I remember reading somewhere (old forum maybe) about a certain way to cook foods in skillets, so that the food would not stick to the skillets. Something about either heating the pan first before you put in the oil, or maybe it was heat the oil and the pan first before you put the food in???? Pleaseeeee!!!!! I dont remember!!!! And I am having a terrible time with all my food sticking with my cast iron skillets... If I were to reseason them (how would I do that??) would that help the food not to stick? I am so tired of breaking yokes because the eggs are sticking. I love my cast iron, and dont really want to get rid of them, but the food sticking is really a frustrating issue. Does anyone remember the thread I am talking about????

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I don't recall the forum thread you're talking about, but they're talking about just this issue on a different discussion board.

More at: Cooking for Engineers https://tinyurl.com/rz7ug

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It's really important to heat the cast iron pan before cooking, that's the beauty of this method, the pan then retains the heat uniformly and you don't get hotspots.

Here's what I recomend to re-season: Wash the pan with detergent, then scrape off as much of the old seasoning as possible. Dry it thoroughly, rub with oil, then bake in the oven for several hours as around 300. This allows the metal to expand and the oil to stick better.

Of course, you should not use detergent to clean the pan after seasoning, just scrape, rinse with hot water, dry and re-oil each time.

In our time, the germ phobia and compulsive cleanliness might keep some people from not washing each time, but that ruins the finish and makes food stick.

I'm 63 years old and I've been eating food cooked in cast iron pans almost my whole life because that's the only kind of frying pan my Mother cooked with, and the one I've always preferred.

I always get the pan hot, just below the smoking point, if I plan to brown foods. It should be too hot to hold your hand a few inches above it for more than a few seconds. A drop of water should sizzle or skip around if you drop it in the pan, but not spatter all over the place. I always add the oil before the pan is heated. Most people are in a big hurry when they cook and don't allow time for the pan to get hot, then food simmers in it's juices and steams rather than browning. Then there's people like my mother-in-law who turned the pan on high no matter what she fried...her eggs always had hard skirts on them and were like tire patches. I turn the burner to medium-low for eggs, but most things I fry on medium heat.

I watched a chef on TV a few years ago, can't remember which one, but he said that food will stick if you try to turn it too soon, before it browns and sets up. If food seems to be sticking, try to wait a minute or two longer and nudge it gently to see if it moves easily. If your pan is too hot when you add the food it may cause it to stick too. Different kinds of oil are worse than others for sticking it seems like, but I don't know what to recommend on here since I've discovered that most of the ones I used over the years are unhealthy....like bacon drippings and corn oil. I use a combination of butter and oil sometimes.

Billcatt is right....don't use detergent when you clean the pan or the seasoning on the pan will absorb the perfumey smell and your food will taste like soap the next time you use it. What makes cast iron cook so nice is the seasoning that constantly gets thicker every time you fry with it so you don't want to scrub it all off. I use a spatula under hot water to scrape the pan good, or let it soak with hot water for a "short" time, I wipe it to remove excess grease with a paper towel, then rinse and wipe with a clean towel, adding a teaspoon or less of cooking oil to coat the pan good before putting away.

Tomato sauce, like in spaghetti sauce will eat the seasoning from the pan, so it's better to fry your meats, onion and garlic or whatever first, then transfer to a stainless steel pan when you add the tomato ingredients if you plan to simmer it for a long time. A quick sauce would be ok in cast iron if the pan is well seasoned beforehand and if the sauce isn't allowed to stand after cooking. If when you rinse the pan you see it trying to rust before your eyes, keep water in the pan until you can quickly oil it, because oxygen causes the rust and water slows it down.

Well, that's been my experience at least...I hope this has been helpful. Good luck to you.

nightowl

Thank you all for the help. My skillets are really old, I have had them for about twenty years. They were caked with alot of old seasoning at the time, but through the years it has all come off. Because the food always sticks, I have had to wash them with a scrubber and detergent. I use them on a daily basis. When I am done washing them, I put them on the stove and turn the burner on to let them dry. Have never had a rust problem until just recently, so I know they are in desparate need of reseasoning. My favorite skillet, the 10 inch fry has a lump on the bottom of the skillet, I am guessing from the cast iron buckleing because at one point I apparently allowed it to get too hot? I still use it, but it makes for uneven cooking..... I love my skillets, have been cooking with them for as long as I can remember. I just need to try and reseason them and hopefully will be able to save them and use them for a long time.

I'd be careful with the pan with the bump. I've heard of pans getting air pockets and exploding or cracking. Seems impossible with something so hard, but it does happen.

I didn't have time to read the information at this site, but I think it will answer your questions as it gives different methods of cleaning an old pan.

https://whatscookingamerica.net/Infor...ngCastIron.htm

I searched for an hour for this information, so for future reference for all of you, the Google search above is set to search for medical questions and answers....I found out the hard way that you need to click "Web" to search subjects such as this.

I know how attached you are to those old frying pans. But my daughter gave me a 12 inch one a few years ago ( I should say I begged her for it!) and it's about the only one I use now. Lots of room...not so crowded.

Good luck...I hope this helps.

nightowl

After reading a little at that site, I'd say the easiest way to clean the pans is with ammonia. My old ones need it too.

Hi Justme,

I bought a comal, a flat low sided round pan for making tortillas and the instructions that came with it for seasoning were news to me. This is a cast iron pan.

Instructions were to rub the surface of the new pan with garlic and let it dry. I mashed about 6 garlic cloves thru the garlic press and rubbed them all over the pan and let it sit overnight. Next day I picked off the pieces of the garlic and rinsed the pan, and started using it. It didn't stick.

I still haven't gotten around to making tortillas but I use the pan to cook bacon, shredded potatoes, and eggs. It has turned into one of my favorite pans. Omie

Oh, by the way, if the outside of the pan has built up a crust, put the pan in a fire and it will come out clean like new. Have to reseason but the outside will be clean.

Hi Omie. You say to put the pan in a a flame to clean the outside? So if I got a flame gun - paint-stripper type, you reckon that would do it? My old cast iron pan could do with a clean up on the outside.
I think I will try this and report back..
Thanks.

HI Justme,

I never tried a paint stripper heat gun. I have one of those small cast iron stoves on my patio and burn scrap wood, put the pan in the fire and when it has cooled off, (the fire dies out) I have a clean pan.

It might take longer than you are willing to hold the flame to get the pan clean, but, heck, it's worth a try.

Omie

�I'd be careful with the pan with the bump. I've heard of pans getting air pockets and exploding or cracking. Seems impossible with something so hard, but it does happen.�

I would not worry too much about a cast iron skillet exploding, particularly an old one that has seen a lot of use. However a brand new foundry fresh one, maybe, but it would require a flaw in the casting process that produced a trapped air pocket in the metal. Then if it did break it would only blow out a small portion of the metal.

On the other hand if you get a skillet really hot and you toss it into a sink full of cold water, there is a good chance it you will crack it.

The burning off of the baked on gook in and very hot oven or with and open flame is probable the easiest way to clean them. With a melting point around 2800 degrees (F) there is not much you can do to hurt it.


[My wife has an electric blender, electric toaster, and electric bread maker; she said, �there are too many gadgets and no place to sit down!� �So I bought her an electric chair.]

I think where you initially went wrong was in trying to season your skillet/pan on TOP of the stove. They can be seasoned better by baking at a fairly low - 300 or lower - setting, but for several hours. Then allow to cool

BTW, I never experience sticking on any pans/skillets, when using coconut oil.

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earlybird, I wasnt seasoning the skillet on the top of the stove, but I do dry them after washing on the top of the stove......

Thanks everyone for the great info.....

The skillet that has a bump on it, is over twenty years old, the bump appeared about a year ago or so, and I still use it at least 5 times a week, no problems, except for uneven cooking.

Plan on having a bonfire in July... (owe a kid a coming home party) We have been saving up wood for over a year now.... Its going to be a really big fire. My intentions are, putting all my skillets in the fire then... and do them all at one time..... Might have to dig through some ashes to find them afterwards, but they should be clean!!!!!