Cast Iron Skillet omnibus (1 Viewer)

[Maurile Tremblay]

There are some decent recipes in some of LHUCKS's threads.

 

[TexanFan02]

There are some decent recipes in some of LHUCKS's threads.

 

[Dr. Gobbler]

There are some decent recipes in some of LHUCKS's threads.

Mr. Tremblay bringing the funny!

 

[Gordo]

I use my 12' CIS at least 3 times a week. Regardless of steak, bacon n eggs, etc, it's all awesome. I now need a Cast Iron Pot for my beans.

Didn't know they made them that big. How many are you cooking for?

 

[ODoyleRules]

just picked up a Lodge 12" CIS for $16.

 

[D_House]

Any tricks to reducing the amount of smoke for cast iron steaks? I tried the Alton Brown cast iron recipe for some NY Strips and they were outstanding, but the whole kitchen was in a smoky fog for the rest of the night.

 

[Flyin Pigs]

just added a CIS to my Fathers Day wish list...curious about D_House's question as well.

 

[Dan Gladden's Mustache]

 

[coyote5]

Picked up a 10" Griswold from eBay and I like it alot better than my Lodge. I'll be replacing my 12" Lodge ASAP.

 

[ratpfink]

Any tricks to reducing the amount of smoke for cast iron steaks? I tried the Alton Brown cast iron recipe for some NY Strips and they were outstanding, but the whole kitchen was in a smoky fog for the rest of the night.

The trick is to open a few windows.

 

[Britney Spears]

Any tricks to reducing the amount of smoke for cast iron steaks? I tried the Alton Brown cast iron recipe for some NY Strips and they were outstanding, but the whole kitchen was in a smoky fog for the rest of the night.

The trick is to open a few windows.

First time I used it, tons of smoke.The "pre-seasoning" from Lodge sucks. Re-season it in the oven, etc. and that will help a lot (also will help reduce things sticking to it).

Also, reduce the amount of oil if you were cooking with oil. If the skillet is seasoned well, you barely need any oil.

Those two things reduced the amount of smoke dramatically for me. It shouldn't be filling your house with smoke.

 

[D_House]

Any tricks to reducing the amount of smoke for cast iron steaks? I tried the Alton Brown cast iron recipe for some NY Strips and they were outstanding, but the whole kitchen was in a smoky fog for the rest of the night.

The trick is to open a few windows.

First time I used it, tons of smoke.The "pre-seasoning" from Lodge sucks. Re-season it in the oven, etc. and that will help a lot (also will help reduce things sticking to it).

Also, reduce the amount of oil if you were cooking with oil. If the skillet is seasoned well, you barely need any oil.

Those two things reduced the amount of smoke dramatically for me. It shouldn't be filling your house with smoke.

Thanks, I only lightly coated the steak per the Alton Brown recipe, so it's likely the seasoning. I'll re-season before using it again. The smoke was pretty excessive, obviously we opened windows and set up fans to deal with it but we'd prefer not to have to do that to enjoy steaks (particularly in winter).

 

[Dan Gladden's Mustache]

[QUOTE='MC Gusto]Any secret to cornbread in a C-I-S? I intend to make some ham/bean soup or some brunswick stew and want to try my first batch of cornbread in the cast iron skillet. 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Here's a recipe I have made several times with good results:

Ingredients

Eggs - 2

Butter, melted - 3 oz

Whole milk - 2 c

White cheddar cheese - grated - 6 oz

Sour cream - 8 oz

Corn, creamed - 16 oz can

Polenta - 7 oz (aka corn grits)

Flour, AP - 6 oz

Sugar, granulated - 1 1/3 oz

Salt - 1/2 tsp

Baking powder - 1/2 tsp

Baking soda - 1/2 tsp

Method

1. Mix first six ingredients together in large bowl.

2. Add remaining ingredients. Whisk until well combined. (I found out that I get a more consistent batter by adding the dry ingredients one at a time, whisking briefly after each one).

3. Preheat oven to 350°F. Heat 12" diameter cast iron skillet in oven until hot, approximatley 15 minutes (DO NOT skimp on this step). When hot, oil pan with vegetable oil (or cooking spray, which has also worked in the past). Pour batter into pan (should be about 3/4 full).

4. Bake until golden brown at top edges and firmly set, approximatley 40 minutes, depending on your oven. Don't be afraid to let it go another 10 minutes if necessary. The bread will still seem moist, but will be somewhat firm to the touch. Remove from oven and let bread cool in pan.

5. Slather with butter and consume like a Neanderthal.

You can also alter the recipe to your liking. To add some zest, add a small can of drained green chiles and some Frank's Red Hot sauce to the batter.

Let me know if this works for you.

[/QUOTE]This is happening in my oven RIGHT NOW.

 

[Dan Gladden's Mustache]

[QUOTE='MC Gusto]Any secret to cornbread in a C-I-S? I intend to make some ham/bean soup or some brunswick stew and want to try my first batch of cornbread in the cast iron skillet. 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Here's a recipe I have made several times with good results:

Ingredients

Eggs - 2

Butter, melted - 3 oz

Whole milk - 2 c

White cheddar cheese - grated - 6 oz

Sour cream - 8 oz

Corn, creamed - 16 oz can

Polenta - 7 oz (aka corn grits)

Flour, AP - 6 oz

Sugar, granulated - 1 1/3 oz

Salt - 1/2 tsp

Baking powder - 1/2 tsp

Baking soda - 1/2 tsp

Method

1. Mix first six ingredients together in large bowl.

2. Add remaining ingredients. Whisk until well combined. (I found out that I get a more consistent batter by adding the dry ingredients one at a time, whisking briefly after each one).

3. Preheat oven to 350°F. Heat 12" diameter cast iron skillet in oven until hot, approximatley 15 minutes (DO NOT skimp on this step). When hot, oil pan with vegetable oil (or cooking spray, which has also worked in the past). Pour batter into pan (should be about 3/4 full).

4. Bake until golden brown at top edges and firmly set, approximatley 40 minutes, depending on your oven. Don't be afraid to let it go another 10 minutes if necessary. The bread will still seem moist, but will be somewhat firm to the touch. Remove from oven and let bread cool in pan.

5. Slather with butter and consume like a Neanderthal.

You can also alter the recipe to your liking. To add some zest, add a small can of drained green chiles and some Frank's Red Hot sauce to the batter.

Let me know if this works for you.

This is happening in my oven RIGHT NOW.[/QUOTE]We have lift off.Any special technique to remove from the skillet? Speed flip? Giant spatula?

 

[KGB]

1.5 inch filet mignon

any ideas on temp/time

 

[Dan Gladden's Mustache]

I put bacon in the cast iron skillet and put it in the oven. I used to do 300 or 325 degrees, but now I like 425 better.

How often do you flip?

I don't flip it at all.

Do we have an approximate cooking time for these different cooking temps?This sounds like a good way to go.

I don't ever time it, but at 425 degrees it takes probably around 15 minutes. I just put it in the oven, go play around in the FFA for a bit, and when my sixth sense tells me it should be about done, I go check on it. It's usually right on. If I had to guess, I'd say it's usually around 15 minutes.

Did some bacon from the butcher at 425 for about 15 mins this morning. Perfecto.

 

[Chaka]

I see Lodge is getting all the love on the net and in here but I really wanted to go with an unseasoned pan and make it my own so I just bought a cajun cast iron 10" skillet. I figure iron is still so cheap it's worth trying to season my own. I'm going to go with coconut oil, or maybe lard, I think most vegetable oils are a scam.

This is gonna be fun.

 

[Gordo]

I see Lodge is getting all the love on the net and in here but I really wanted to go with an unseasoned pan and make it my own so I just bought a cajun cast iron 10" skillet. I figure iron is still so cheap it's worth trying to season my own. I'm going to go with coconut oil, or maybe lard, I think most vegetable oils are a scam.

This is gonna be fun.

The quality of the pan really does seem to make a difference.I have 2 Lodge skillets (10.25 & 12") and a Lodge Dutch oven (12"). I also have a set of 3 newer Wagner skillets (6.5", 8", & 10.5"), a Wentzel camp dutch oven (12"), another large off brand dutch oven, as well as a medium sauce pan, and a fajita serving pan.

The Lodge items I bought pre-seasoned, but I did additional seasoning and they came out beautifully.

The Wagner items were not pre-seasoned, and turned out pretty good after I seasoned them.

The Wentzel camp oven I have been working on over the last week, and I am having a hard time getting a nice seasoning layer on it. I got it from a buddy that didn't use it, and I could tell that it was cheaply made just by looking at it.

Had the same problems with my other off-brand dutch oven.

Any cast iron can be seasoned well if done properly and used and cared for properly, but from my experience starting with a quality pre-seasoned piece will save you a lot of headaches.

 

[Chaka]

I see Lodge is getting all the love on the net and in here but I really wanted to go with an unseasoned pan and make it my own so I just bought a cajun cast iron 10" skillet. I figure iron is still so cheap it's worth trying to season my own. I'm going to go with coconut oil, or maybe lard, I think most vegetable oils are a scam.

This is gonna be fun.

The quality of the pan really does seem to make a difference.I have 2 Lodge skillets (10.25 & 12") and a Lodge Dutch oven (12"). I also have a set of 3 newer Wagner skillets (6.5", 8", & 10.5"), a Wentzel camp dutch oven (12"), another large off brand dutch oven, as well as a medium sauce pan, and a fajita serving pan.

The Lodge items I bought pre-seasoned, but I did additional seasoning and they came out beautifully.

The Wagner items were not pre-seasoned, and turned out pretty good after I seasoned them.

The Wentzel camp oven I have been working on over the last week, and I am having a hard time getting a nice seasoning layer on it. I got it from a buddy that didn't use it, and I could tell that it was cheaply made just by looking at it.

Had the same problems with my other off-brand dutch oven.

Any cast iron can be seasoned well if done properly and used and cared for properly, but from my experience starting with a quality pre-seasoned piece will save you a lot of headaches.

I totally agree and this is little more than a $22 experiment, however I could not find out any information on how exactly Lodge seasoned their skillets, all I found was that they use a "proprietary vegetable oil spray system with high temperature gas ovens to season the cookware before it leaves our South Pittsburg foundry." I am sure it's phenomenal, probably better than I will be able to accomplish on my own, but I still want to try. Besides I don't think vegetable oils are as good as we have been told, I would rather try with lard or coconut oil. If it doesn't work out I can invest another $22 and buy a Lodge or a Griswold or a Camp Chef or a Wagner etc.I think it will be fun and I'll get my $22 out of it even if it fails, and far more if it doesn't.

 

[pollardsvision]

I see Lodge is getting all the love on the net and in here but I really wanted to go with an unseasoned pan and make it my own so I just bought a cajun cast iron 10" skillet. I figure iron is still so cheap it's worth trying to season my own. I'm going to go with coconut oil, or maybe lard, I think most vegetable oils are a scam.

This is gonna be fun.

I'm going to have to try that out. I absolutely hate the pre-seasoning on the Lodge skillets. I'm no cast iron expert, but it seems to me that that pre-seasoning coat makes it virtually impossible for a new Lodge to ever one day perform like an Griswold or Wagner. Those things are slick. Lodge's are "knobby and tacky". With enough seasoning, it gets slicker, but it seems much better to actually start with a pan that doesn't already have a layer of crap working against you.It's a shame Lodge doesn't even bother selling non pre-seasoned skillets any more (not that I've been able to find anyway). We must've had an entire generation of lazy grandparents when America's premier (only?) cast iron skillet producer is forced to dumb-down every skillet at the plant just so they don't all end up completely ruined.

 

[pollardsvision]

Aha! Wagner is still around. They were bought out by American Culinary Corporation. No idea where it's made or how the quality compares to earlier in the century, but at least they are selling skillets that aren't pre-seasoned.

http://www.wagnerware.com/ProductDetail.asp?Filter=PL&PCat=1&PLine=4&Prod=94&PSub=38

 

[Gordo]

I see Lodge is getting all the love on the net and in here but I really wanted to go with an unseasoned pan and make it my own so I just bought a cajun cast iron 10" skillet. I figure iron is still so cheap it's worth trying to season my own. I'm going to go with coconut oil, or maybe lard, I think most vegetable oils are a scam.

This is gonna be fun.

I'm going to have to try that out. I absolutely hate the pre-seasoning on the Lodge skillets. I'm no cast iron expert, but it seems to me that that pre-seasoning coat makes it virtually impossible for a new Lodge to ever one day perform like an Griswold or Wagner. Those things are slick. Lodge's are "knobby and tacky". With enough seasoning, it gets slicker, but it seems much better to actually start with a pan that doesn't already have a layer of crap working against you.It's a shame Lodge doesn't even bother selling non pre-seasoned skillets any more (not that I've been able to find anyway). We must've had an entire generation of lazy grandparents when America's premier (only?) cast iron skillet producer is forced to dumb-down every skillet at the plant just so they don't all end up completely ruined.

The old Griswold & Wagner pans are so smooth because they machined (ground smooth) the surface after casting them. They are still the cream of the crop when it comes to cast iron, but I have still been able to get very good results seasoning Lodge myself on top of their factory seasoning. The new Wagner pans are not machined like the old ones, I have 3 of them, and they are very similar to Lodge minus the factory seasoning. strike that, I just looked at your link. They do say polished, and look very promising. Let me know how they turnout, I think I will have to give them a try as well, and see if we can create something that approaches the old Griswold or Wagner pans.They must make polished and unpolished, because my set of 3 skillets from Wagner have definitely not been machined.

 

[Maurile Tremblay]

Mine is the Ikea brand (not sure who the actual manufacturer was). It came preseasoned. Despite my constant reseasoning, it is definitely not smooth enough to, say, cook an omelet in it very well. But it works fine for what I use it for (which is almost everything but eggs). My dutch oven is also Ikea, and it seems to be of much higher quality than the skillet. It was probably also more expensive, but I don't remember.

 

[Chaka]

Aha! Wagner is still around. They were bought out by American Culinary Corporation. No idea where it's made or how the quality compares to earlier in the century, but at least they are selling skillets that aren't pre-seasoned.

http://www.wagnerwar...Prod=94&PSub=38

Excuse my ignorance on this issue but how do you know that is unseasoned? Is it because it is polished? Do polished cast iron skillets require different seasoning techniques?

 

[Chaka]

One question I had forgotten to ask before making my purchase is how do they measure diameter? Is it from the bottom (the actual cooking surface) or the top of the pan?

 

[Gordo]

Aha! Wagner is still around. They were bought out by American Culinary Corporation. No idea where it's made or how the quality compares to earlier in the century, but at least they are selling skillets that aren't pre-seasoned.

http://www.wagnerwar...Prod=94&PSub=38

Excuse my ignorance on this issue but how do you know that is unseasoned? Is it because it is polished? Do polished cast iron skillets require different seasoning techniques?

Because of the color. Raw, unseasoned cast iron is gray or silver in appearance. It only turns black after seasoning. The seasoning process on a polished skillet will be the same, but it may be easier to achieve the desired smooth finish.

 

[Chaka]

Aha! Wagner is still around. They were bought out by American Culinary Corporation. No idea where it's made or how the quality compares to earlier in the century, but at least they are selling skillets that aren't pre-seasoned.

http://www.wagnerwar...Prod=94&PSub=38

Excuse my ignorance on this issue but how do you know that is unseasoned? Is it because it is polished? Do polished cast iron skillets require different seasoning techniques?

Because of the color. Raw, unseasoned cast iron is gray or silver in appearance. It only turns black after seasoning. The seasoning process on a polished skillet will be the same, but it may be easier to achieve the desired smooth finish.

 

[Gordo]

One question I had forgotten to ask before making my purchase is how do they measure diameter? Is it from the bottom (the actual cooking surface) or the top of the pan?

Outside rim to outside rim across the top.

 

[Chaka]

One question I had forgotten to ask before making my purchase is how do they measure diameter? Is it from the bottom (the actual cooking surface) or the top of the pan?

Outside rim to outside rim across the top.

 

[glumpy]

[QUOTE='MC Gusto]Any secret to cornbread in a C-I-S? I intend to make some ham/bean soup or some brunswick stew and want to try my first batch of cornbread in the cast iron skillet. 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Here's a recipe I have made several times with good results:

Ingredients

Eggs - 2

Butter, melted - 3 oz

Whole milk - 2 c

White cheddar cheese - grated - 6 oz

Sour cream - 8 oz

Corn, creamed - 16 oz can

Polenta - 7 oz (aka corn grits)

Flour, AP - 6 oz

Sugar, granulated - 1 1/3 oz

Salt - 1/2 tsp

Baking powder - 1/2 tsp

Baking soda - 1/2 tsp

Method

1. Mix first six ingredients together in large bowl.

2. Add remaining ingredients. Whisk until well combined. (I found out that I get a more consistent batter by adding the dry ingredients one at a time, whisking briefly after each one).

3. Preheat oven to 350°F. Heat 12" diameter cast iron skillet in oven until hot, approximatley 15 minutes (DO NOT skimp on this step). When hot, oil pan with vegetable oil (or cooking spray, which has also worked in the past). Pour batter into pan (should be about 3/4 full).

4. Bake until golden brown at top edges and firmly set, approximatley 40 minutes, depending on your oven. Don't be afraid to let it go another 10 minutes if necessary. The bread will still seem moist, but will be somewhat firm to the touch. Remove from oven and let bread cool in pan.

5. Slather with butter and consume like a Neanderthal.

You can also alter the recipe to your liking. To add some zest, add a small can of drained green chiles and some Frank's Red Hot sauce to the batter.

Let me know if this works for you.

This is happening in my oven RIGHT NOW.

We have lift off.Any special technique to remove from the skillet? Speed flip? Giant spatula?

[/QUOTE]

 

[crush304]

is it worth reseasoning preseasoned lodge cast iron?

can i apply seasoning over the existing coat?

 

[Gordo]

is it worth reseasoning preseasoned lodge cast iron?can i apply seasoning over the existing coat?

yesyes

 

[Mr. Yuk]

Any tricks to reducing the amount of smoke for cast iron steaks? I tried the Alton Brown cast iron recipe for some NY Strips and they were outstanding, but the whole kitchen was in a smoky fog for the rest of the night.

What kind of oil did you use? You want to use an oil with a high smoke point. I used grapeseed oil tonight and it worked pretty well.

 

[aardball44]

Another effective use for your cast iron skillet...

 

[Chaka]

I see Lodge is getting all the love on the net and in here but I really wanted to go with an unseasoned pan and make it my own so I just bought a cajun cast iron 10" skillet. I figure iron is still so cheap it's worth trying to season my own. I'm going to go with coconut oil, or maybe lard, I think most vegetable oils are a scam.

This is gonna be fun.

It arrived a couple days ago and I seasoned it five times with coconut oil (very thin coat of oil, put it in the oven and heated to 500 degrees for 30 minutes).Cooked my omelet in it this morning, again with coconut oil at low temp and it worked beautifully. Didn't stick even a little bit and cooked perfectly.

I have a question about cleaning: Nothing stuck to the pan (not even a little bit) and I used the same type of oil I seasoned it with. Do I really need to clean it? I just wiped the oil out with a paper towel. Coconut oil is ridiculously stable so I am not worried about it getting rancid at room temp. Do I need to do more than that in this situation?

 

[TexanFan02]

I see Lodge is getting all the love on the net and in here but I really wanted to go with an unseasoned pan and make it my own so I just bought a cajun cast iron 10" skillet. I figure iron is still so cheap it's worth trying to season my own. I'm going to go with coconut oil, or maybe lard, I think most vegetable oils are a scam.

This is gonna be fun.

It arrived a couple days ago and I seasoned it five times with coconut oil (very thin coat of oil, put it in the oven and heated to 500 degrees for 30 minutes).Cooked my omelet in it this morning, again with coconut oil at low temp and it worked beautifully. Didn't stick even a little bit and cooked perfectly.

I have a question about cleaning: Nothing stuck to the pan (not even a little bit) and I used the same type of oil I seasoned it with. Do I really need to clean it? I just wiped the oil out with a paper towel. Coconut oil is ridiculously stable so I am not worried about it getting rancid at room temp. Do I need to do more than that in this situation?

I think that's actually what you're supposed to do, so should be fine.

 

[Chaka]

Another effective use for your cast iron skillet...

Ugh. Reminds me the dream I had last night. The details are too fuzzy but I ended up in a life-or-death, hand-to-hand fight (it was outside on dirt, near a tree, there was a barn so I am pretty sure it was on a farm) and I remember grabbing a rock, perfectly sized to my hand, and going to town on this guys skull. I vividly remember the sound and feel as his skull cracked as the rock punctured his occipital bone.

 

[Chaka]

I see Lodge is getting all the love on the net and in here but I really wanted to go with an unseasoned pan and make it my own so I just bought a cajun cast iron 10" skillet. I figure iron is still so cheap it's worth trying to season my own. I'm going to go with coconut oil, or maybe lard, I think most vegetable oils are a scam.

This is gonna be fun.

It arrived a couple days ago and I seasoned it five times with coconut oil (very thin coat of oil, put it in the oven and heated to 500 degrees for 30 minutes).Cooked my omelet in it this morning, again with coconut oil at low temp and it worked beautifully. Didn't stick even a little bit and cooked perfectly.

I have a question about cleaning: Nothing stuck to the pan (not even a little bit) and I used the same type of oil I seasoned it with. Do I really need to clean it? I just wiped the oil out with a paper towel. Coconut oil is ridiculously stable so I am not worried about it getting rancid at room temp. Do I need to do more than that in this situation?

I think that's actually what you're supposed to do, so should be fine.

That's what I thought. It just didn't make sense for me to do anything else.

 

[pollardsvision]

Finally got a dutch oven to go along with the skillets. Turned out some nice jambalaya in it and I'm excited to see what else this puppy can do.

I don't mind the Lodge pre-seasoning as much as I used to. My skillet has so many layers of lard on it by now that the pre-seasoning layer is buried and/or long gone. Cooking on it all the time is starting to smooth out the previously knobby interior a bit. So, I went with the Lodge 5 qt. for the dutch oven.

Thought about going with the enameled stuff, but I figured I'd stick with the basics for my first dutch oven.

 

[pollardsvision]

I see Lodge is getting all the love on the net and in here but I really wanted to go with an unseasoned pan and make it my own so I just bought a cajun cast iron 10" skillet. I figure iron is still so cheap it's worth trying to season my own. I'm going to go with coconut oil, or maybe lard, I think most vegetable oils are a scam.

This is gonna be fun.

It arrived a couple days ago and I seasoned it five times with coconut oil (very thin coat of oil, put it in the oven and heated to 500 degrees for 30 minutes).Cooked my omelet in it this morning, again with coconut oil at low temp and it worked beautifully. Didn't stick even a little bit and cooked perfectly.

I have a question about cleaning: Nothing stuck to the pan (not even a little bit) and I used the same type of oil I seasoned it with. Do I really need to clean it? I just wiped the oil out with a paper towel. Coconut oil is ridiculously stable so I am not worried about it getting rancid at room temp. Do I need to do more than that in this situation?

Is that pan still performing well?I keep meaning to get an unseasoned pan, but just haven't gotten around to it yet.

 

[Spike]

Any tricks to reducing the amount of smoke for cast iron steaks? I tried the Alton Brown cast iron recipe for some NY Strips and they were outstanding, but the whole kitchen was in a smoky fog for the rest of the night.

What kind of oil did you use? You want to use an oil with a high smoke point. I used grapeseed oil tonight and it worked pretty well.

I used Safflower (about the highest smoke point) and set off every smoke alarm in our house.

 

[TobiasFunke]

Any tricks to reducing the amount of smoke for cast iron steaks? I tried the Alton Brown cast iron recipe for some NY Strips and they were outstanding, but the whole kitchen was in a smoky fog for the rest of the night.

What kind of oil did you use? You want to use an oil with a high smoke point. I used grapeseed oil tonight and it worked pretty well.

I used Safflower (about the highest smoke point) and set off every smoke alarm in our house.

It's unavoidable. I think Alton Brown says as much in the Good Eats episode. You just gotta turn on some fans and throw open some windows beforehand and accept it. Well worth it. I pair 'em with some Upstate NY salt potatoes every month or so, outstanding meal every time..

 

[Chaka]

I see Lodge is getting all the love on the net and in here but I really wanted to go with an unseasoned pan and make it my own so I just bought a cajun cast iron 10" skillet. I figure iron is still so cheap it's worth trying to season my own. I'm going to go with coconut oil, or maybe lard, I think most vegetable oils are a scam.

This is gonna be fun.

It arrived a couple days ago and I seasoned it five times with coconut oil (very thin coat of oil, put it in the oven and heated to 500 degrees for 30 minutes).Cooked my omelet in it this morning, again with coconut oil at low temp and it worked beautifully. Didn't stick even a little bit and cooked perfectly.

I have a question about cleaning: Nothing stuck to the pan (not even a little bit) and I used the same type of oil I seasoned it with. Do I really need to clean it? I just wiped the oil out with a paper towel. Coconut oil is ridiculously stable so I am not worried about it getting rancid at room temp. Do I need to do more than that in this situation?

Is that pan still performing well?I keep meaning to get an unseasoned pan, but just haven't gotten around to it yet.

Yes it is but I ended up scouring and reseasoning it, this time with beef tallow (rendered beef fat). One of the thing that has been a difficult adjustment for me with the cast iron is setting the stove for much lower temps than I am used to. I fried up a couple items at a far too high temp in this skillet and got some charred bits really stuck to the pan. I ended up scouring and reseasoning it. I think the tallow seasoning is working better than the coconut (they're both very stable but tallow has a much higher smoke point ~350 vs. ~420 degrees).I am loving my skillet but I am continually amazed at how little flame needs to be applied to cast iron to get it to a good cooking temp.

 

[Chaka]

Any tricks to reducing the amount of smoke for cast iron steaks? I tried the Alton Brown cast iron recipe for some NY Strips and they were outstanding, but the whole kitchen was in a smoky fog for the rest of the night.

What kind of oil did you use? You want to use an oil with a high smoke point. I used grapeseed oil tonight and it worked pretty well.

I used Safflower (about the highest smoke point) and set off every smoke alarm in our house.

It depends on what kind of safflower oil you used (refined or unrefined). I also find that a lot of data about oil smoke points seems to be inconsistent. I think a certain amount of smoke is unavoidable but I prefer using more heavily saturated fats for frying up a steak (beef tallow is very nice for this, smoke point @ 420...allegedly).FTR here is what Mark Sisson has to say about safflower oil (that link is a great primer on oils):

Like sunflower seed oil but worse, the oil derived from the “******* saffron” is about 75% Omega-6 PUFAs with not a speck of Omega-3 in sight. It’s also lower in MUFAs and SFAs. What’s not to dislike?

14% MUFA

75% PUFA

6% SFA

 

[-jb-]

Let's talk rust. I have a Lodge, and the cooking surface is great. Nice, shiny, black. But the rest of it has a very thin layer of rust. I've scrubbed with kosher salt. I've scrubbed with a brillo pad. No love. Ideas?

 

[wikkidpissah]

dont know if its been brought up in this thread, but there is no better panini machine than two heated skillets. put sammich in one, press with the bottom of the other, couple minutes back in the oven, yum.

 

[pollardsvision]

Let's talk rust. I have a Lodge, and the cooking surface is great. Nice, shiny, black. But the rest of it has a very thin layer of rust. I've scrubbed with kosher salt. I've scrubbed with a brillo pad. No love. Ideas?

I've never done it, but you might look into the self cleaning oven method. I've heard that can be a good option clean a really cruddy pan.

 

[saintsfan1977]

Let's talk rust. I have a Lodge, and the cooking surface is great. Nice, shiny, black. But the rest of it has a very thin layer of rust. I've scrubbed with kosher salt. I've scrubbed with a brillo pad. No love. Ideas?

Heat it up and scrub with kosher salt and a little water to make a paste and scrub it. It shouldn't be hard to take the rust out with a brillo pad though. If its real bad bring it somewhere and have them sand blast it. It will look brand new and then can be seasoned. I use either lard or Crisco to season them. Dont use vegetable oil. It just makes it sticky and doesnt seep into the pores as good. I dont season them in the house because the smoke is too strong. I use the BBQ pit. Get that pan hot, nearly red hot and put the lard or Crisco in it and rub the outside down too. I leave it in the pit until the coals go out. Once its cool wash it with water to get the soot off and repeat this process 2-3 times. Water will bead off of it.

 

[Adebisi]

I use either lard or Crisco to season them. Dont use vegetable oil. It just makes it sticky and doesnt seep into the pores as good.

I dont season them in the house because the smoke is too strong. I use the BBQ pit. Get that pan hot, nearly red hot and put the lard or Crisco in it and rub the outside down too. I leave it in the pit until the coals go out. Once its cool wash it with water to get the soot off and repeat this process 2-3 times. Water will bead off of it.

Thanks I've never been able to get mine seasoned properly, and your post has me wondering if it's because I've always tried to use vegetable oil (and it does always come out sticky). I'll give your method a shot - it just sounds like it would work much better.

What do you do to clean it? Wait for it to cool off, then just scrub the bejesus out of it with water (no soap)?

 

[Spike]

Let's talk rust. I have a Lodge, and the cooking surface is great. Nice, shiny, black. But the rest of it has a very thin layer of rust. I've scrubbed with kosher salt. I've scrubbed with a brillo pad. No love. Ideas?

I've never done it, but you might look into the self cleaning oven method. I've heard that can be a good option clean a really cruddy pan.

Then you essentially have a new, unseasoned, CAS.