. Stick with Lodge. It’s worth searching for.
Wash with mild detergent before first use. Rinse VERY well.
Dry well.
Wipe all over INSIDE and OUT with VEGETABLE shortening, like Crisco. DO NOT use lard.
Place in 400 degree oven for 45 minutes.
When cool, wipe out standing oil.
Recoat cooking surface with more shortening. (This prevents rusting.)
The first few uses, don’t cook anything acidic, such as tomato sauce.
I always wipe mine with crisco after every washing, before putting them away. I will not cook with anything else.
On new cast iron, I brush vegetable oil inside and out, place in my oven at 300 for 2 hours, then remove and put another coating of oil on and put back in the oven for another hour at 200. I look for the heavier cast iron cooking ware rather than the thin bargain brand types. You get what you pay for. Hope this helps.
the first answer is right. i usually fry a bunch of bacon in the pan to get the lard. If i were before i went and bought a new one, i would look or call a few second hand stores or junk shops. there is nothing like an old seasoned skillet. there is a place near me that has dozens of them. for a new one get a Lodge, not a cheap imitation.
You can buy cast iron skillets that are already cured…I didn’t have much luck curing my own, which is why I am so for the already done ones!
You can also buy pre-seasoned pans if you prefer.