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You really shouldn't buy a special oil just got seasoning your cast iron and carbon steel. It's not necessary. Pick an oil with a high smoke point, a neutral ta

You really shouldn't buy a special oil just got seasoning your cast iron and carbon steel. It's not necessary. Pick an oil with a high smoke point, a neutral taste, and plenty of easy availability. That's often peanut. Avocado is great if you're fancy. Keep a squirt bottle of oil on hand and make sure you're using enough. Using soap to clean your pans will make maintaining your seasoning easier, as you use less effort to clean them. See this if you're skeptical: https://www.seriouseats.com/2014/11/the-truth-about-cast-iron.html https://www.seriouseats.com/2014/11/the-truth-about-cast-iro... I had friends dedicate years to flax seed oil. They're not happy about it, as they've got flaking to deal with. I also had friends disbelieve me that soap was okay, and they've mostly come around after hearing me swear by it for years.

iamacyborg 6y ago
I'm a simple man, I see a post linking to a J. Kenji Lopez-Alt article, I upvote. Another good method is outlined in this America's Test Kitchen video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-suTmUX4Vbk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-suTmUX4Vbk If you have a friend who runs a Chinese restaurant, you could always try this, too https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGXGJD2xTzQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGXGJD2xTzQ I do this regularly and always clean my pan with soap after use.
- markgall 6y ago
  Although Kenji: "Whenever someone asks me why their cast iron seasoning is weak or flaky, I ask if they followed that popular (but wrong!) flaxseed seasoning guide [i.e. the linked article]. The answer has been yes 100% of the time."
- steve_adams_86 6y ago
  That wok seasoning video is what I do! I also use soap on my pans, just not too much and with gentle scrubbing. The wok burner I have is this one: https://www.amazon.ca/Eastman-Outdoors-37212-Gourmet-Carbon/dp/B0002OOMRG/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?adgrpid=58573691902&dchild=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiA6Or_BRC_ARIsAPzuer8L-6OHZ3JWaHHI_sXKDBFlldm9Po-S-8gG7MGVRbn1fvDE6rbvekcaAs2OEALw_wcB&hvadid=310059666622&hvdev=m&hvlocphy=9001599&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=2115171900347259706&hvtargid=kwd-2121795806&hydadcr=24631_10908641&keywords=outdoor+wok+burner&qid=1610296864&sr=8-3&tag=h0a61-20 https://www.amazon.ca/Eastman-Outdoors-37212-Gourmet-Carbon/... It’s a ton of fun to cook on, and useful for way more than just the wok. When I go diving and get crabs for example, this thing gets a huge pot of water boiling in no time and makes prepping a lot of crabs really easy. And yeah, it’ll season any pan like nothing else. I was terrible at seasoning pans until I started throwing them on this thing.
war1025 6y ago
As someone who owns more cast iron than is reasonable, I just wanted to go a step beyond upvoting this and acknowledge in writing that this is the correct view of things. You want oil soaked into the metal. This idea that you are trying to build a non-stick surface on top of the metal is just adding extra work that isn't needed. Wash with soap, dry of the stove top, put in some oil (I use peanut), then take a paper towel and rub the oil around over everything and at the end the metal should look shiny but there shouldn't be any pooled oil left anywhere. If you are cooking something that doesn't leave a residue or strong flavor, you can skip the washing all together and just leave it there to cook with next time. If you try to go the whole "never wash this" route, you end up with unhappy results going from cooking something with onions and garlic to cooking something more neutral flavored. No one wants onion flavored pancakes.
- stouset 6y ago
  Also, without washing, you end up with rough spots of non-sticky partially-polymerized bits. Wash it with soap and a scrub brush. Nothing short of steel wool is going to affect the patina. For proof of this, check out your aluminum baking sheets. If they’ve been used, they’re almost certainly covered in a shiny black substance that’s a complete pain in the ass to remove, even with abrasives. That’s essentially what’s on your cast iron.
  - gilrain 6y ago
    Incidentally, if your want your aluminum or stainless steel clean again with almost no effort, use Barkeeper's Friend. It's an oxalic acid product, and it wipes away stains with a sponge that you'd work hard to sand out. Obviously, do not use on cast iron or carbon steel.
    - stouset 6y ago
      I don’t know about your experience, but even with BKF, the scrubby side of the sponge, and a lot of elbow grease, it takes ages to get it off an aluminum pan. I did it once and it took two full hours, and gave me blisters on my hands from the sheer amount of scrubbing.
beervirus 6y ago
I did it once. Flaked like crazy. Never again.
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]
- war1025 6y ago
  I read somewhere a year or two ago that basically compared cast iron to wood, which has helped my intuition of things a lot. Here is a blog post [0] I read a few months ago about wood finishes. I think the following applies just as much to cast iron as to the wood he is talking about: So, when I choose a finish, I ignore the industry-standard scratch and adhesion tests. Instead, I separate finishes into two buckets: 1. Finishes that look incredible immediately but look like crap in 20 years (the short-run finishes) vs. finishes that look incredible when worn/abused (the long-run finishes). 2. Finishes that want me dead vs. finishes that I can apply while buck naked. Basically I would equate Polyurethane with Teflon, and furniture oil with cooking oil. Teflon will be great to cook on initially. As soon as it gets damaged, it will be hard to fix without stripping and redoing everything. Oil will take more maintenance over time, but if it starts looking bad, you just put a bit more on. That's exactly how you should treat cast iron as well. The trouble people run into is they try to use oil to create a teflon surface. That's not what it's for. [0] https://blog.lostartpress.com/2020/11/30/rip-the-anarchists-finishing-manual/ https://blog.lostartpress.com/2020/11/30/rip-the-anarchists-...
  - beervirus 6y ago
    Chris Schwarz! I used to read his blog all the time, it's great.
    - war1025 6y ago
      Indeed. I was introduced to him via his appearances on the Woodwrights Shop. I really appreciate the publishing work he does. We've bought I think five or six books from Lost Art Press, and I'm sure there are more to come.
smichel17 6y ago
As someone relatively new to cast iron (around a year of cooking with it), I am inclined to believe the parts of this article that I cannot validate through my own experience, because the other parts match what I have learned through experimentation. However, I must point out that a year ago, I would have no way to recognize this. Whether or not this article is correct, it is at the same level of heresay as every other article, reddit comment, or youtube video out there (like the carbon steel video linked in the replies, which says never to use soap). Despite the flax oil article being bad science, it is still the most science of any of the cast iron information out there, which is why it continues to enjoy such popularity. Even if it is bad science, it at least provides some hypotheses to test! Here's my hypotheses on soap (edit: rephrased to better reflect my meaning): 1) Soap is fine to use; it will not damage the seasoning. 2) Seasoning is often damaged (at least a little) while cooking and it is important to re-season regularly to keep the pan in good shape. 3) If you do not use soap, the amount of oil left on the surface is similar to the amount you would want to wipe on when re-seasoning. Basically, I think no soap + dry on stove is a shortcut to avoid the process/effort of reseasoning the pan (especially if you do the oil-and-salt-as-an-abrasive trick). Perhaps you'll get better results using soap and then wiping on oil, but it's more work and many people don't do the second part. Thus, they see better results when they don't use soap. This would explain why some people tell you you need to reseason after every use, while others say that's bubkis, and why the same is true of soap avoidance. To test: try all 4 combinations of soap/no-soap and reseasoning/just-drying (always dry the same way, on the stovetop).
- ska 6y ago
  As a data point, I use a little soap when it feels needed (every few times, usually) and add seasoning when it feels needed (less often). Seasoning remains great (fry eggs without sticking). These are my most often used pans, and have remained that way for many years. Fwiw I rarely need or use a scraper or salt while cleaning , I’ll “deglaze” if there is fond in the pan, even in the rare case that I’m not using the result for anything.
  - smichel17 6y ago
    As of writing the GP comment, I am starting to informally test the hypothesis as well. I've switched to sponge + soap to fully clean the inside with every use (after chain mail to remove larger bits, if needed), then dry on the stove & re-oil. Specifically the idea is that IF the seasoning layer is quite durable and is difficult to damage or wear through, except by the rough metal of the spatula I use, then the best seasoning should be achieved by thoroughly cleaning any contaminants off it and then applying a fresh coat of oil. It will likely take longer than the HN comment window before I feel comfortable drawing any conclusions, so I'm not sure how I'll follow up on this. Perhaps I'll post something at https://smichel.me/castiron https://smichel.me/castiron (currently this page does not exist).
Enginerrrd 6y ago
>Pick an oil with a high smoke point This doesn't seem to agree with either experience or the scientific understanding of the polymerization process that needs to occur in a well seasoned cast iron pan.
ethbr0 6y ago
> You really shouldn't buy a special oil just [for] seasoning your cast iron and carbon steel. It's not necessary. Source: lack of historic availability of avocado oil in the South
hedora 6y ago
Rather than soap, I use a pampered chef plastic scraper (It’s for stone ware; don’t know any other name for it), and a stainless steel scouring pad (not steel wool; instead it’s coils of flat stainless steel tape or something). The scraper removes the bulk of stuff, keeping the scouring pad clean. This is less effort than using soap, and more effective. The stainless smooths out any imperfections that form in the seasoning over time, and cooking with oil continuously reseasons it. I found that I had to re-season my pans every 5-10 years if I used soap, and that the seasoning was an inferior cooking surface (more food stuck to it). With the technique I described above, I can cook eggs and they don’t stick. (be sure to preheat, use plenty of oil, and then don’t touch for a minute or two at the beginning of cooking)
- wyclif 6y ago
  What I use is one of these pieces of chain mail (I don't know what this kitchen tool is actually called, "Ringer" is probably a brand name), but it's perfect for cleaning cast iron: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00FKBR1ZG/ https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00FKBR1ZG/
axaxs 6y ago
Agree with everything except the oil. I use Avocado a lot for cooking but not on a brand new pan. I've certainly tried to season with it specifically when I was new, but find it flaky and cumbersome. I find fatty meats(bacon, sausage) or just canned lard to work absolutely best for seasoning. It's also what our ancestors used before they probably even knew what an avocado was. For a vegan, I'd assume shortening is ok as well, but I've never actually tested that.
fireattack 6y ago
Great article, just one thing I don't quite understand: vintage vs modern cast iron pans. I get his point about the older ones having smooth(er) finish due to production methods change, but what stops SOME modern manufacturers to do the same? Surely for a community that is essentially a cult, there should be enough people buying it to worth the additional manufacturing cost?
- war1025 6y ago
  > what stops SOME modern manufacturers to do the same? I believe there are manufacturers filling that niche now. Field [0] is one that I'm aware of. I think there are four or five others. [0] https://fieldcompany.com/ https://fieldcompany.com/
  - xKingfisher 6y ago
    Butterpat Industries is another. I have one of their pans and it's excellent.
  - wyclif 6y ago
    Now that you mention it (and I hope everybody sees this, but they probably won't since I'm late to this discussion), Field has what I think is the best advice I've seen on how to season cast iron cookware: https://fieldcompany.com/pages/how-to-season-cast-iron-pan-skillet https://fieldcompany.com/pages/how-to-season-cast-iron-pan-s... Oven seasoning instructions: https://fieldcompany.com/pages/how-to-season-cast-iron-pan-skillet-instructions https://fieldcompany.com/pages/how-to-season-cast-iron-pan-s... How to care for cast iron cookware: https://fieldcompany.com/pages/how-to-clean-maintain-cast-iron-pan-skillet https://fieldcompany.com/pages/how-to-clean-maintain-cast-ir...
- cbsmith 6y ago
  Turns out, there are some: https://www.foodandwine.com/lifestyle/kitchen/the-real-reason-why-cast-iron-isnt-as-smooth-as-it-used-to-be https://www.foodandwine.com/lifestyle/kitchen/the-real-reaso...
- foobarian 6y ago
dunham 6y ago
Past the initial seasoning, I've found that just using the pan helps a lot. My problem has been that I've a lot of rough (and very hard) cruft built up on the outside and the upper part of inside of the pan. +1 on the squirt bottle of oil, I started doing that a few years ago and it was game-changing. Previously I'd just pour a little out of the original bottle when I was cooking, which was a lot less convenient than having something appropriately sized and within arms reach.
- kevinmchugh 6y ago
  Yes, I didn't say it above, but the best thing you can do, maintenance-wise, is just use the pan. Anything that makes that harder (requiring unusual ingredients, making cleaning harder) is a net negative. Anything that makes it easier (having oil at hand, soap and sponge to clean it) makes it better.
SoSoRoCoCo 6y ago
Peanut oil has a flavor. Safflower and sunflower oils have higher temperature and no flavor. Been using safflower for over 20 years on my day-use skillet.
bch 6y ago
> You really shouldn't buy a special oil just [for] seasoning your cast iron and carbon steel. It's not necessary. Pick an oil with a high smoke point, a neutral taste, and plenty of easy availability. That's often peanut. Avocado is great if you're fancy. Keep a squirt bottle of oil on hand and make sure you're using enough. > I had friends dedicate years to flax seed oil. They're not happy about it, as they've got flaking to deal with. I happen to have bought some flax oil specifically for seasoning my cast iron - you’re saying it’s contraindicated though? (So “you don’t need special oil, but _especially_ not these” (leaving only peanut and avocado))? For the amount of times the word “science” is dropped there’s still a good amount of myth and legend associated with owning cast iron. Short of having my own double blind statically significant study and perhaps a microscope to observe the polymerization effects, I’m still flopping back/forth a bit about what “the best” or at least not leaving a simple improvement on the table, is. What a journey. Still worth the trouble, though. Cooking is fun, and cast iron is a good cooking tool.
- nightski 6y ago
  I interpreted what he said as you don't need a special oil, but here are some good options that do not have a strong flavor and will work well. But you could just as well use any other oil. I avoid nut based oils so I generally have olive and avacado around.
  - BikiniPrince 6y ago
    I don’t know if there was much interpretation. It broke down the science well enough or at least offered theories. Having some good success and failure I am willing to try a few ideas in the article. One variation a YouTuber offered was to heat the oil in the pan on the stove and then wipe the excess. So far I have duplicated a lot of points in the article with different success ratios. I do agree a long smoke rate, upside down and long cooling period is ideal. I use the grill so I don’t worry about the smoke generation. More or less I’ve used this on the last successful project, but with corn oil. I went with a hybrid seasoning oil recently and I’m not impressed. I’ll try flax next.
  - bch 6y ago
p1necone 6y ago
"Pick an oil with a high smoke point, a neutral taste" This sounds somewhat like "special" to me.
- kevinmchugh 6y ago
  You probably want a neutral oil for salad dressings, or mayonnaise. You want a high smoke point for any frying(deep, shallow, or stir) you'll do. Every grocery store I've been in has peanut, canola, or avocado, which will all do.
  - p1necone 6y ago
    This is a difference in semantic understanding I think. When I hear "you don't need a special oil" I understand that to mean "any oil will do", which isn't really the case.
andoriyu 6y ago
Why high smoke point? The best oil for seasoning is flaxseed oil, which has very low smoke point. I mean you can use high smoke points oils, but you want your oil to start smoking. I used avocado, coconut and flaxseed oils for seasoning - flaxseed is the easiest and delivered best results IMO. Plus it's nice oil for salads and some smoothies. It's not a "special" oil. As for soap, I used it from time to time. However, why my pans are at the peak of seasoning - there is just no need to use soap.
hnick 6y ago
On the soap thing, I think a dishwasher is not OK since the soap is harsher. Can anyone confirm? I know there's also a risk of letting it sit and dry (i.e. rust) but that can be managed.
- kevinmchugh 6y ago
  I wouldn't use a dishwasher. I can't speak to the soap harshness but yes, you don't want to soak that long.
jfengel 6y ago
Do you have thoughts on cleaning burnt-on gunk? I use cast iron and carbon steel for high-temperature cooking. If I really care about the non-stick-ness I'll usually use nonstick. But nonstick doesn't char well (and isn't safe). So when I want a serious sear or browning, I use iron & stell. Problem is, if something burns on, it burns on hard. Soap doesn't really help. Water and scrubbing mostly do, but they don't completely get it off. I can't even tell when the remaining patina is seasoning and when it's just gunk -- until it becomes rough to the touch, in which case it's obvious, and I scrub hard.
- kevinmchugh 6y ago
  Deglaze. Heat it back up and add water. This should become less of a problem the better your seasoning is.
  - linsjack 6y ago
    Agree, I always simmer off the gunk before 'exfoliating' with salt and oil.
  - jfengel 6y ago
    Thanks!
bradgessler 6y ago
I also recommend buying a chainmail to clean the pans, instead of using soap. Amazon sells them for $10 https://www.amazon.com/cast-iron-chainmail/s?k=cast+iron+chainmail https://www.amazon.com/cast-iron-chainmail/s?k=cast+iron+cha... Cleaning gets much easier: 1. Rinse dirty pan out with some warm water 2. Clean the chunks and stuff that sticks to the pan with the chainmail 3. Rinse again under some warm water That’s it. The oil from whatever you were cooking should still be on there; no need to put peanut or avocado oil on there unless you burnt it all off or cooked something acidic (use a different pan for that; you’ll learn).
- kevinmchugh 6y ago
  This doesnt sound easier. My process is I wash my pan with soap and water, with a sponge. I don't need special equipment. I don't need to oil it afterwards. There's enough seasoning, it's fine. I'm using oil next time I cook. Other people seem to have a bigger problem with burnt-on bits than I do. I don't know why that is, but I'm inclined to trust my process. Also I like washing all the cooking oil off so I don't have used oil sitting around going rancid. Surfactants are good for that. Acidic stuff is also fine. If my pan looks thirsty afterwards, I've got the squirt bottle and paper towels, it's easy. Cast iron is the least sensitive, most versatile tool in my kitchen. I'm not babying it.

iamacyborg 6y ago

I'm a simple man, I see a post linking to a J. Kenji Lopez-Alt article, I upvote. Another good method is outlined in this America's Test Kitchen video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-suTmUX4Vbk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-suTmUX4Vbk If you have a friend who runs a Chinese restaurant, you could always try this, too https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGXGJD2xTzQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGXGJD2xTzQ I do this regularly and always clean my pan with soap after use.

markgall 6y ago
Although Kenji: "Whenever someone asks me why their cast iron seasoning is weak or flaky, I ask if they followed that popular (but wrong!) flaxseed seasoning guide [i.e. the linked article]. The answer has been yes 100% of the time."
steve_adams_86 6y ago
That wok seasoning video is what I do! I also use soap on my pans, just not too much and with gentle scrubbing. The wok burner I have is this one: https://www.amazon.ca/Eastman-Outdoors-37212-Gourmet-Carbon/dp/B0002OOMRG/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?adgrpid=58573691902&dchild=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiA6Or_BRC_ARIsAPzuer8L-6OHZ3JWaHHI_sXKDBFlldm9Po-S-8gG7MGVRbn1fvDE6rbvekcaAs2OEALw_wcB&hvadid=310059666622&hvdev=m&hvlocphy=9001599&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=2115171900347259706&hvtargid=kwd-2121795806&hydadcr=24631_10908641&keywords=outdoor+wok+burner&qid=1610296864&sr=8-3&tag=h0a61-20 https://www.amazon.ca/Eastman-Outdoors-37212-Gourmet-Carbon/... It’s a ton of fun to cook on, and useful for way more than just the wok. When I go diving and get crabs for example, this thing gets a huge pot of water boiling in no time and makes prepping a lot of crabs really easy. And yeah, it’ll season any pan like nothing else. I was terrible at seasoning pans until I started throwing them on this thing.

war1025 6y ago

As someone who owns more cast iron than is reasonable, I just wanted to go a step beyond upvoting this and acknowledge in writing that this is the correct view of things. You want oil soaked into the metal. This idea that you are trying to build a non-stick surface on top of the metal is just adding extra work that isn't needed. Wash with soap, dry of the stove top, put in some oil (I use peanut), then take a paper towel and rub the oil around over everything and at the end the metal should look shiny but there shouldn't be any pooled oil left anywhere. If you are cooking something that doesn't leave a residue or strong flavor, you can skip the washing all together and just leave it there to cook with next time. If you try to go the whole "never wash this" route, you end up with unhappy results going from cooking something with onions and garlic to cooking something more neutral flavored. No one wants onion flavored pancakes.

stouset 6y ago
Also, without washing, you end up with rough spots of non-sticky partially-polymerized bits. Wash it with soap and a scrub brush. Nothing short of steel wool is going to affect the patina. For proof of this, check out your aluminum baking sheets. If they’ve been used, they’re almost certainly covered in a shiny black substance that’s a complete pain in the ass to remove, even with abrasives. That’s essentially what’s on your cast iron.
- gilrain 6y ago
  Incidentally, if your want your aluminum or stainless steel clean again with almost no effort, use Barkeeper's Friend. It's an oxalic acid product, and it wipes away stains with a sponge that you'd work hard to sand out. Obviously, do not use on cast iron or carbon steel.
  - stouset 6y ago
    I don’t know about your experience, but even with BKF, the scrubby side of the sponge, and a lot of elbow grease, it takes ages to get it off an aluminum pan. I did it once and it took two full hours, and gave me blisters on my hands from the sheer amount of scrubbing.

beervirus 6y ago

I did it once. Flaked like crazy. Never again.

deleted 6y ago
[deleted]
war1025 6y ago
I read somewhere a year or two ago that basically compared cast iron to wood, which has helped my intuition of things a lot. Here is a blog post [0] I read a few months ago about wood finishes. I think the following applies just as much to cast iron as to the wood he is talking about: So, when I choose a finish, I ignore the industry-standard scratch and adhesion tests. Instead, I separate finishes into two buckets: 1. Finishes that look incredible immediately but look like crap in 20 years (the short-run finishes) vs. finishes that look incredible when worn/abused (the long-run finishes). 2. Finishes that want me dead vs. finishes that I can apply while buck naked. Basically I would equate Polyurethane with Teflon, and furniture oil with cooking oil. Teflon will be great to cook on initially. As soon as it gets damaged, it will be hard to fix without stripping and redoing everything. Oil will take more maintenance over time, but if it starts looking bad, you just put a bit more on. That's exactly how you should treat cast iron as well. The trouble people run into is they try to use oil to create a teflon surface. That's not what it's for. [0] https://blog.lostartpress.com/2020/11/30/rip-the-anarchists-finishing-manual/ https://blog.lostartpress.com/2020/11/30/rip-the-anarchists-...
- beervirus 6y ago
  Chris Schwarz! I used to read his blog all the time, it's great.
  - war1025 6y ago
    Indeed. I was introduced to him via his appearances on the Woodwrights Shop. I really appreciate the publishing work he does. We've bought I think five or six books from Lost Art Press, and I'm sure there are more to come.

smichel17 6y ago

As someone relatively new to cast iron (around a year of cooking with it), I am inclined to believe the parts of this article that I cannot validate through my own experience, because the other parts match what I have learned through experimentation. However, I must point out that a year ago, I would have no way to recognize this. Whether or not this article is correct, it is at the same level of heresay as every other article, reddit comment, or youtube video out there (like the carbon steel video linked in the replies, which says never to use soap). Despite the flax oil article being bad science, it is still the most science of any of the cast iron information out there, which is why it continues to enjoy such popularity. Even if it is bad science, it at least provides some hypotheses to test! Here's my hypotheses on soap (edit: rephrased to better reflect my meaning): 1) Soap is fine to use; it will not damage the seasoning. 2) Seasoning is often damaged (at least a little) while cooking and it is important to re-season regularly to keep the pan in good shape. 3) If you do not use soap, the amount of oil left on the surface is similar to the amount you would want to wipe on when re-seasoning. Basically, I think no soap + dry on stove is a shortcut to avoid the process/effort of reseasoning the pan (especially if you do the oil-and-salt-as-an-abrasive trick). Perhaps you'll get better results using soap and then wiping on oil, but it's more work and many people don't do the second part. Thus, they see better results when they don't use soap. This would explain why some people tell you you need to reseason after every use, while others say that's bubkis, and why the same is true of soap avoidance. To test: try all 4 combinations of soap/no-soap and reseasoning/just-drying (always dry the same way, on the stovetop).

ska 6y ago
As a data point, I use a little soap when it feels needed (every few times, usually) and add seasoning when it feels needed (less often). Seasoning remains great (fry eggs without sticking). These are my most often used pans, and have remained that way for many years. Fwiw I rarely need or use a scraper or salt while cleaning , I’ll “deglaze” if there is fond in the pan, even in the rare case that I’m not using the result for anything.
- smichel17 6y ago
  As of writing the GP comment, I am starting to informally test the hypothesis as well. I've switched to sponge + soap to fully clean the inside with every use (after chain mail to remove larger bits, if needed), then dry on the stove & re-oil. Specifically the idea is that IF the seasoning layer is quite durable and is difficult to damage or wear through, except by the rough metal of the spatula I use, then the best seasoning should be achieved by thoroughly cleaning any contaminants off it and then applying a fresh coat of oil. It will likely take longer than the HN comment window before I feel comfortable drawing any conclusions, so I'm not sure how I'll follow up on this. Perhaps I'll post something at https://smichel.me/castiron https://smichel.me/castiron (currently this page does not exist).

Enginerrrd 6y ago

>Pick an oil with a high smoke point This doesn't seem to agree with either experience or the scientific understanding of the polymerization process that needs to occur in a well seasoned cast iron pan.

ethbr0 6y ago

> You really shouldn't buy a special oil just [for] seasoning your cast iron and carbon steel. It's not necessary. Source: lack of historic availability of avocado oil in the South

hedora 6y ago

Rather than soap, I use a pampered chef plastic scraper (It’s for stone ware; don’t know any other name for it), and a stainless steel scouring pad (not steel wool; instead it’s coils of flat stainless steel tape or something). The scraper removes the bulk of stuff, keeping the scouring pad clean. This is less effort than using soap, and more effective. The stainless smooths out any imperfections that form in the seasoning over time, and cooking with oil continuously reseasons it. I found that I had to re-season my pans every 5-10 years if I used soap, and that the seasoning was an inferior cooking surface (more food stuck to it). With the technique I described above, I can cook eggs and they don’t stick. (be sure to preheat, use plenty of oil, and then don’t touch for a minute or two at the beginning of cooking)

wyclif 6y ago
What I use is one of these pieces of chain mail (I don't know what this kitchen tool is actually called, "Ringer" is probably a brand name), but it's perfect for cleaning cast iron: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00FKBR1ZG/ https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00FKBR1ZG/

axaxs 6y ago

Agree with everything except the oil. I use Avocado a lot for cooking but not on a brand new pan. I've certainly tried to season with it specifically when I was new, but find it flaky and cumbersome. I find fatty meats(bacon, sausage) or just canned lard to work absolutely best for seasoning. It's also what our ancestors used before they probably even knew what an avocado was. For a vegan, I'd assume shortening is ok as well, but I've never actually tested that.

fireattack 6y ago

Great article, just one thing I don't quite understand: vintage vs modern cast iron pans. I get his point about the older ones having smooth(er) finish due to production methods change, but what stops SOME modern manufacturers to do the same? Surely for a community that is essentially a cult, there should be enough people buying it to worth the additional manufacturing cost?

war1025 6y ago
> what stops SOME modern manufacturers to do the same? I believe there are manufacturers filling that niche now. Field [0] is one that I'm aware of. I think there are four or five others. [0] https://fieldcompany.com/ https://fieldcompany.com/
- xKingfisher 6y ago
  Butterpat Industries is another. I have one of their pans and it's excellent.
- wyclif 6y ago
  Now that you mention it (and I hope everybody sees this, but they probably won't since I'm late to this discussion), Field has what I think is the best advice I've seen on how to season cast iron cookware: https://fieldcompany.com/pages/how-to-season-cast-iron-pan-skillet https://fieldcompany.com/pages/how-to-season-cast-iron-pan-s... Oven seasoning instructions: https://fieldcompany.com/pages/how-to-season-cast-iron-pan-skillet-instructions https://fieldcompany.com/pages/how-to-season-cast-iron-pan-s... How to care for cast iron cookware: https://fieldcompany.com/pages/how-to-clean-maintain-cast-iron-pan-skillet https://fieldcompany.com/pages/how-to-clean-maintain-cast-ir...
cbsmith 6y ago
Turns out, there are some: https://www.foodandwine.com/lifestyle/kitchen/the-real-reason-why-cast-iron-isnt-as-smooth-as-it-used-to-be https://www.foodandwine.com/lifestyle/kitchen/the-real-reaso...
foobarian 6y ago

dunham 6y ago

Past the initial seasoning, I've found that just using the pan helps a lot. My problem has been that I've a lot of rough (and very hard) cruft built up on the outside and the upper part of inside of the pan. +1 on the squirt bottle of oil, I started doing that a few years ago and it was game-changing. Previously I'd just pour a little out of the original bottle when I was cooking, which was a lot less convenient than having something appropriately sized and within arms reach.

kevinmchugh 6y ago
Yes, I didn't say it above, but the best thing you can do, maintenance-wise, is just use the pan. Anything that makes that harder (requiring unusual ingredients, making cleaning harder) is a net negative. Anything that makes it easier (having oil at hand, soap and sponge to clean it) makes it better.

SoSoRoCoCo 6y ago

Peanut oil has a flavor. Safflower and sunflower oils have higher temperature and no flavor. Been using safflower for over 20 years on my day-use skillet.

bch 6y ago

> You really shouldn't buy a special oil just [for] seasoning your cast iron and carbon steel. It's not necessary. Pick an oil with a high smoke point, a neutral taste, and plenty of easy availability. That's often peanut. Avocado is great if you're fancy. Keep a squirt bottle of oil on hand and make sure you're using enough. > I had friends dedicate years to flax seed oil. They're not happy about it, as they've got flaking to deal with. I happen to have bought some flax oil specifically for seasoning my cast iron - you’re saying it’s contraindicated though? (So “you don’t need special oil, but _especially_ not these” (leaving only peanut and avocado))? For the amount of times the word “science” is dropped there’s still a good amount of myth and legend associated with owning cast iron. Short of having my own double blind statically significant study and perhaps a microscope to observe the polymerization effects, I’m still flopping back/forth a bit about what “the best” or at least not leaving a simple improvement on the table, is. What a journey. Still worth the trouble, though. Cooking is fun, and cast iron is a good cooking tool.

nightski 6y ago
I interpreted what he said as you don't need a special oil, but here are some good options that do not have a strong flavor and will work well. But you could just as well use any other oil. I avoid nut based oils so I generally have olive and avacado around.
- BikiniPrince 6y ago
  I don’t know if there was much interpretation. It broke down the science well enough or at least offered theories. Having some good success and failure I am willing to try a few ideas in the article. One variation a YouTuber offered was to heat the oil in the pan on the stove and then wipe the excess. So far I have duplicated a lot of points in the article with different success ratios. I do agree a long smoke rate, upside down and long cooling period is ideal. I use the grill so I don’t worry about the smoke generation. More or less I’ve used this on the last successful project, but with corn oil. I went with a hybrid seasoning oil recently and I’m not impressed. I’ll try flax next.
- bch 6y ago

p1necone 6y ago

"Pick an oil with a high smoke point, a neutral taste" This sounds somewhat like "special" to me.

kevinmchugh 6y ago
You probably want a neutral oil for salad dressings, or mayonnaise. You want a high smoke point for any frying(deep, shallow, or stir) you'll do. Every grocery store I've been in has peanut, canola, or avocado, which will all do.
- p1necone 6y ago
  This is a difference in semantic understanding I think. When I hear "you don't need a special oil" I understand that to mean "any oil will do", which isn't really the case.

andoriyu 6y ago

Why high smoke point? The best oil for seasoning is flaxseed oil, which has very low smoke point. I mean you can use high smoke points oils, but you want your oil to start smoking. I used avocado, coconut and flaxseed oils for seasoning - flaxseed is the easiest and delivered best results IMO. Plus it's nice oil for salads and some smoothies. It's not a "special" oil. As for soap, I used it from time to time. However, why my pans are at the peak of seasoning - there is just no need to use soap.

hnick 6y ago

On the soap thing, I think a dishwasher is not OK since the soap is harsher. Can anyone confirm? I know there's also a risk of letting it sit and dry (i.e. rust) but that can be managed.

kevinmchugh 6y ago
I wouldn't use a dishwasher. I can't speak to the soap harshness but yes, you don't want to soak that long.

jfengel 6y ago

Do you have thoughts on cleaning burnt-on gunk? I use cast iron and carbon steel for high-temperature cooking. If I really care about the non-stick-ness I'll usually use nonstick. But nonstick doesn't char well (and isn't safe). So when I want a serious sear or browning, I use iron & stell. Problem is, if something burns on, it burns on hard. Soap doesn't really help. Water and scrubbing mostly do, but they don't completely get it off. I can't even tell when the remaining patina is seasoning and when it's just gunk -- until it becomes rough to the touch, in which case it's obvious, and I scrub hard.

kevinmchugh 6y ago
Deglaze. Heat it back up and add water. This should become less of a problem the better your seasoning is.
- linsjack 6y ago
  Agree, I always simmer off the gunk before 'exfoliating' with salt and oil.
- jfengel 6y ago
  Thanks!

bradgessler 6y ago

I also recommend buying a chainmail to clean the pans, instead of using soap. Amazon sells them for $10 https://www.amazon.com/cast-iron-chainmail/s?k=cast+iron+chainmail https://www.amazon.com/cast-iron-chainmail/s?k=cast+iron+cha... Cleaning gets much easier: 1. Rinse dirty pan out with some warm water 2. Clean the chunks and stuff that sticks to the pan with the chainmail 3. Rinse again under some warm water That’s it. The oil from whatever you were cooking should still be on there; no need to put peanut or avocado oil on there unless you burnt it all off or cooked something acidic (use a different pan for that; you’ll learn).

kevinmchugh 6y ago
This doesnt sound easier. My process is I wash my pan with soap and water, with a sponge. I don't need special equipment. I don't need to oil it afterwards. There's enough seasoning, it's fine. I'm using oil next time I cook. Other people seem to have a bigger problem with burnt-on bits than I do. I don't know why that is, but I'm inclined to trust my process. Also I like washing all the cooking oil off so I don't have used oil sitting around going rancid. Surfactants are good for that. Acidic stuff is also fine. If my pan looks thirsty afterwards, I've got the squirt bottle and paper towels, it's easy. Cast iron is the least sensitive, most versatile tool in my kitchen. I'm not babying it.