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Farm Kitchen:  Tempermental Cast Iron Skillet  |
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MamaCrunch
True Blue Farmgirl
161 Posts
Nasvhille
TN
USA
161 Posts |
 Posted - Oct 28 2010 : 09:26:32 AM
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I have a CI skillet that Im pretty sure is in a constant state of annoying me! I had her perfectly seasoned and she was cooking great. Then I cooked something that stuck horribly and after scraping it clean with a plastic scraper it had a dried out look to the bottom. Again I seasoned it but it didn't come out as nicely as the first time. Three batches of bacon later she was back to her old self.
Last night I cooked dinner for my neighbors and the apple cobbler stuck to the bottom. Arg! I didn't have time to cleAn her up last night so I did it this morning. I think I scraped all the seasoning off the bottom again. I just finished an oven seasoning session with bacon grease and now it looks funny. There are whitish looking streaks running down the sides of the inside and a sticky residue on the bottom.
What did I do wrong? Should I just use cooking bacon as my seasoning technique?
Farmgirl #2161
Just tryin' to homestead in the middle of a suburban neighborhood!
Blog~ http://thelittleboygreen.com <<I've been slackin' on the updates! |
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rosarita78
True Blue Farmgirl
206 Posts
Reina
Drought ridden High Plains
New Mexico
USA
206 Posts |
Posted - Oct 28 2010 : 11:14:17 AM
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Yes CI can be tempermental. Baking cast iron is okay but you can over bake it. The best way I can tell you to keep your seasoning is.... when you wash it put it back on the stove top and get it hot. When it's good and hot again wipe or spray a light coat of oil. This should keep it well until the next time you use. This is what I do and this never fails.
Is your skillet new? If so did you buy it seasoned or unseasoned?
If there is white or even rust in it that's okay. Just keep hot and with some oil or grease in it and it should never fail. And don't worry about the outside of it. Worry about the inside. The sticky residue on the bottom of your skillet after cooking it in the oven is your oil. The oil breaks down and then does leave a residue. It's okay, lightly clean your pan, scrape out what you can and you can even use a good copper pot scrubber because that stuff is pretty rough. Basically you cooked your pan too long and the oil cooked off and left that whatever goo it is. Do like I said before, every time you wash your pan put it back on the stove top and get it hot then wipe or spray a light coat on it and leave it for next time.
My skillets never leave the stove top. And I use nothing else but cast iron. After time it will get better. If you run into any more problems ..... email me!! There's more things you can do.
Oh yeah and any oil will do lard, crisco any oil.
Reina
http://reinascountrykitchen.blogspot.com
http://icookinnewmexico.blogspot.com |
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kristin sherrill
True Blue Farmgirl
11303 Posts
kristin
chickamauga
ga
USA
11303 Posts |
Posted - Oct 28 2010 : 11:52:41 AM
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You are not supposed to use dish wasing soap on cast iron either. I just rinse mine out and then put a little oil in. If something does stick, I just soak in hot water for awhile. But that hardly ever happens. I have alot of different sizes and that's about all I ever use anymore. I hope you get yours back to working for you again.
Kris
Happiness is simple. |
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Ninibini
True Blue Farmgirl
7577 Posts
Nini
Pennsylvania
USA
7577 Posts |
Posted - Oct 28 2010 : 12:35:03 PM
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I know Kris is right - but I have to sheepishly admit that I do use dish soap on my cast iron skillet; not a ton, but a little on a cloth with hot running water. When I'm done rinsing, I "dry" it on the burner like Rosarita suggests, but I very rarely even have to re-season with a little cooking oil - maybe that's just because it's so old and so well-seasoned from age, I don't know. And if ever it's looking kind of dry (or if I've mercilessly burned it, which I have been known to do), I either roast a chicken in it, make french fries or fry bacon to re-season. Worst case scenario, I will coat my clean pan with organic shortening (inside only) and leave it in a low-heat oven for an hour or so to re-season, then simply wipe out with a cloth and let it air dry. I have also had tough sticky residue or burned food in it more than once (Like my DH says - I only smoke when my kitchen's on fire! LOL!), and even the tough stuff will come out if you let it soak over night, either with a little dish soap and water, or baking soda, vinegar and water. Now, I know it's not recommended to do this, but it works. My pan was handed down from my great-grandmother to my grandmother and then to me, and it's always been handled this way. I've had major cooking mishaps, but it always bounces back with a little tlc. :) Oh! And one of my girlfriends puts her burned pans right on the stove and boils the stuck-on stuff until it comes loose. I've done that, but I like the soaking method the best. And we use ours every day, too! It's my favorite pan for just about everything - on the stovetop or in the oven! Good luck! - Nini
God gave us two hands... one to help ourselves, and one to help others!
Farmgirl Sister #1974 |
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traildancer
True Blue Farmgirl
485 Posts
Loyce
Glide
OR
USA
485 Posts |
Posted - Oct 28 2010 : 12:59:24 PM
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Sort of off the subject--but I have a cast iron skillet and it is just about too much for me to lift with one hand for pouring gravy or something that you need to scrape out. Any suggestions? I don't want to give up using the cast iron, but if I can't lift it, I need to do something else.
The trail is the thing.... Louis L'Amour |
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MamaCrunch
True Blue Farmgirl
161 Posts
Nasvhille
TN
USA
161 Posts |
Posted - Oct 28 2010 : 5:28:37 PM
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I think i've been baking it too long. I'll stick to frying bacon and spraying it while hot as my seasoning technique. Thanks for the insight!!
TrailDancer- right before I got married my best friend's mother gave me one piece of advice. She said " always cook with cast iron. You don't have to be able to lift it, you just need to be able to slide it off the counter.". She was referring to walloping your husband if needbe! My skillet has a helper handle that I use when pouring off grease. I haven't nailed a good technique for holding it with on hand and scraping with the other.
Farmgirl #2161
Just tryin' to homestead in the middle of a suburban neighborhood!
Blog~ http://thelittleboygreen.com <<I've been slackin' on the updates! |
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N@n
True Blue Farmgirl
223 Posts
Hackett
Arkansas
USA
223 Posts |
Posted - Oct 29 2010 : 06:07:23 AM
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Here is a hint I learned from an oriental cook. "hot pan, cold food, nothing will stick. Works great for all my cast iron.
N@n in Ark
keep searchin'-it's out there somewhere. |
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urban chickie
True Blue Farmgirl
734 Posts
Catherine
Niles
IL
USA
734 Posts |
Posted - Oct 30 2010 : 8:15:35 PM
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Cooking oil isn't the best seasoning treatment....animal fats work best, so bacon is always the way I go lol. Oils can make a sticky reside, depending on other factors like humidity and cooking temps and such. Also, make sure you use enough fat - don't dry it out while seasoning. The fat is going into the pores of the iron, not just sitting on the surface, so it needs to get really deep in there to give that wonderful nonstick surface. And no soap!
Catherine
Farmgirl #1370
City Girl By Birth,
Suburbanite By Location,
Farmgirl at Heart
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traildancer
True Blue Farmgirl
485 Posts
Loyce
Glide
OR
USA
485 Posts |
Posted - Nov 02 2010 : 5:56:55 PM
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Well, it looks like I won't be getting rid of my cast iron anytime soon. My father-in-law and his wife recently moved and she gave me a cast iron dutch oven with a handle and lid. I think it must have been my mother-in-law's because this wife isn't much of a cook and the oven is well seasoned.
The trail is the thing.... Louis L'Amour |
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sherrye
True Blue Farmgirl
3775 Posts
sherry
bend in the high desert
oregon
USA
3775 Posts |
Posted - Nov 03 2010 : 06:20:31 AM
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when i want to doll up my cast iron i wash it good. turn a burner on hot. warm the pan to hot and add oil or shortening and salt. lots of salt. use a soft cloth and rub the oil salt mixture all over the inside of the pan. it should become shiney and slick. wipe out with another clean dry cloth. after use i clean with warm water dry totally on a burner not too hot. polish as needed. just a thought sherrye
the learn as we go silk purse farm
farm girl #1014
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Farm Kitchen: Tempermental Cast Iron Skillet |
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Tempermental Cast Iron Skillet
