Caring for Cast Iron

I got my first Cast Iron Skillet (lodge) about 3 weeks ago and I’ve been using it extensively. For the past week and a half I ran out of canola oil and have been using olive oil which has caused an insane amount of smoke in my place. I’ve finally gotten my ass off the seat and picked up more canola but I’m wondering if the seasoning from the olive oil is now on the skillet and will cause the same smoke amount?

Also, I occasionally get bits/gunk from cooking on the skillet, does my scrubbing with a brush remove any layers of seasoning?

Thanks for helping this pan-noob =)

Paging Dr. Fleming…

Why not reseasom with canola oil?

I have a set but never really took to them. Lots of care involved. for the same reason I now use exclusively the le Creusets satin finish cast irons. Warm water clean-up, and no seasoning. Ever.
The things are amazing.

My middle size Lodge rusted quickly when left with some water in my over after making baguettes. Rust never sleeps, but on cast iron does not even naps.

http://www.wineberserkers.com/viewtopic.php?p=226710#p226710" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

It’s in there…

I have one. Now that I seasoned it properly (5 coats of safflower baked on over the course of a week) the time to care for this is nearly nil. Love my Lodge!

I’d much rather use le crueset cast iron’s but I’ve been delaying my purchase for awhile… supposed to use my friend’s william sonoma discount but she’s been busy!

And mike, I think that’s my intention I’m going to remove the seasoning and reseason with canola oil.

interesting. May have to try your method eric. Any particular safflower oil?

Charlie,

Reseason with something that has a high smoke point. Safflower or canola work. Olive oil has a fairly low smoke point and it sounds like you exceeded it. It’s a fine oil, but not for high heat cooking.

Honestly, the pure cast iron isn’t that hard to care for. Season it. Clean it after using it. Don’t soap, just use a stiff bristle brush or something that gets the food out without scoring the iron. Dry. Done.

Charlie, the le Creuset outlets have them cheaper than WS will ever be, albeit, they are seconds, but choose wisely (ie:no blems on the cooking surface) and you will be happy for like 40% of the regular price. And the warranty is still in place, so the downside in just about nil.

The link to MelindaLee.com, for ‘Cast Iron Jack McGrew’s Ultimate Seasoning Method,’ no longer works. Here’s an alternate link: http://thedarkcorner.com/?p=199

Cast iron just gets easier and easier to care for as time goes on. After using my Lodge skillet a few times a week for about 5-6 years now, it’s practically nonstick but still creates an awesome sear and has very good heat distribution. Clean with hot water and scrub, wipe some high-smoke-point oil on it and you’re good to go. A cast iron skillet is by far the best bargain in cookware.

My real question is if I should re-season. The link Mr. Fleming provided noted seasoning with olive oil and since I’ve only used olive oil on it… 4 times max it should be ok no?

Olive oil will be fine for both cooking and seasoning as long as you don’t exceed it’s smoke point. Do, and you get the results you had. If you do very high heat cooking in it, use something with a higher smoke point.

I’d reseason if the pan has burnt oil on the surface that you can’t get off by scrubbing with a stiff brush (NOT METAL).

I use olive oil to sear at hot temps, but I apply the oil to the meat rather than the pan. Still a good sear but much less smoke.

I don’t think there’s any benefit to buying Le Creuset for raw cast iron, unless you’re just interested in name dropping. If you’re talking ceramic coated, that’s another issue…

Interestingly, I just looked it up and Le Creuset recommends only low to medium heat for their cast iron which goes against the way I typically use cast iron. If that’s true, it makes them pretty useless to me.

Chris

Besides, a 10" Lodge skillet will run you about $15. If you burn up a few, who cares?

Funny. Name dropping. Yeah, that’s so ‘me’.

I have a cast iron skillet that is now a work of art – my wife and I use it for everything from cooking steaks to roasting chickens. It’s an amazing pan now and one of the ones we use almost every time we cook. It sounds like you don’t really need to both reseasoning it – just cook with it and clean it properly.

To clean mine, I just boil water in the dirty pan and scrape up the gunk with a wooden scraper. (Don’t use metal – it will scratch the bottom and ruin the nonstick surface.) Then I dump out the water, boil water and scrape again, and dump again. At this point, it’s pretty much clean. Sometimes I spread a little canola oil around using a paper towel; other times I don’t do anything else. It’s really that easy. NO SOAP, NO SCRUBBING WITH METAL/STEEL WOOL, DON’T LET IT RUST.

Honestly, if you just keep using it and cleaning it gently, it will be your favorite pan.

Low to medium is perfect for slow-cooking in French Ovens and other classic ceramic coated CI.

But if you’re looking for a serious sear on a piece of steak, Lodge is more than fine.

PS - Mike, I’m making fun of Charlie’s statement. I mean, come on… look at the pic of him dumpin’ the Screagle!