What should a cast iron pan surface feel like ....

I have two small cast iron frying pans ( skillets? ). I've had them for 5 years, and they have gradually become decently well seasoned with a nice " non stick " surface. I read up on how to tae care of them and I think I do all the correct things : I dont use harsh detergent, I dont cook acidic foods in them or leave food in the pan, I dry right after washing, I grease or oil them and put papertowels on them to take up any excess grease and ward against moisture.

But just recently I have noticed some rough/sticky patches under my touch when I clean. There seems to be a tacky almost jellified substance that when I rub with my fingers comes off in small globules. It just doesn't feel right and its causing some intermittent probs when cooking ie sticking. What am I doing wrong ? If anything ? Do I need to scrub em down and re-season from scratch to get my nice smooth unsticketty surface again ?

I would start by cleaning them really well. I have a favorite pan that is at least 35 years old. I clean it after each time. I can even soak it now. I use Joy and sometimes even a cleanser. (Bartender's Friend). I often cook spaghetti sauce in it. It has fried more chickens than you can shake a stick at. My secret is to dry it over my gas stove top. It is really dry. I put it away after it is cool, but it is clean. I shake my head when I hear people who oil them and put them away that way. If you use something too strong to clean it with, (a scratchy metallic pad), you may end up having to re-season it. I use my pan so much that in the summer, I put foil under it and put it on the grill and fry chicken in it. It keeps the heat out of the kitchen. It does get greasy on the bottom anyway, and need special cleaning with Bartender's Friend, but it is worth it. Good Luck.

MissKitty,

I believe I read in Alton Brown's book "Gear" that you should reseason your cast iron once a year. Depending on how much you use it this takes off the old finish and replaces it with a new one. He also states that you should never use soap on cast iron once it has been seasoned.

BB

MissKitty,

With all due respect to Alton Brown. You can wash your skillet with hot soapy water. Just do as suggested above and immediately heat the skillet to remove all moisture. You dont have to regrease each time. that is what you are seeing, the globules are little balls of hardened grease. When the pan starts to loose it's black sheen, then you should lightly spray it will veg. oil and put it in a warm place.

I inherited skillets from my grandmother that have over 60 years of daily use on them. I wash them each and every time I use them.

I bought a huge, cast-iron skillet at a yard sale for twenty-five cents!! I got is so cheap because there was a build-up of burned grease, etc. about 1/4" thick on the outside, underside and on part of the inside. I burned it off. I have a wood-insert in a fireplace so before I went to bed I set the skillet directly on the red coals and closed the doors to the insert. The next morning the fire was out and the skillet was free of all the build-up. I washed it with Joy and seasoned it. Now it's in perfect condition.

I had read that chuckwagon cooks cleaned their iron pots and pans in the campfire when they were on a long trail and decided to adopt it.

I have 13 cast iron skillets, the oldest dating from the 1830's and the youngest a mere child of the 1920's. Like Scarlett, I burn my outside build up over a fire. When I get the globby places , I fill the pan with water and add some baking soda, less for some surface problems and more for some deep rooted, and boil for 20 mins. I dump the water and whilst the skillet is still warm wipe out thoroughly. This method usually leaves it in a "seasoned state" without the charred encrusted bits and the old greasy smell and no soapy taste.

MissKitty,

Maybe this will help. http://www.lodgemfg.com/useandcare.asp#natural.

BB

Question for you all, I have a couple of nice lodge skillets. They are the pre-seasoned version they have out now and I am working my way nicely to a truly seasoned pan with daily use.

After cleaning and drying, i store mine in the oven fue to lack of cabinet space. I have an electric oven. Is this acceptable? The pans are still looking good, but I am just wondering if this is a detrimental thing.

Thanks

I remember one time my parents went camping, and my mother decided to soak her skillet in hot, soapy water for quite some time to try and clean it.. then she made spaghetti in it.. very soapy spaghetti... she tossed it into the woods and even the bears wouldn't touch it. Personally I like Calphalon.. you can soak it, scour it, generally abuse it and you can't hurt the darn thing. Not nearly as temperamental as cast iron.

Thanks for all the replies folks, keep em coming !

I use a sponge or cloth on the pans, and very occasionally a small piece of scotchbrite on very stubborn places, a little mildly soapy water made with actual soap flakes and never detergent, and I do dry them out on the stove for a few minutes after washing. Sadly right now I have no access to the delights of woodfires, so no cleaning them in the fire ! redtressed, I like the baking soda idea, I think I'll give that a try for the inside of the pans. I do like to try and use as natural a cleaning product as I can.

Renfrew, I store mine in a gas oven all the time. It helps the pans by always being in a warm dry area. Burning the pans periodically is a good idea, as stated above. I use mine over a propane turkey fryer for blackening.

quote:

Originally posted by Jennifer_4

I remember one time my parents went camping, and my mother decided to soak her skillet in hot, soapy water for quite some time to try and clean it.. then she made spaghetti in it.. very soapy spaghetti... she tossed it into the woods and even the bears wouldn't touch it. Personally I like Calphalon.. you can soak it, scour it, generally abuse it and you can't hurt the darn thing. Not nearly as temperamental as cast iron.

Most of my pans are Calphalon and I wouldn't dream of scouring it with anything but those plastic scourers. But there are some things for which no aluminum can equal cast iron. That's because cast iron retains heat whereas aluminum diffuses it. That makes aluminum superior for sauces and other delicate foods, but for frying cast iron is best. In fact, if you have an electric stove, I think stir-frying is darned near impossible in anything but a cast iron wok (and those aren't easy to find--Lodge used to make one but I don't think they do any longer, Staub still does and so does Le Creuset. Mine was only $11--from the Macy's "Basics" line but they don't have them any more either).

Incidentally, I am with those who do not use soap on cast iron or Calphalon. Redtressed offers the most sanitary solution, but I just soak my pans for a short time to loosen whatever's in them, then scour them with a plastic scour pad and rinse repeatedly in steaming hot water; then dry. In other places, not too many Chinese places have open kitchens, but here a lot of them do and I started doing it this way after watching how the Chinese chefs cleaned their carbon steel woks between dishes--mostly just repeated hot water rinses over the flame and scrubbing with a bamboo scourer.

quote:

Originally posted by renfrew

Question for you all, I have a couple of nice lodge skillets. They are the pre-seasoned version they have out now and I am working my way nicely to a truly seasoned pan with daily use.

After cleaning and drying, i store mine in the oven fue to lack of cabinet space. I have an electric oven. Is this acceptable? The pans are still looking good, but I am just wondering if this is a detrimental thing.

Thanks

Why should it be detrimental? I have a very large roasting pan that I too store in the oven because it won't fit into any of my cabinets. The only problem is to avoid putting them away wet (they'll rust). Actually storing them in the oven provides a solution to that--just turn the oven on at a fairly low temp (275? 300?) for a few minutes after you've dried them and put them away.

No idea why it would. But logical things in theory, dont always work in practice so while we were on the subject I thought I would ask.

My mother cleans her cast iron with salt. You could even use sea salt if you wanted to. It is another natural alternative to baking soda, basically the same concept. When she is ready to clean the pan, she wipes it out with paper towels to get the big particles out and then puts a good amount of salt in the pan and wipes it down real good. The salt acts as a scouring agent so to speak. She then stores hers in the oven as well. Hope this helps!

quote:

Originally posted by BT

quote:

Originally posted by Jennifer_4

I remember one time my parents went camping, and my mother decided to soak her skillet in hot, soapy water for quite some time to try and clean it.. then she made spaghetti in it.. very soapy spaghetti... she tossed it into the woods and even the bears wouldn't touch it. Personally I like Calphalon.. you can soak it, scour it, generally abuse it and you can't hurt the darn thing. Not nearly as temperamental as cast iron.

Most of my pans are Calphalon and I wouldn't dream of scouring it with anything but those plastic scourers. But there are some things for which no aluminum can equal cast iron. That's because cast iron retains heat whereas aluminum diffuses it. That makes aluminum superior for sauces and other delicate foods, but for frying cast iron is best. In fact, if you have an electric stove, I think stir-frying is darned near impossible in anything but a cast iron wok (and those aren't easy to find--Lodge used to make one but I don't think they do any longer, Staub still does and so does Le Creuset. Mine was only $11--from the Macy's "Basics" line but they don't have them any more either).

Incidentally, I am with those who do not use soap on cast iron or Calphalon. Redtressed offers the most sanitary solution, but I just soak my pans for a short time to loosen whatever's in them, then scour them with a plastic scour pad and rinse repeatedly in steaming hot water; then dry. In other places, not too many Chinese places have open kitchens, but here a lot of them do and I started doing it this way after watching how the Chinese chefs cleaned their carbon steel woks between dishes--mostly just repeated hot water rinses over the flame and scrubbing with a bamboo scourer.

I was wary of using soap or abrasives with my Calphalon, until we had a seminar at work (at the time I was working at Linens n Things), from the manufacturer who reassured me about the soap, soaking, and scrubbing issues.. the only thing they don't recommend it putting it in the dishwasher, at that point the warranty is voided.

quote:

Originally posted by Jennifer_4

I was wary of using soap or abrasives with my Calphalon, until we had a seminar at work (at the time I was working at Linens n Things), from the manufacturer who reassured me about the soap, soaking, and scrubbing issues.. the only thing they don't recommend it putting it in the dishwasher, at that point the warranty is voided.

Many of my Calphalon pans are over 20 years old and were part of their original "commercial" line. I have used them to the point where the dark "anodized" surface is worn off inside (and a metal utensil never touched them-just an awful lot of wooden or plastic spoons and whisks). Frankly, they seem to cook as well as they ever did (and I think the "guage" or thickness of the aluminum on the old pans is superior to what they are selling today), but to minimize the wear I "baby" them as I described.

I use kosher salt as a scouring agent on my cast iron pans, also...