How to Care for Your Cast Iron Skillet – Check out the benefits of cooking with cast iron. Plus, learn how to give it the care it deserves to make it last for generations!
I recently jumped onto the cast iron bandwagon and I’m in love with my pan, and not just because it looks pretty in my kitchen… Cast iron pans are an excellent way to enrich your food with iron, they are naturally non-stick (which means less oil is needed in cooking), and they’re completely toxin-free. Additionally, I might add that they are excellent conductors of heat. Mine cooks more evenly than any of my pans. As a home cook that takes herself a little too seriously, this is really important!
I’m super excited that the folks over at PartSelect and Ghergich & Co made an AWESOME infographic available to me to share with you! It’s so informative that I decided it deserves it’s own post in my “How To” section. Check it out below!
Source: PartSelect.com
If you love to cook with cast iron, you may like these recipes…
Great tips! I think food always tastes better cooked in a cast iron skillet.
Thanks Kim! I agree!
I am glad you posted this. I bought my lodge pan a few weeks ago, but didn’t know this stuff.
No problem Adina. Have fun with your new pan!
What an awesome informative post. I think I knew how to season a cast iron skillet at one time, but four kids later that information is long departed. Great reminders and glad to have all this great information. Thank you Rachel!
Don’t you hate the whole Mommy brain thing! I have same problem!
Great article. One thing I’d like to know, a few years ago I saw cast aluminum pans. Is there any way I can tell if my newer pan is cast iron or cast aluminum?
Good questions! Sure there is! Aluminum is a fairly light weight metal, by contrast cast iron is REALLY heavy. I need two hands to steady my 14 inch pan even when it’s empty. I hope that’s helpful!
I still remember the time I walked into the kitchen to find my MIL busily soaping and scrubbing my skillet.
Ack!
I <3 cast iron, though I'll admit my 12 inch pan is really heavy to lift in and out of the oven when full.
Great graphic, thanks!
Oh geez… And a girl needs to be careful about what she says to her MIL! I hope it survived!
Hi, I am Dianna. I saw your comment and wanted to say that it is okay to was your pan. I am 72 years old and have used them my whole life. I eve run mine through the dishwasher. They are porus & food does get trapped. All you have do is spray it with some Pam and you are good to go. Other wise you are eating old food that comes out when it is hot. That is pretty gross. Lol
I’m happy washing you pan in the dishwasher has worked out for you, but I think I’ll stick with plain old water, salt and heat for cleaning mine. I don’t have much issue with food getting stuck to my pan as I use microfiber cloth to clean it while it is still warm. I then dry it over a burner which heats and cleans it further. I then season with vegetable oil as pam has known carcinogens. Over time my pan has become more non-stick with my method.
On another note, I actually avoid the dishwasher and harsh chemicals in my home (but not at work as I’m a nurse). More recent research has shown the benefits of not being too clean… decreased incidence of allergies, healthier immune system, and less antibiotic resistance. Here’s some interesting articles: (1) http://time.com/3717020/dishwashing-allergies/ , (2) http://www.scientificamerican.com/podcast/episode/can-it-be-bad-to-be-too-clean-the-h-11-04-06/
Great info! I need to ‘re-season my skillet and get back to using it!
Thanks Donna! Once the skillet gets a good season on it I find that it’s really easy to clean and care form because it becomes virtually non-stick, so it should hopefully be worth your efforts!
Great tips. I love my cast iron skillets!! I think for years they’ve had a bad wrap. I do need to do a little bit of reasoning. Thank you for the reminder.
Yeah, what’s with the bad wrap that cast iron skillets get??? I far prefer it to anything teflon!
I need to buy a new cast iron skillet. This will be great to reference. Thank you for posting.
Thanks! And who knows? With a little salt and oil, you may be able to breath new life into your old one!
I don’t have a skillet, but there are some great tips here.
Thanks Dannii! I was married over 7 years before I got one. I didn’t realize what I was missing out on until I got one!
These tips are so good and useful. Thank you so much for sharing them. .
Thanks Deepika!
This is so helpful, I used to get really worried when it’s time to clean my cast iron pan.
I know what you mean… I’d worry I was messing-up the seasoning and such. I’m happy this was helpful!