Cast iron skillets

[Robin'sBrood]

Not to take away from cast iron but another kitchen item that I can not live without is my Pampered Chef Covered Baker...

(WONDERFUL for baking chicken and roasts!)

and my Pampered Chef Small Bar Pan

I like all my many other PC stones too, but these are the two that get the most use. The bar pan stays inside my toaster oven... perfect fit... and is almost black from all the chicken nuggets that have been heated on it. If y'all don't have any stoneware you need to get some!

 

[CATRAY44]

I have a big round baking ston from Pampered Chef... it is as important to me as my cast iron pans...

 

[Robin'sBrood]

I got my mom a bar pan for her toaster oven and it drives her crazy that it's trying to season and turn brown. I keep trying to tell her that that is GOOD but she won't listen. And this is a woman who owns and uses black cast iron.

 

[Sunny Side Up]

What's the best way to fix a cast iron pan that has been seasoned, used, cleaned, and is now sticky/tacky? Should I just keep wiping in oil, continue using it for frying, and eventually it will get that smooth slick coat? When it gets tacky I feel like I should scrub it all off & start again new, but perhaps that's not the best thing to do...

 

[Opa]

Reheat it.

 

[curliet]

It seems that if when I use oil on mine, it works fine as long as you use it frequently. But, if I put it away with oil on it, and don't use it for awhile it gets tacky. I use shortening or lard and heat it well, making sure that the coating is very thin and filmy. Then I put a paper towel inside and put it away. They seem fine after that.

Edited to add...
We learned from an outfitter friend when we were camping in the bush that the best way to clean the cast iron after cooking was to just put it back on the fire and let the fire take care of the stuff in the bottom of the pan. It turns to ash, and then you can just wipe it out and put another layer of grease on. We use all cast iron at our place up north, and cook on the woodstove most of the time at deer season. That's how I do it then.

Once a while back, I had taken my big chicken fryer over to my mom's to make dinner for her, and she said, just leave the pan here and I'll wash all the dishes and bring it back to you. Well, she brought it back all bright and shiny, she really complained too, about how long it took and how hard it was to scrape all that black stuff off. This was my Grandmother's pan, seasoned perfectly. It took me a few years to get it back the way I had it, LOL.

 

[MissPrissy]

Quote:
Pampered chef is ok but they get their ideas from other established items.

In the UK the chicken brick is popular and most used.

I prefer Romertopf for good clay bakers.

 

[Clay In Iowa]

Quote:
Might be a bit late on this but I do all the cooking in our house. I love to cook so it's heaven for me.

I use 3 cast iron pans all the time. That's the key, use them, use them, use them. The more you use them the better they get. I've thrown all my Teflon pans out because my cast iron works better. I LOVE my cast iron pans.

First of all be very patient if you are starting with new pans. They will take a lot of time to become properly seasoned. All 4 of my grand mothers used cast iron exclusively and they all told me at one point it takes a very long time to get one seasoned. Which is why they've become an odd sort of family Heirloom. My wifes paternal grandmother, an old farmers wife, actually gets new pans and cooks with them for about a year and then gives them to her grandchildren as Christmas gifts. Those who cook know how truly special a gift this is. If you stick to it they will get there and I'm certain you'll soon see anything with Teflon on it gathering dust before long.

The key is to NEVER get them any where near soap. The oils in the 'pores' of the skillet are critical in making them non stick and for the formation of the carbon coating (it's why they turn black). Just rinse them with water or wipe them out with paper towels. If something does stick a bit reheat the pan fill with hot water and let it soak. After 5 minutes or so use a plastic scraper to clean it out. Then put it back on the stove to dry (heat on). Once dry and well heated add a few drops of oil and wipe around with a paper towel to evenly coat. NEVER use anything like a scotchbrite pad it'll take the coating off the pan and you'll be starting over (*more on this below) and don't put them away dry (no oil) it allows a fine layer of rust in humid weather and will destroy the coating.

Most people who have problems with their cast iron sticking either scrub their pans to clean them which removes that built up non-stick coating OR they do everything correctly (this was me for several year) but then they don't use them enough. With infrequent use the oils on the pan get sticky and will glue almost anything down. If you use them 4 or 5 times a week AT LEAST you won't have any problems.

*Back to scrubbing your pans. Once when I was a bout 10 or 11 my parents were in a very serious accident. They were both hospitalized for several weeks which meant my mothers pans were left unused. When they did finally get back home of course all moms beautifully seasoned pans had turned into culinary Velcro. After about a week of hearing my mom curse those pans during every meal preparation my dear dad decided to help. The problem you see was that the pans weren't clean. So dad..... cleaned them. He took them to the shop and with a very fine grit sand paper sanded them down to a nice shinny iron silver, inside and out. On seeing her 'new' shinny pans my mother stood with her mouth open saying nothing for several minutes, never a good sign. As far as dad was concerned she wasn't silent for nearly long enough for when the words finally came... well let's say an 11 year old boy learned several new words and how to use familiar old words in new combination that day. I think "livid" best describes my mother that day. Nearly resulted in a divorce. To this day 30+ years later if you bring this up, and I do now and then just for kicks, my mother still gets angry and my dad just heads for the shop.

 

[Chicken Salad]

They will have to pry my cast iron skillet out of my cold, dead hand.

 

[MissPrissy]

Here is my 10 1/2 inch skillet.

I use it every day.

The bottom is perfect and shines like glass. Actually in person you can see your mirror image in the bottom. That's what makes it non-stick.

The flash is a little blinding - but it is that shiney. lol