Cast Iron Skillet Care

OMG! I bought a cast iron skillet. I thought this would be great to share with you this morning. I got my Lodge brand skillet at my local grocery store for about $10 less than I could buy it from Amazon. I didn't find out until I researched that Lodge is the best brand on the market according to other bloggers. 

First thing you need to know is that you can't let these skillets get wet beyond washing them. Because they will rust. The second thing you need to know is these need to be seasoned with vegetable oil. So, even though my skillet was seasoned at the factory, I did have to wash it as soon as I got it home, because there was no covering on it. Everybody who was curious about a cast iron skillet had touched it before I bought it. Okay, probably not many people, but in my imagination, only 1 other person touching it was enough to warrant a thorough washing. 

Once washed, I dried it with a completely dry dish towel - not one I had just dried my hands or other dishes with.  Next, I poured about a dime-size drop of oil inside the skillet and rubbed it all over the inside of the skillet with a paper towel. Then I poured a dime-size drop of oil on my paper towel and rubbed it over the outside. These skillets have a rough outer texture, so if the paper towel comes off in chunks as you rub in the oil, just "slap" it off with the towel you dried the skillet with. 

The oil did disperse a bit before I rubbed it in

I'll admit that this oiling made me cringe a bit. But the skillet isn't oily at all once the process is over. It's like putting lotion on your body. You rub it in good and the oil protects the skillet from getting rusty. With that said, you still don't want to grab it with wet hands or a wet towel. The water may penetrate the oil since it is a very thin layer of oil. 

My next thought after oiling was where to store the skillet. So, I decided to store it inside my oven since there will be no water inside there. Plus any heat will help cure that oil. Just remember to remove it before you use the oven. If you forget to remove it before you preheat the oven, use a completely dry dish towel or oven mitts to remove it before you put your meal in the oven. It took me about 10 times of forgetting to remove it before preheating. But I am remembering fairly well now. 

You can see where chunks of the paper towel came off as I rubbed in the oil. But I just slapped those chunks right off with a dry towel.

Confession: I haven't used it yet. I got the 12 inch skillet so I can make a grilled pizza in it. I've lost that pizza recipe, so I'm currently looking for another simple grilled pizza recipe. However, it has been in and out of my oven so many times right next to the kitchen sink, AND it still has NO rust. So, my extra care has paid off. 

I understand that veggies are great grilled or baked inside an iron skillet. But beware! There are foods you also should never cook in a cast iron skillet. Southern Living has a list of these foods. Before I leave you today, I just want you to always remember the 2 most important things: always keep skillet dry and season after every use. When all was said and done, I had less than 10 minutes in the whole cleaning and seasoning process.

Happy cooking!

Patricia