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cast iron pan - help with seasoning http://www.cookaholics.org/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=4323 |
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Author: | Gerard [ Sun May 01, 2016 9:51 am ] |
Post subject: | cast iron pan - help with seasoning |
I have a very old Griswold(#8) cast iron skillet that I got from ebay maybe 10 years ago. When bought - it was totally unseasoned - looked much like the way a brushed stainless steel pan would look - just felt a lot heavier. Inspired by CI's cast iron cookbook and finally willing to try it out on a glass top stove, I decided I'd try seasoning it the way CI recommended. That meant rubbing it with Flax Seed oil and then putting it in a very hot stove (500 degrees) upside down for an hour, letting it rest for 30 minutes, and repeating the procedure about 6 times. I did this over 2-3 days because I didn't have nine hours to watch the stove! Over time, the cast iron pan did indeed get black, with the exception of a patch on the bottom of the pan itself (the cooking surface) - but even that was a mahogany brown. There were little specks of silver showing through the rim and the bottom (underside) was a patchwork of black and brown. I put it through two more cycles (now a total of 8), without much change so I was ready to go. First, I made fried eggs. They cooked beautifully but when I lifted them out of pan with a spatula (without digging into the pan), some of the seasoning came off. Next, I made a reverse sear steak. The sear on the steak was beautiful, better than what I normally get with AC. However, when I washed the pan later on (yellow scrubbie, just water), I noticed that even more of the surface was exposed at the bottom of the pan. Now in both cases, the food slipped out when removed as if it were non-stick. But nonetheless, I am concerned why my baked in flax seasoning is coming off. Did I do something wrong here or is there something else I can do to get a more permanent coat of seasoning? Is it just a matter of cooking more in it? What about all the little black specks that came off when cleaning? Can they come off when cooking and are they in any way a health issue? Thanks in advance! Gerard |
Author: | JesBelle [ Sun May 01, 2016 11:49 am ] |
Post subject: | Re: cast iron pan - help with seasoning |
Okay -- did you clean the pan thoroughly before you started? If the pan was unseasoned, but not rusty, it had a coating of something or other to keep it from oxidizing. It sounds like that coating may have prevented the flax coat from adhering properly. I've never had a pan season to anything but uniform blackness with this method. That said, I've found the flax oil to be a little brittle. I've had the best luck cooking on it if it has a softer layer over it. I do the final layer of seasoning with a highly saturated fat like coconut or avocado oil. I continue using those fats between washings. Also, treat it like non-stick -- only nylon or wooden implements. |
Author: | wino [ Sun May 01, 2016 6:49 pm ] |
Post subject: | Re: cast iron pan - help with seasoning |
G - I did what you did but my results are like JB's. I follow her procedure as well with excellent results! Not sure if my comments help you... ![]() |
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