First, be certain
your cast iron pans are clean and rust-free. If you have "inherited"
or otherwise obtained older pans, it may be necessary to clean the pots
of any debris and scour off any rust. Use the standard process (scouring pad,
cleaner with the appropriate degree of abrasiveness ... from Barkeeper's Friend
... to SoftScrub ... to Ajax/Comet). Dry the cookware immediately (towels or
on low heat on the stove), then ... on to seasoning (yes, that's the correct term).
Season the
pans and the lids (Assuming you don't have glass lids or wood handles ...
just all cast iron ...). To season (this is the method suggested by Wagner
and cast into the bottom of all their pans, so you can't lose it or forget it), preheat
your oven to 350, then heat the pan on a burner on low so it's fairly warm,
use a paper towel to spread a fat(see below) all over the pan (yes, inside AND out),
then put in the oven for at least one hour (I usually leave it in 2-3 hrs). I put
mine in upside down, with a piece of aluminum foil on the bottom so any excess
will drip out and cleanup isn't a mess.
Which fat?
The classic is lard or bacon fat; but more common today is a good
vegetable oil or Crisco. I use canola oil, bought in gallon containers
so it's economical. You'd like a heating point of greater than 350
degrees, so corn or safflower will do. I'd use corn or the "vegetable oil"
mix as an alternative to canola. I wouldn't use peanut oil, even though it has
the highest heat point because it has a fairly strong taste, which some
very delicate palates may be able to notice.
There are other
methods (e.g., fill pan with 1-2 inches of oil and make 10 batches
of French fries ... by the end, the inside of your pan will be seasoned),
but this is the easiest and most general.
Won't bore you with
the chemistry, but you are carbonizing (not oxidizing)the
long chains in the oil and creating a non-stick, sealed surface. Because
you're carbonizing, there is no "oil" to become rancid and
since you're not oxidizing, you won't have "burned stuff" to come off and
ruin flavors ...'nuff said.
When the pans are
cool, put 'em on the stovetop, warm them up (opens the pores
in the iron), add enough oil to cover the bottom and wipe (paper
towel) around. Cool, store ... you're done.
NEVER clean
with soap or detergents (or at least not for the first 5 years, till you've
built up a really good surface). I clean using the method Madeleine Kaman suggests, which
is to heat the pan, add coarse salt (i.e., Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt
or equivalent) then enough oil to make a slurry ... use a
paper towel ...the salt acts as an abrasive, the oil creates the lubrication
and continues to season the pan, and everything that's in the pan is abraded off ... the
surface continues to build. When you rinse, the salt dissolves
in the water,the oil is happy ... back on the burner to dry ... you're done.
For removing
cooked on food, here's a Madeleine Kaman tip which has saved lots of
pots (copper, stainless, aluminum, cast iron)in restaurants around
the world: add 1 tsp. of baking soda per quart of water. Add as many
quarts of baking soda/water as needed to cover the burned on food and bring
to a simmering boil. Leave on "for a while", i.e., 1-2 hours, just making
sure the water level remains about where you had it ... the burned on stuff,
even if it looks terrible, will come right off with minimal cleaning.
If you ever need
to start over, you can remove the seasoning authentically (put
the pan in the embers of a campfire or fireplace ... shovel embers into
the pan, so the entire pan is covered/buried in embers) or
"farb"ishly (put the pan in your oven, set for clean
cycle -- will hit 500-600 degrees and burn off everything,
go to sleep). Either way, next day you have a virgin pan.
Start over ....
Enjoy the pans.
Done right, they are truly non-stick, they cook beautifully, and
they have real history to them ...
Once the pan is
seasoned, some folks say the layer of carbonization protects the iron and
you can cook acidified materials. Just clean the pan out well afterwards
(hot water, or salt and oil/shortening/lard/etc., no dishwashing liquid
or other soap). I've done that (tomato based pasta sauces; poaching
fish in a court bouillon) and it works well with no damage to the food,
no damage to the pan and its coating. Others, who are more purists than
I am, would say "don't do it ... use a pan of some other material to handle
acidic foods ...". It's your choice, but if you're going to cook
acidified food in your cast iron pan, I'd make certain you have a good
seasoning layer in place first ...
Re acidic foods
(apples, tomatoes, etc., or poaching in vinegar based fluids, yogurt if
you're cooking non-CW Indian-type recipes, etc.), if the iron is exposed
to the food, you will get a discoloration and in some cases the food will
taste "off". You can be nonchalant and say "another advantage of cast iron
cooking ... I get my daily dose of iron ...", but that's not the best way
to take care of your daily iron need.
Good advice about
cooking temperature: cast iron takes a while to heat up, but retains heat
forever ... don't go above medium.