Comments on: How To Season A Cast Iron Skillet

By: Pam

Pam — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 13:27:17 +0000

I have an old reversible cast iron griddle/grill that I recently dug out of the garage and hopefully reseasoned properly. To remove the rust, I soaked it for 24 hours in a solution of vinegar and Coke (I didn’t have enough of either so just combined them) then scrubbed the heck out of it with Bar Keeper’s Friend and a green/yellow Scotch Brite scrubbing sponge. The serious rust went away and after washing with hot water and dishwashing detergent, was left with mostly bare metal and what I guess would be termed surface rust that appeared to be forming almost before my eyes. I immediately swabbed it with Crisco and stuck it in the oven for several seasoning sessions on high heat. My question is about that new surface rust…..will the seasoning and subsequent repeated seasonings stop the rust or will it continue to “grow” underneath the seasoning?

Thank you for your website. I swore to my mother 30 years ago that I’d NEVER mess with cast iron cookware but here I am……excited about the prospects to the point that I’ve purchased a large and small dutch oven. Never say never!!!

By: Meek

Meek — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 02:02:47 +0000

Or if you oven has a self cleaning feature this works great for removing the old season and any left over food that might be on your skillet.

By: Meek

Meek — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 02:01:37 +0000

If you want to get all the crud out of you cast iron skillet then put you cast iron skillet in the oven on 550 degrees for 4 hrs. This will cook away anything ever put on the cast iron skillet. It will look pretty rough when done but all you have to do is let it cool and then put it in soapy water “mild detergent” and a brilio pad and get all scrub it real good until you get everything off then follow the seasoning directions.

Note: Since you are removing all layers of seasoning in this process it might be best to add 2 or 3 coats of seasoning back on the cast iron skillet.

By: Ellie

Ellie — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 02:36:42 +0000

Hi,
I got an old Griswold pan which looked black and seasoned to my unexperienced eye but it turned out to be just really dark rust oiled all over. I soaked it in the 50/50 water and vinegar mix as some have advised and it took about two days and several washes to get it clean. I couldn’t get into some areas of pitting and patchy rust but I was sick of scrubbing so I just followed the directions for seasoning as above. It’s in the oven as I write and I hope someone can tell me if it’s ok to do that. The inside looks pretty rust free.

I also noticed that when I larded it up, the grease would get kinda gray looking from the pan, is that normal?

Lastly, man, I sure wish someone had warned me about the smell of hot smoking lard!! whoo…I got all windows open ad the back door too.

Thanks!

By: Jasmine

Jasmine — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 18:46:54 +0000

I had begged for several years and this past birthday (about a month ago) I FINALLY got a cast iron skillet. I never knew how to season it and everyone I asked told me something different. I’m glad I found this page. It’s a very easy to follow tutorial. I’m book marking this page because now maybe just maybe I’ll get the dutch oven that’s on my Christmas list

By: Crow

Crow — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 21:24:10 +0000

I don’ have a oven. Can I season it in my pit?

By: nmsusieq

nmsusieq — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 19:24:06 +0000

I had checked back a couple of times and had not realized it had been so long this last time. But THANK YOU very much for getting back with me. I will try the vinegar to clean it up and then just season the outside and lid. Again thanks!

By: nmsusieq

nmsusieq — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 19:21:02 +0000

I have used SOS pads to clean them up along with hot soapy water. This should clean off the rust. At this point it needs to be seasoned as above. When washing I only use hot water. I then set it on a burner and as the water dries I brush bacon grease on it. Shortening should also work. This renews the seasoning. I have a skillet I received as a wedding present 48 years ago. It still looks and works great.

By: Wendy

Wendy — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 21:53:35 +0000

I have an old cast iron skillet and a newer grill pan that has rusted. How do you get the rust off them so then ca be used again, and how do I keep them from rusting again? I have always heated them up on the stove after washing. One person said I could pop them in the over when I use my self cleaning setting. Have you heard of this?

Thanks for listing all your recipes on one site. It makes it so much easier for me to find the ones I like and not have to keep every newsletter you mail out.

Thanks,
Wendy

By: How To Season A Cast Iron Skillet Southern Plate | Cast Iron Cookware

How To Season A Cast Iron Skillet Southern Plate | Cast Iron Cookware — Tue, 26 May 2009 18:21:29 +0000

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