ICNC Sunday School

CAST IRON COOKWARE CARE

Cast iron cookware is valued for its heat conduction properties and its nontoxic properties, among other things. Cast iron cookware can last for generations with some basic care. If you have a piece of cast iron cookware that is especially dirty or rusty, to the point that the residue cannot be easily removed using warm water, soap and a metal scouring pad, you will need to restore your cast iron cookware before you can use it.

Restoring Cast Iron Cookware

If you have a piece of cast iron cookware that is especially dirty or rusty, to the point that the residue cannot be easily removed using warm water, soap and a metal scouring pad, you will need to restore your cast iron cookware before you can use it. Generally, “restoring” cast iron means deep-cleaning it with lye. Warning: lye can cause severe damage to human skin, eyes, airways and lungs. Wear long rubber gloves that extend at least to the forearm, and eye protection. Make sure your gloves are reasonably thick and don’t have any little holes in them. Fume inhalation poses less of a risk, so long as you don’t put your face right up to the lye, but if by chance you get a couple good whiffs of it you’ll feel your nostrils sting, so try not to get any good whiffs. Serious Eats has a good instructional article on how to restore cast iron cookware. You can use a stove cleaner solution for smaller jobs, or a lye bath for more onerous projects. Be extremely careful when working with lye and stove cleaner solutions, which contain lye.

Seasoning Cast Iron Cookware

To season your cookware you need a healthy oil or fat with a high smoke point to use to season your pan(s). Refined Avocado Oil (approximate smoke point 500°F) and Refined (Light) Olive Oil (approximate smoke point 465°F) are two solid choices.

Don’t use Sunflower Oil, Virgin Avocado Oil, Coconut Oil, or Extra Virgin Olive Oil, as these all have smoke points under 450°F, which is the base temperature for seasoning cast iron cookware in the oven.

Oil Smoke Points

Refined Avocado Oil	500°F
Refined (Light) Olive Oil	465°F
Sunflower Oil	440°F
Virgin Avocado Oil	375°F
Coconut Oil	350°F
Extra Virgin Olive Oil	325°F

Serious Eats also has a good article on how to season cast iron cookware on their website. Lodge Cast Iron has a similar instructional article on its website. Lodge recommends putting the pan in the oven for 1 hour at 450–500°F, while Serious Eats recommends 30 minutes at 450°F, repeated 3-4 times for multiple layers of seasoning. Here’s a summarized synthesis of the two articles:

Step 1: Wash and scour the pan thoroughly with warm water, soap, and a metal scouring pad. Choose a metal scouring pad for its superior abrasiveness, durability, re-usability, and the fact that it’s plastic-free.

Step 2: Preheat your oven to 450°F. Continue along the next steps while oven is heating up.

Step 3: Heat your pan up on the stove on low heat for a minute or so to get it nice and warm, but not burning hot.

Step 4: Being careful not to burn yourself, apply a little bit of oil to the pan, then spread it around evenly with a paper towel, covering the whole cooking surface of the pan with a thin layer of oil. Discard the paper towel after you’re done.

Step 5: Take another paper towel and wipe off as much oil as you can from the pan. Be thorough.

Step 6: Put the pan in the oven upside down, with a baking sheet or tray underneath to catch any oil that might drip off the pan.

Step 7: Bake the pan at 450°F for 45 minutes. There may be some smoke or fumes, so be prepared to give the kitchen some extra ventilation.

Step 8: Turn off the oven and let the pan cool inside.

Step 9: Once the pan has cooled to the point that it is warm but not burning hot, repeat steps 4-8 two or three more times for a total of three or four coats of seasoning.

THAT’S ALL FOLKS!