Cast iron pan leason

[DougGuy]

I have been getting pans off ebay that are fully gloss black shiny smooth inside. Like you said, the real deal seasoning. That comes with years of cooking in it. That kind of coating isn't something we can rub on and heat in the oven and it's done. Frying and cooking greasy foods at high temps build that black seasoning.

For collectors, they want to see the metal. They like them cleaned and oiled. Lots of sellers on ebay claim their pan is cleaned and "seasoned" when in fact it is only cleaned and OILED. Fortunately for us who buy them to cook in, a seasoned and black skillet with years and years of use on it won't fetch collector prices and can usually be bought cheaper. I would pay extra for a pan that is already shiny black inside as opposed to how clean it is.

[44man]

Even brand new cast iron cookware can be found pretty cheap. Most times cheaper then used. Value is in seasoning, never bare metal. Rust worst but you can fix it.
My huge Wagner skillet has seasoning instructions stamped in the bottom. Not enough but most of it has the black, shiny coating after years. It is a joy to use. The lid is something else with points to drip moisture back in. The lid is as heavy as the skillet. You know I do not know where I got it from. Much was from my mother but this one might have been from my grandmother. My mother or Carol never knew cast but Carol is learning with paper towels to wipe out, Hot water rinse. I have to wonder if cold water is better.

[MaryB]

My carbon steel wok has that non-stick carbon layer. Nothing sticks in it anymore but it took a year to get it that way. Now a hot water rinse, swipe with a paper towel, toss i ton the burner to dry it and hang it on the hook for the next use. My smaller cast iron skillet is close to that, my 8 inch needs more use before it will be as non-stick.

[rondog]

Question - is this desired seasoning on the inside of the pans, the outside/bottom, both, or all over? Kinda confused about the whole thing.....

[DerekP Houston]

Question - is this desired seasoning on the inside of the pans, the outside/bottom, both, or all over? Kinda confused about the whole thing.....

All over! On the outside it will prevent rust spots/metal pitting and inside will provide you the nice non-slick cooking surface. I put ~4-5 coats on after i've cleaned it to bare metal to prevent rusting all over. After that I just cook with it like normal and the seasoning builds up over time. Kosher salt and a rag work great for scrubbing out tough spots, then just rinse, dry, and lightly oil it.

[44man]

Yes, oil on the outside is good. A real good seasoning is a once in a lifetime thing. But once you have it, there is nothing better.

[DougGuy]

I recently got two pans from ebay that I mentioned in an earlier post in this thread, here is a pic of them. The one on the right I saw 6 knife marks in it, and I KNEW it was a cornbread pan. The knife marks are only in the seasoning, the digital cam makes it look a lot worse than it is. Both these are shiny black, any doo doos you see in there is b/c of the camera..

[44man]

Nothing but shear beauty. To think of the wonderful goodies to come out just makes me hungry.

[country gent]

You can start the seasoning process of cast iron wityh oil lard shortening and heat in an oven or grill by heating to 400-500* and letting slowly cool down this pulls the oils into the pores of the cast iron makeing them almost as good as no stick pans from the start. You can do this 2-3 times and gain a little each time. I have cast iron pans and dutch oven here that were my grandmothers and have been used for 100+ years. Seasoning isnt an overnight quickly done thing. It takes years to get a good seasoning on cast iron and it takes use to acomplish this seasoning. I can remeber Mom occasssionally "burning" bacon grease in the cast iron to help to reseason it. To start out I pput a heavy coat of crisco ( 1/4"-3/8" thick) all alound the pan and heat to smoking hot and slow cool several times redistributing the crisco each time before reheating. Then wipe out and lightly salt. Fry bacon chicken for awhile to work more in. wipe with water and dry lightly salt. After several years of cooking it will be truly seasoned and nothing sticks. After 100 years it impervious to use.

[Virginian]

There's a lot of really good info in this thread on iron pans. I had no idea.

[rondog]

There's a lot of really good info in this thread on iron pans. I had no idea.

No kidding. I remember using mom's cast iron skillets lots of times when I was a kid, but stuff would ALWAYS stick and burn, so I didn't like them much. But I always scrubbed them with Brillo pads too, I had no idea about "seasoning". Mom never told me not to, which is surprising because she was certainly from a generation that should have been all about cooking with cast iron. She came from a big Missouri farm family, probably grew up with a wood stove. She also went to some cooking school in the 30's I believe.

I have her two small skillets, but I didn't take the bigger ones, can't remember why not. After non-stick stuff and electric skillets came out she rarely used the cast iron anymore. My wife hates cast iron, so if I decide to pursue this I'm on my own. But it's very intriguing..... I think I need to browse the thrift shops.

If I were single, I could totally see myself going all cast iron. But I could also see myself living in a log cabin and looking/living like an old mountain man or prospector too.....

[44man]

If I were single, I could totally see myself going all cast iron. But I could also see myself living in a log cabin and looking/living like an old mountain man or prospector too.....
Something to be said for that. You have never had a meal made in a cast iron dutch oven in a fire pit. Or bread made in one with coals on the lid. Bannock in a cast iron skillet!
I hate the Teflon junk and Carol telling me "don't you scratch my pan."
I have both kinds of ovens, some without legs for a stove and they are the first I get when I make stew or anything. I don't use any other pans or skillets. It has to be cast iron.

[cherokeetracker]

Some of this had me laughing really hard,,,, Especially when the seasoning talk was going on about not being able to breathe, ( been there done that) As far as this all goes,,,, Doug I know for a fact that the flaxseed oil is correct and very good for seasoning. and yes it takes about 5 times of the process. 44 man I have also heard of the Coconut oil, but have not tried it. What I have used and I have also heard of several other people using is Olive OIL,,, Corn oil, vegetable oil, and crisco turns rancid. Olive Oil does not. A genuine "Chuck wagon Cook" who was cooking for one of the very large Texas Ranches, shared this with me. It does a good job of touching up, or keeping the seasoning.. This new site sounds interesting Doug. I will check it out. FYI FWIW My Mom bought her #8 Grizwold chicken fryer for $2.00 right after WW2 . The lady selling it was complaining that it was old and did not cook good and she was glad to get rid of it. 44 Man do not be jealous but cast Iron cooking is the only pots and pans I use. People remark often that the food tastes different and so much better. I am glad to hear others doing this too.

[DougGuy]

I'm getting ready to do a thread on a new seasoning product, made in Florida by a cool, down to earth collector of cast iron, actually two new products. Mine arrives tomorrow, 1 of each Crisbee and Larbee.

Crisbee is a propritary blend of vegetable oils (palm and soybean) and beeswax, might as well say Crisco and Beeswax hence the name Crisbee.

Larbee is a proprietary blend of leaf lard and beeswax. Leaf lard is the highest grade of lard (lard is rendered pork fat; the term is usually used to refer to rendered pork fat suitable for cooking). It comes from the visceral (or "soft") fat from around the kidneys and loin of the pig. Leaf lard has a very soft, super spreadable consistency at room temperature. Hence the name Larbee.

So even vegans have a seasoning medium, and the meat eaters have a seasoning medium that will suit either style. Oh and umm.. There is this halal thing we won't go into but suffice it to say that Crisbee will satisfy the requirements so no screaming from the RAGHEADS that want to use cast iron. This concludes the PC portion of this thread, we will return you now to our aforementioned discussion...

I have some pieces coming in the mail and some other pieces here that I will clean in an electrolysis tank that I still have to build, and use the Crisbee/Larbee products to season them with.

[762 shooter]

My 88 year old mother, Bless her heart, cannot pick up the heavy cast iron pans anymore.

762

[Le Loup Solitaire]

Having collected mainly Griswold and some Wagner for a number of years now I thought to throw a couple of ideas into the pot so as to speak. Both Griswold and Wagner have changed their logos several times since the late 1800s. Previous products were known as polished cookware and this feature was also shared by several other foundries as well. Modern CI cookware including Lodge which is the only current US producer is grainy by comparison and one can feel it by touch. It can be minimized to some extent by working it with #320 and then with #400 grit black sandpaper and then seasoning, but buying the old Gris and Wag cookware to start with is the way to go. A lot of the good stuff has a fair amount of rust and buildup on it. Just plain rust can be treated with ordinary off the shelf white vinegar, but don't leave it working too long because vinegar has acetic acid in it and it will go after the good metal as well and can ruin it. The best way to get rid of a lot of buildup is to put it into a bath made up of caustic soda or lye and let it soak for a week. Sounds crazy but many of my collector friends do that. It does not harm the CI and gets rid of the crud. You can verify this with the Cast iron Collectors Association (on line) if you have doubts. A lot of the recipes for seasoning that have been mentioned here are probably time tested by generations of family and users and have proven to be effective. If you are seeking Griswold in particular please be advised that it is regarded as highly collectible and these days it can bring huge prices for certain items. I bought a #2 large logo skilllet 10 years ago and it ran me $400 THEN. The last #1 skillet that I SAW 20 years ago was going for $8000+ so don't be shocked. Books are around that list prices; they usually can be found in any antique store. Cleaning any CI piece by putting it in a fire can be dangerous in that it can warp the piece so think twice before doing it. Do not put it in a dishwasher or scrub it with any abrasive...soap and water and maybe a nylon brush should be sufficient. Seasoning is primarily important on the cooking surface of the item...the outside takes care of itself. Lids for skillets and kettles if you can find them are getting pretty rare and pricey. Dutch ovens are usually around in the #8 size still for sane prices....a number 6, or 9, will run you more...a number 10 is big bucks while anything bigger up to a 13 if you can find it....forget it. Cooking with the old CI is a great experience and many people enjoy it so join in i you haven't already done so. LLS









seasonin

[Mtnfolk75]

After seeing this thread I went and checked our skillets. The big one has an 8 and the letters GD, the middle has a 6 and the letter D, the small one only has a 3. All three have a raised ridge along the outer edge. The small one I have had since 1955, one of my Mother's Maternal Aunts gave it to me because I always got it out to play with when we visited her Oklahoma .... The other two were wedding gifts to SWMBO & I, we have been married over 40 years. Any ideas on what they might be ? Not that it really matters, as they cook really well and will be handed down to our children anyway ....

[DougGuy]

A lot of the unmarked cast iron was made by the well known manufacturers. They sold and marketed their trademarked pieces but they also produced unmarked pieces to compete with lower priced items rather than let them take over the market. Griswold made their pieces with the familiar logos but they also produced an unmarked series commonly called "Iron Mountain." They also made the Puritan brand which was commissioned and sold by Sears, Roebuck & Co. Wagner did likewise and many unmarked pieces have a number and a description, the Wagner made pieces using a fully spelled out word that described what the piece was, such as "8 INCH SKILLET" where Lodge commonly abbreviated their wording and the Lodge would have read "8 IN"

The most common identifier for Lodge skillets is a single notch in the heat ring at 12 o'clock or 3 notches. They often abbreviated SK for skillet, DO for dutch oven, etc..

Having a solid un-notched heat ring and a pointed ridge on the bottom side of the handle would identify a skillet as being made by Birmingham Stove & Range, commonly called BSR.

There are other identifying marks that are used to identify the maker and also the time period in which they might have been made, but would need decent detailed photos to be able to tell.

In 1960 manufacturers became required to label goods with the country of manufacture, so cast iron that bears the MADE IN U.S.A. lettering was produced after 1960.

[Mtnfolk75]

Thanx DougGuy, they are currently curing at 475* with EEVO. I will check them when they cool.

[Mtnfolk75]

DougGuy,

I checked them today and found the 3 & 6 have the 3 notches in the heat ring, I will assume they are Lodges. The 8 has an unbroken heat ring, a BSR I would assume. They have all good pretty well as long as I can keep SWMBO away from them .... . Anyway, they are on the second seasoning cycle at 475* as I type, I figure it can't hurt them. Thanx again for the history & info, have a Great Sunday .....