Anyone Ever Polished a Cast Iron Skillett??

[oldblinddog]

If the Lodge cast iron seems a little crude for anyone, American Culinary sells some really nice Wagner. Made in USA.

http://www.wagnerware.com/PLineCat.a...ter=PL&PLine=4

Wagner has been out of business for years. For new stuff, if it isn't Lodge it is from China.

For foods that are acidic like tomatoes, I use 18/10 stainless steel.

[rondog]

Interesting thread, glad I found it. I'm not a cast iron user, but I've got a hankerin' to try. I have two of my mom's old skillets, but they're very small, not big enough for any real cooking. But they're as smooth as a baby's butt.

I've looked at new skillets & such, and they look rough enough to rasp wood with. So I'm also wondering about smoothing down some with a DA sander or similar. Not polishing smooth, just knocking down the really aggressive, sharp peaks.

Reading this, it seems folks are divided - some say smooth them, some say don't. I won't use these for lots of cooking, I don't DO lots of cooking. It'll just get casual, occaisional use.

So, smooth up a new skillet or dutch oven just a bit and then season it? Or leave it rough and just season it?

FWIW, I'm not going to buy anything high dollar, a $20 cheapo from WalMart will do for no more than I'll use it.

[jim147]

I have a lot of old pans. The real old ones we used for camping back when I was a kid, not sure how long ago but dad can't remember what day it is anymore. We washed them in the river with the river rock and it cleaned and smoothed them in one step.

i also use enameled cast for high acid food. It just works out better.

I have a couple newer newer cast pieces that are rough and I like to put lard in them and sit them on the wood stove all day several times a year to help with the seasoning.

[Shiloh]

I did take 80 grit paper to mine followed by 180.
Did it by hand for about 15 minutes. Took the pointy high spot down and leveled the surfac a bit.
The pores are filling up nicely now.

I have seasoned it several times on the charcoal smoker. Soot and polymerized grease really gave it a head start.
I can do scrambled eggs in it now without sticking. I used coconut oil and bacon grease for seasoning. Stuck food was removed with kosher salt on a slightly damp sponge. No soap.

SHiloh

[FredBuddy]

I got a pot a long time ago (not a frying pan) and the old folks said first put potato peels in and fill it with water then boil it for a while. It seemed to give it a finish like bluing a rifle barrel. Then I made a swab and put lard in it and cooked that for several hours while moving (basting) the inside. It makes a pretty good batch of ham & beans or fried fish and potatoes. All this over a wood fire, outside, hanging from my tripod.

Hmmmm. Best get that pot out and get busy, company coming !

[Sur-shot]

9/10 of the time if you want the last word on anything old, how to, go to Mother Earth News and look it up. A good bit of the stuff I read here about curing cast iron and caring for cast, made no sense to me, the cast in my family right now goes back to the turn of the century, the Georgia 19th century that is..... My wife says she is going to be buried with it. It is a treasure. My grandmother died at 96 in 2001, her grandmother, whom died at 100, gave the cast to her, my grandmother gave the cast to my mother, then just before my mother died she gave it to my wife.

http://www.motherearthnews.com/real-...e-zmaz99djzgoe

Make sure you read the fast cure process using an outdoor hardwood fire, it is the only true authentic way southern families cured cast iron pots and pans in the country and what I saw all my young life growing up in the country. My family never used a stove indoors for curing any cast iron and they did use rendered hog lard and bacon grease to cure it and to cook in it. It is smooth as glass.
Ed

[charlie3tuna]

I took a basic machine shop class at the local trade school. The old (experienced) machinist told us to never breathe the fine particles from dry sanding any iron. When I asked what would happen, he asked if I knew what black lung disease was. And here I thought only coal miners got it....charlie

[randyrat]

Fry a pound of bacon and let it cool while you enjoy the bacon. Save the grease and wipe down with a paper towel. repeat. Now it is almost their. The more you fry in it the better cast iron gets. I NEVER use soap, If wiping with a paper towel will not get it clean just fill with water and bring to a boil then wipe down with a paper towel.

This seems to be the best method of cleaning; Boil or bring water to almost boil and scrap if needed, cool and wipe out with a cloth or paper, I never use soap.
I looked at the new ones also and am thinking about trying one just to see if I can season it like the old pans I have, they sure are rough looking.

[Jack Stanley]

My used to clean up nasty looking cast iron with stone of about 200 grit . It was a lot of work but when done it looked a lot like a Griswold finish .

Jack

[rondog]

I took a basic machine shop class at the local trade school. The old (experienced) machinist told us to never breathe the fine particles from dry sanding any iron. When I asked what would happen, he asked if I knew what black lung disease was. And here I thought only coal miners got it....charlie

Jeeze, no telling how many pounds of cast iron dust I inhaled when I was a machinist in the 70's & 80's. Didn't hurt me none.....

[Kawgomoo]

Just treat it like any other grey cast iron and away you go. Sand it with DA and work your way up from 80 grit. Once you get to 600 it'll start taking on that polished sheen........

[Shiloh]

I can do scrambles eggs without sticking. Meat still leaves a crust, but comes clean with kosher salt rubbed with a moistened sponge.

Shiloh

[spruce53]

I have seasoned cast iron with this method and found it to work good. It's from the Wagner & Griswold collectors group.

Seasoning Cast Iron

You know we all have our own ways and methods to season, but the method below has been used by many collectors and cooks alike and it appears to be the BEST for seasoning.

Take the extra time to actually season in the oven as makes a world of difference in the end result.

Once a piece is fully cleaned and dried put it in the oven "naked"; no oil of any kind and heat it to 450°F. Leave it in long enough to just reach that temperature. Be careful and remove the piece from the oven and let it cool to where you can just handle it. This step works great for slightly darkening the peice and giving it a uniform appearance. No one likes a spotted or zebra stripped piece. Use Crisco shortening only and use a cotton rag (t-shirt) to apply a thin/very light coat on the entire piece. If there are tight nooks and crannies to fill in, use a Q-tip.

Once completely and lightly coated (note: we stress a LIGHT coat), put it back in the oven at 400°F for 30 (use a timer) minutes and at that point turn off the oven and leave it in the oven till it cools on it's own.

When you remove the piece it will have a nice dark brown uniform pantina that shines brightly.

You can repeat with one or more coats of Crisco, if you like, but you'll be happy none the less.

[DerekP Houston]

Yep...I tried a lodge once....now I have a collection of antique griswolds, wagners, and a piquaware skillet. Mirror smooth on the inside compared to the lodge and rarely does anything stick. They just aren't made like that any more, to me it was worth the extra price tag. My lodge grill pan and skillet are with the camping gear and they get used for that.

Flaxseed oil or crisco have given me the best coatings.

[Shopdog]

The only Lodge here is one of those rectangle stove top griddles',and we only use the ribbed side.Not a Lodge fan but have to say,this griddle has really come in nicely.

To begin with,I do 90% of the cooking in our house.Even have a cpl years of culinary schooling.There's a graduated stack of C.I. skillets next to the range.Some have been in our family over 100 years.A mix of "labels" that honestly means nada to me.The only thing that matters to me is whether or not,can you see your reflection in the business side of the pan?It needs to be slick as glass.The new Lodges are just frustrating.Probably fixable?

I'll keep the care and feeding to my self 'cause it goes against everything you've ever heard and would get burned at the stake as a heretic for even considering.Ya'll have a great day.SD

[DougGuy]

Once a piece is fully cleaned and dried put it in the oven "naked"; no oil of any kind and heat it to 450°F. Leave it in long enough to just reach that temperature. Be careful and remove the piece from the oven and let it cool to where you can just handle it.

There is absolutely no need to heat and then cool a skillet before seasoning.

A "naked" pan, if it's REALLY naked, as in fresh from an e-tank, will rust just from the humidity in the air before you get it warm. If you stick a "naked" pan at room temperature in a warm oven, it will immediately flash rust from the condensation that forms instantly when you put a cooler object in a higher temperature air.

What you want to do and this is my method, it kills flash rust before it has a chance to form. Wash the "naked" iron in hot soapy water, use a cold rinse. Preheat the oven to 450F. Have a burner on high on the stove. Immediately after turning off the cold rinse, dry the iron all over as fast as you can and set it on or over the hot burner, IMMEDIATELY wipe on Crisco, spread it as fast as you can to coat the whole pan. This kills the chance of flash rusting. Don't worry about how thick it goes on, worry about 100% coverage in the shortest amount of time possible.

DON'T take the time to dry the pan all the way, the water that's left on it will evaporate through the crisco just fine. The time you take trying to dry all the moisture off the pan will let it flash rust. Just wipe it down and slather the Crisco on it and start warming it over the hot burner.

Now wipe as much of it off as you can while the pan warms up. As it warms keep wiping, if you leave enough Crisco or lard or oil on the metal to see it shine? It will "puddle" when it cooks and leave a mottled appearance. Put the pan in the hot oven and leave it for about 2-3 minutes, remove it and wipe it down again because you can get more oil off after it is hot. Let this cook at 450F for 45mins or so, take the pan out using oven mitts or welding gloves, and wipe it again with whatever seasoning fat you are using, soaked into a Scott blue shop towel, these are lint free. Cotton is the worst thing you can use for seasoning because lint will get stuck to the pan and it will get cooked into the seasoning. Repeat 5-6 cycles then leave iron in the oven and turn it off, allow to cool.

[texasnative46]

To All,

Fwiw, I'm "the current custodian of" my G-G-G- Aunt Leticia's cast iron skillets/pots that came to TX by ox-cart long ago. - My ancestor's cast iron cookware has NEVER "seen soap" in over 150 years & nothing sticks to it, either.
(Upon my passing, my niece Tara gets to preserve our family cast iron treasures for another lifetime.)

IF you want excellent cast iron, HAUNT the Salvation Army, Goodwill stores & garage sales for OLD cast iron. = I've found any number of American-made pieces for <5.00 in those places.
(Btw, my 18" "heavy-gauge steel" commercial-grade wok with lid was 5.99 plus tax at a VA Salvation Army store about 5 years ago. - TREASURES are out there, if you look about for them.)

You may also want to check the stores that cater to the Latino population. = I'm currently looking for a "commercial weight" COMAL of at least 14" diameter, that was cast in Mexico.
When I find a good one, it will get washed ONCE with boiling water/soap, put into the fireplace for the day, followed by sanding/polishing to smooth it down & then it will be thoroughly seasoned.

just my OPINIONS, tex

[DerekP Houston]

Dougguy thats pretty much how I treat my pans after every use. I don't use the soapy water but instead kosher salt and a scrubber. Straight on to a burner to dry then a light oiling to maintain the coating. Has yet to fail me and I cook almost everything in cast iron. I just got tired of replacing "non stick" skillets every year and these will last for decades.

Nice tip on the blue shop towels! Will have to try that next time.

[fivefang]

Shiloh, the Lodge cast Iron skillets are pre seasoned, however not paying attention to what the wrapper said I polished my 10"using a3.1/2" side grinder with a sanding disc then with a Scotch Brite disc, my 12" I used as off the shelf, Fivefang

[fivefang]

Chargar Right on! Fvefang