The one I have that keeps the seasoning well is a Griswold, got it at a flea market many years ago. The one I can't keep seasoned is some unknown brand made in Taiwan.
As Cicero said, “Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all the others.”
I have a very well-seasoned Lodge frying pan.
To season: Heat it until it is good and hot. Carefully rub oil on it. Heat it until it smokes a bunch. Repeat. If you are around a campfire, tossing it into the fire works great.
BTW, avoid inhaling the smoke at all cost.
Also, even a Teflon-lined pan works better for frying eggs if it is properly heated first AND sprayed lightly with a cooking oil. The same is true for seasoned cast iron.
I have two iron skillets and a few years ago put both of them through a self-cleaning cycle in my oven to get rid of a ton of gunk build up. Then I seasoned both of them fresh and identically the same according to some web references, although I've forgotten the details. One of the skillets is very old and has that smooth satin finish. It's pretty much held the seasoned properties and cooks like a charm. The other one is newer (like 30 years old) with a slightly rougher finish and it has never taken to seasoning. It's still just fine to cook with. I just add a extra oil before cooking with it and maybe a little extra clean up but it really doesn't stick much. The older skillet just needs a few drops wiped across the cooking surface before cooking. They are both fine, one is just better than the other and I have no idea of the difference since they were treated the same. I don't even own any other skillets.
Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome. - Booker T. Washington
I have both Wagner Ware ( I am a Wagner, just not "those" Wagners, lol) and Griswold cookware. I had a Lodge skillet but sold it - I like my old ones better. They are well seasoned but will stick if abused. I mostly cook with bacon grease or olive oil, and more rarely, butter. This morning I cooked hominy in bacon drippings, then soaked the pan - hominy is gunky -and just washed it out with warm water, dried it and it's good to go. I have never tried to season them, they came well loved and although I washed them really well with soap when I got them, they were old to begin with and all their years of use have seasoned them just fine. I remember my mother seasoning pans and skillets by larding them and leaving them in a wood burning cook stove for a day or so. It must have been when the stove was banked, because lard has a really low smoking point!
Steve, I've never cooked with peanut oil - does it leave a taste when you cook with it? I like the way high grade olive oil doesn't leave a flavor. Of course the reason we use bacon fat is just to opposite - to add flavor.
Well, I decided to start over from scratch. This morning I fired up the grill and placed the skillet inside. After an hour or so all the built up oil had been reduced to flaky little carbon bits and, after a good scrubbing, it was down to bare cast iron. Now, I've applied a light coating of vegetable oil and it's in the oven at 400* for an hour or so. I'm curious to see what it looks like when it's done.
"Things should be made as simple as possible, but not one bit simpler." ~ Albert Einstein
There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)