clynns

I usually wash it good once. Then coat with Crisco all over the inside and out. Put it in low oven temp about 200 for 2 hours. Should be just right. Take it out, wipe off excess so it's not greasy anymore. Store in oven till next time. I don't have problems cleaning the cast iron. I do agree with jaciqltznok though, look for the older ones. You will pay a good price, but it's a matter of you get what you pay for.

sweet

What great advice!

Peckish

You can get the "real" cast iron pots and pans at sporting goods stores. And you should NEVER wash with soap. I rinse mine with water and dry on the stove on medium high heat. If food is stuck, I soak it for 10-15 minutes and use a sponge with a scrubby side. Cast iron pans are the absolute best - I especially love my Dutch oven.

emsgranny

So does the pan have raised sections to simulate grill marks. Dont know that I have ever seen one. With my cast iron skillets I do wash but once dried I wipe down with cooking oil or crisco. I have used the cornbread pans before and I wash them too but make sure that its completely dry than treat as you would skillets. If its well seasoned you dont necessarily need to cook with oil or crisco. If I want to brown something I use it on medium to medium high heat with a small amount of virgin olive oil. I have large dutch oven that I brown roast on all sides (this holds in the juices) add my veges and simmer with lid on stove. I also have a set of skillets One is very deep and the other one I invert foir a lid!!! I love the taste of food in the "seasoned" pots -

BeckyL

Lodge Mfg. makes authentic cast iron skillets. They are sold many places. They also sell pre-seasoned skillets that are new. I have quite a bit of cast iron and use it regularly. I do season by rubbing with oil and baking on low heat for a couple of hours. I allow it to sit until cool, wipe it out and store it. NEVER put cast iron in the dishwasher. I always wash mine with soap and water for saniltary reasons, put it on a hot burner on the stove to thoroughly dry it and then store once it is cool. I use them on the stove top in the oven and on campfires and the grill. You can't beat good cast iron and it lasts forever if taken care of. It also adds some iron to your diet.

I have one cast iron dutch oven with lid that was a wedding gift to my grandmother. I use it all of the time.

arimuse

I can't remember if I posted this before but... when I was young I thought I'd do something nice for dad after school (mom and dad worked) for a surprise and I scrubbed my dad's (his, not mom's) personal favorite cast iron skillet he got from his mom, and I scrubbed it until I hit shine - it took over an hr. Mom got home first and when she saw what I did she screamed and said I'd better run away from home quick, and don't stop to look over my shoulder! Dad was NOT happy! and he stopped short of killing me, lol. He taught me how to season it and wash it and cook in it, and now they're both gone its my skillet. sharet

ThayerRags

My wife and I handle our cast iron about like Becky does. To season a new one or re-season an old one, we use just regular cooking oil (vegetable oil) on a paper towel to coat it, then put it in the oven to bake for an hour or so. We just want to get it good and hot without burning it.

For cleaning, we don’t put ours in the dishwasher either, but we do wash them after every use in mild dish soap, rinse them with water, and stand them in the dish drainer to drip-dry. We store 6 skillets standing in the old dish drainer next to the sink now that we have a dishwasher for nearly everything else.

I’ve left them setting in the sink with soapy water in them overnight several times, with no damage, especially the one that has the ribs in the bottom of it. It requires a metal scrubber on occasion too.

I think one of the things that helps make a cast iron skillet “well seasoned” is constant use, especially using it to cook meat so it gets a lot of animal fat “rendered” in it.

CD in Oklahoma

charity-crafter

emsgranny-
A grill pan does have the ridges.

I cooked chicken breast last night. I did coat it with oil and heated it on the stove for about 20 minutes. It turned out pretty good. The directions said to cook on low-med heat. I wish there was a thermostat on the stove top like in the oven. My idea of med heat might not be the same as their's. It wasn't getting the nice grill dark marks so I turned it up a little.

I cocked some zucchini slices also.

Washing-I poured some water on it while it was still hot and scrubbed with a rubber spatula to remove the cooked on gunk. Mine has some sort of enamal coating. Then recoated with a little oil. We'll see if I cooked too hot when I try to cook with it again. Nothing stuck so we'll see.

Please know that I am not talking quality cast iron cookware. http://aldi.us/us/html/offers/2827_14471_ENU_HTML.htm

BeckyL

The enamel coating makes it very different. On those pieces I have with the enamel I put them in the dishwasher.

They also do not require seasoning.

charity-crafter

It was a note in the directions that said don't scratch the enamal coating when cooking or cleaning. It didn't say anything about an enamal coating on the box.