4 ms·

In my opinion, after using several different oils (lard, crisco, flaxseed) that flaxseed works fine, i've heard it might be a little more brittle in the long ru

In my opinion, after using several different oils (lard, crisco, flaxseed) that flaxseed works fine, i've heard it might be a little more brittle in the long run, but it certainly works. You need to polymerize the oil, my understanding is that to do that you need to exceed the smoke point of the oil during the seasoning process. I know kenji has advised against it but I've got a small little pan I use for eggs most mornings that I initially seasoned with flaxseed several years ago and it's held up just fine and is slick as shit. I've seen some methods that use beeswax as well, both alone and in combination with an oil. All this to say it's not 'poor information', it might not be the absolute best oil to use, but it does certainly work. If for some reason the only oil you have in the house is flaxseed, it will season your pan.

dfxm12 2y ago
A pan doesn't need to be well-seasoned prior to cooking eggs in it. People cook eggs in stainless pans, for example. Likely, that flaxseed oil flaked down the drain when you washed your pan or onto your eggs the first time you cooked with it and you've been able to give your pan proper seasoning with the fat you normally cook with over the past several years.
- sleepybrett 2y ago
  That flaxseed oil certainly did not go 'down the drain', I'm not an idiot. This was not my frist seasoned pan and it wasn't my last I just decided to try flaxseed oil as I had some in the house. Certainly oils and fats from subsequent uses help reinforce the initial seasoning. However, I challenge you to strip a cast iron pan and try to cook eggs in it and tell me how you got them not to stick. It may be that I treat my cast iron gently when washing that kept this initial season on, I'm not sure, but if you are scrubbing your cast iron with large amount or strong soaps it's going to have a bad effect on ANY seasoning. On the beeswax tip, a little searching found me this: https://crisbee.org/ https://crisbee.org/ which is apparently basically crisco mixed with some bees wax.
  - dfxm12 2y ago
    However, I challenge you to strip a cast iron pan and try to cook eggs in it and tell me how you got them not to stick. The same way you cook on stainless. If you heat the pan and oil properly, you can let the Leidenfrost effect take it from there. I'm not sure, but if you are scrubbing your cast iron with large amount or strong soaps it's going to have a bad effect on ANY seasoning. No. If it flakes off, it is not seasoning. At that point, it is just burnt oil. But that's OK, because you can build up seasoning the next time you cook. Crisco alone is a lot cheaper than some highly marketed brand of crisco + beeswax and will do just as good a job at seasoning your pan. Plus, you'll have crisco left over for other stuff. There's no need to buy these "boutique" products just for your pan.
    - sleepybrett 2y ago
      i don't, just some validation for the articles i've read that contain beeswax.

dfxm12 2y ago

A pan doesn't need to be well-seasoned prior to cooking eggs in it. People cook eggs in stainless pans, for example. Likely, that flaxseed oil flaked down the drain when you washed your pan or onto your eggs the first time you cooked with it and you've been able to give your pan proper seasoning with the fat you normally cook with over the past several years.

sleepybrett 2y ago
That flaxseed oil certainly did not go 'down the drain', I'm not an idiot. This was not my frist seasoned pan and it wasn't my last I just decided to try flaxseed oil as I had some in the house. Certainly oils and fats from subsequent uses help reinforce the initial seasoning. However, I challenge you to strip a cast iron pan and try to cook eggs in it and tell me how you got them not to stick. It may be that I treat my cast iron gently when washing that kept this initial season on, I'm not sure, but if you are scrubbing your cast iron with large amount or strong soaps it's going to have a bad effect on ANY seasoning. On the beeswax tip, a little searching found me this: https://crisbee.org/ https://crisbee.org/ which is apparently basically crisco mixed with some bees wax.
- dfxm12 2y ago
  However, I challenge you to strip a cast iron pan and try to cook eggs in it and tell me how you got them not to stick. The same way you cook on stainless. If you heat the pan and oil properly, you can let the Leidenfrost effect take it from there. I'm not sure, but if you are scrubbing your cast iron with large amount or strong soaps it's going to have a bad effect on ANY seasoning. No. If it flakes off, it is not seasoning. At that point, it is just burnt oil. But that's OK, because you can build up seasoning the next time you cook. Crisco alone is a lot cheaper than some highly marketed brand of crisco + beeswax and will do just as good a job at seasoning your pan. Plus, you'll have crisco left over for other stuff. There's no need to buy these "boutique" products just for your pan.
  - sleepybrett 2y ago
    i don't, just some validation for the articles i've read that contain beeswax.