Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Patanjali, do you have a self cleaning oven. You might be able to put your pans in that and burn it off. My hubby has had me put his cast iron grill racks in when I clean my oven. I don't know how the pans would survive that heat and I would make sure that they cool down slowly with the oven.
In my experience cast iron pans easily survive the self cleaning cycle. It takes them back to their raw state.
The only notable downside is a fair amount of smoke as the oven cooks off the seasoning.
Patanjali, do you have a self cleaning oven. You might be able to put your pans in that and burn it off.
I don't Phawk. In fact, I've never lived in any apt with one... sometimes I feel like a time traveler... haha. If I had one, I'd pummel you with posts about what to do with it, so it's probably good, yeah?
I also have a dishwasher I've never used & never will & wash by hand any clothing with delicate fabrics. I'm a regular luddite. I don't have any looms to destroy but I may need to be talked out of chucking cast iron off the balcony.
Jax... I don't even know where to find someone to do sand blasting or how much it would cost, but I think that would be a good idea for someone with good pans, like Mel who got a Griswold at a garage sale for $1. Comparing these pans to the Lodge pizza skillet I just picked up, I believe part of the issue is I bought inferior pans. Maybe it won't matter in the long run & they'll just need extra care, but I'm not sure they're worth much more effort. After sleeping on it, I think I'll just give this set away & chalk it up to experience. I won't buy again online without seeing what I'm getting first... I'm disgusted I'm having the same problem with my "I think it's aluminum" which I thought were stainless steel based on the product description.
Maybe I should just be kept out of the kitchen... haha Well, at least I can make pizza (I'm enjoying all the recipes in the pizza thread & will be making them weekly) & a mean espresso. You can live on that alone, yeah? And, you are right on supplements... that stuff aien't cheap for good quality!
Thank you Outback... good to know should I ever find myself in a flat with a self-cleaning oven. That must be one of those newfangled things the kids are talking about...
Thank you kindly everyone for your replies & I am still working on the PMs... I haven't forgotten anyone!
Lodge is actually a good brand. I have a lot of Lodge and even some pans with no name on the bottom. They all work well. Once you are able to season it you will find that you like them. Find a friend with a self cleaning feature for the oven and burn all the stuff off it before you give it up.
Lodge is actually a good brand. I have a lot of Lodge and even some pans with no name on the bottom. They all work well. Once you are able to season it you will find that you like them. Find a friend with a self cleaning feature for the oven and burn all the stuff off it before you give it up.
Thanks Phawk. You know I have a Lodge pizza skillet from Ace & it's the only one I can use with ease... it's slippery & has a nice smooth surface. I'll return to see if they have a Dutch oven... at least that will hold me over 'til I find a really good decent pot... several here were kind enough to PM me some info on finding pans, so a bit of research will be needed... I'm sure I'll find one once I catch my bearings in my new town & can visit some good ol' swat meets.
Good idea on the oven but I'm brand new here so I'll need to take care of it, however, I was just looking at my giant stainless steel pot I could boil a redwood in & thinking I might be able to boil the pans clean? Someone mentioned a dishwasher cleaning, too. I do have a DW which I don't use, but probably wouldn't need soap to run it through one cycle... in fact, I'm going to do that tonight. Since it's between that or the recycle bin, I guess both are worth a try. Thanks for your post.
I just wanted to thank everyone for contributing to this thread & others on cast iron... I seem to have salvaged my pots/pans, at least for now.
I put the pans through the dishwasher on the hottest, longest cycle with a bit of dishwashing soap like someone here recommended. They were cleaner (still had old stubborn gunk on them, but they were much better), but one was a bit rusted... I had just about had it. Then, I read in another thread that if a pan needs a bit of re-seasoning, to fry some bacon atop the stove... thank you to the gent who posted that. I fried beef bacon, which has very little fat, in oil so it was greasier & even though drained was a bit hard to eat, but the pans look great. I let them sit for 2-days with the oil in them, periodically taking a paper towel to saturate with the oil in the pan & wiping over the entire inside surfaces... I didn't attempt to do the outside surfaces because I've created quite a mess already with all I've done.
Even though they seem to be working better, I may still donate them. Everything I make needs more oil than I'd ever think of using to cook food (I normally use a bit of broth or water to avoid calories)... it not only makes me nauseous to eat oily food but I'm sure blubber where I don't want it is sure to follow. So... I don't think these pans & this kind of cooking are for me, at all. I honestly have no idea what I'd cook in them & don't want to cure my anemia but become overweight with heart disease in the process.
I'm open to suggestions/recipes, but I'm thinking there's not a lot I could do with these. Am I wrong?
Thanks again everyone. I appreciate all the effort everyone's put in to help me!
I have five cast iron frying pans in differing sizes, four cast iron pots, also in differing sizes and a Dutch Oven, My wife says "If he could find a cast iron coffee pot, he would use that too." They cook evenly and add iron content to food. All we use for shortening of any sort is extra virgin Olive Oil. All my cast iron ware is also seasoned with olive oil. 1. throughly clean the pan 2. coat with olive oil and bake in a 200 degree oven until it darkens (put the ironware on a cookie sheet while seasoning) re-apply thin layers of olive oil (I use an el cheapo 1.5 inch paintbrush to coat the metal with olive oil, and to re-apply as it cures) as you season until it turns a brownish black. Never put cast iron in a dish washer, use warm water, not hot and just a very little soap, dry throughly and reapply a very light coat of oil. They will last several lifetimes, The more you use it the better it cures. always apply a very thin coat of oil before you store it.
They will last several lifetimes, The more you use it the better it cures. always apply a very thin coat of oil before you store it.
I agree that it will last several lifetimes. My cast iron will be fought over when I die. hehe I have a reversable griddle, another griddle, a VERY LARGE griddle I inherited from my folks(it's so big it doesn't fit on my stove), several fry pans(even a square fry pan that I love for bacon), a waffle iron, a dutch oven and a the best wok I've ever had. If I say I like something DH spoils me rotten and gets it. Lehmans probably loves him.
When I went to help my daughter after her back surgery I got all of her cast iron seasoned and going well because she just kept mucking it up. She has since learned to care for it.
Lodge is the way to go. Many iron products are not properly finished.
Hi Wilson... I've gotten as many suggestions to buy Lodge as to not buy it. I only have a Lodge pizza skillet from Ace Hardware... it's the only pan which prevents sticking. The others are a nightmare.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Salvaged pans...
