castiron

[Raider Bill]

I stopped at a garage sale Saturday. Guy had a bunch of cast iron. Got to taking to him about cleaning the rust off when he finds them. His "secret" is PB Blaster. I'm like are you kidding me! Do you tell the people you sell them to so they won't use the to cook with?
Nope. And the worst part is he didn't think there was anything wrong with it.

[Weekend_Sawyer]

There ya go, If they were cheep, perfect plinking pans!

[coxy]

you cant just burn the PB off        if nothing else your inners should be lubed up and every thing should slide out real fast     

[WV Sawmiller]

   Good point Raider Bill. I worry about such ever since I came home from an overseas assignment and found my son had taken a small cast iron skillet and was using it on the big wood stove downstairs to melt his lead sinkers and cast his bullets.

   

[DanG]

You can get a little kit at most any hardware store to test cast iron for lead contamination. Not a bad idea if you're buying used stuff.

[BradMarks]

Anybody else actually crack a skillet?  Blackened Redfish (ok, we had halibut), white hot skillet, cold fish covered with butter, and Emeril's Blackened Redfish Magic, perfect recipe for a cracked skillet   Only do this outside!

[Weekend_Sawyer]

 I've never cracked one or warped one.
I did have an imprint of the handle of one on my palm when I left it on the stove on high and tried to move it with a wet hand.

[WV Sawmiller]

   Never cracked one myself but have seen them. Don't know who did it.

   Reminds me of the time my wife took her 1 qt and 1.5 qt copperware saucepans and decided to use as double boiler. Both were same diameter. She put the 1.5 qt on with water to boil then cut up a cold block of cheese and let set a couple minutes then put it on the other pot. Pretty soon water/steam bubbled out around the bottom/sides of the top pan so she moved both off the burner and let set. I still remember that loud sucking sound as the top pot was pulled into the bottom one. I had to permanently bend it to break the vacuum to get it free.

   I told her good example of physics at work. Take two items same size and heat one so it expands then cool other one down so it contracts and make them fit together but when temp equalized they were well bonded. She did not appreciate the lesson or me reminding her. She gets funny that way sometimes.

[Weekend_Sawyer]

Ha! good story. That's how I drive bearings onto a shaft.

[coxy]

started using my pan got a bunch of pork fat and just started frying it just don't eat to much of it at one time it comes out both ends    my MIL  told my wife not to forget about to wipe oil/grease  on the out side to help season it  what is the reason to season the out side of the pan   is there such a thing as burning the pan as in not being able to cook in cause every thing will taste burnt 

[Chuck White]

Seasoning cast iron pots and pans takes quite a long time!

I cook eggs, with a little butter in my frying pan each morning and once in a while they'll stick a little bit, but usually come out pretty good!

When I get done frying the eggs, I take a paper towel (while the pan is still hot) and wipe the pan out, then another paper towel with a little bit of lard on it and put a light coat over the entire inside surface of the pan!

[Roxie]

I assumed that the outside is seasoned to prevent rust.  I only use peanut oil on my pans, and they have an attractive uniform black non-stick finish.  I also need the non-stick on the outside because I use a smaller pan to mash foods that buckle when cooked, like ham and beef steaks, and hamburgers keep a nicer shape when weighted down with a smaller pan on top of them. 

My corn bread pan is over 50 years old now.  My daughter's in law are beginning to argue over who gets the pans when I'm gone.   

[Raider Bill]

I assumed that the outside is seasoned to prevent rust.  I only use peanut oil on my pans, and they have an attractive uniform black non-stick finish.  I also need the non-stick on the outside because I use a smaller pan to mash foods that buckle when cooked, like ham and beef steaks, and hamburgers keep a nicer shape when weighted down with a smaller pan on top of them. 

My corn bread pan is over 50 years old now.  My daughter's in law are beginning to argue over who gets the pans when I'm gone.   

DanG it! I hate when they divvy up my gear while I'm still alive.

[WLC]

Nothing additional to add other than agreeing with most of what has been passed on already.  I've been collecting Griswold and old Wagner cast iron for many years.  I've cleaned and reseasoned a number of pans over the years and have found that lard or peanut oil is the best oil to use for seasoning.

I have one pan that is probably close to 130-140 years old now that belonged to my G-Grandmother.  Cooks better than any new non-stick pan being sold now.  Momma still has the same G-Grandmothers round griddle.  It's never had anything other than biscuits cooked on it and as far as I know has never had a drop of water touch it.  Just wiped off after each mornings biscuits are cooked.

[moresnow]

It's never had anything other than biscuits cooked on it and as far as I know has never had a drop of water touch it. Just wiped off after each mornings biscuits are cooked.

Bingo. Mine gets used daily for breakfast. Often for supper also. For years. Zero H20 ever. Wiped down/out while still warm/hot. Put the lid back on and walk away. Never has left the stovetop. Part of MY house decoration effort  

[mike_belben]

I give them a quick scrub with soap, dont tell the wife.  She is still convinced that one drop will wreck the things and make everything taste bad.  

Im sorry. When it sits around in a pile of old food on the counter for a week, a little warm water isnt cuttin it for me.  I dont put food into dirty bowls and im not gonna start putting it in scuzzy pans either. 

I wipe both sides with olive oil and store in oven also. 

[Weekend_Sawyer]

I burned my cast iron pot pretty bad the other day.

I filled it with water and put a chicken carcass in it to make broth, turned it on high and went outside to cut the grass.

When I saw smoke billowing out of the windows I ran back inside, shut off the stove and moved the pot to the side and then took a deep breath. Coughing and gagging I ran back outside. For the next few minutes I would run in the front door, through the house and out the back door, pegging them open. Then run back through and open a couple of windows on my way through. Smoke was coming out of every door and window of the house. I went back to mowing the grass.

When Diane came home she asked whats for dinner?
We went out.

After scraping out as much debris and caked on chicken grease as I could I put a wire wheel on my angle grinder and went over the whole thing. When I was done it looked almost new and the burned charcoally smell was almost gone. I washed it a couple of times and coated it with corn oil and seasoned it.

I used it the other day to make a pot o beans and it worked fine. I half expected to taste a bitter burned flavor but it was fine.

Oh yea, my smoke detectors work fine too.



 

[luvmexfood]

Learned this the hard way. Never leave water in a cast iron skillet and set on the counter top to soak. Course the soaking period was a month while I was gone. Came back to find water had leached thru the cast iron ruining the counter top.

[Raider Bill]

Glad it all worked out Jon.
Lot's of house fires start with a pot left on a stove.

[petefrom bearswamp]

My wife, bless her heart, has had more sets of pans than Emeril,or the late Anthony bourdain
Last batch was a 400 dollar set from Williams Sonoma guaranteed to not warp.
We were warned to not cook on high heat (what good is this?) which we have done religiously.
The centers of the frying pans were all high after the first few uses.
pieces of high priced crap.
My 2 cast iron skillets reside in our oven and I use them almost exclusively.
She is too proud to admit the design faults in the aluminum non stick pans.