Things you should know 001: How to season a cast iron skillet.

Cast iron skillets are some of the best for general purpose, non-stick cookware out there.
You may be wondering why the owner of a coffee company is talking to me about cast iron cookware…

Well for starters, I learned to roast coffee on a cast iron skillet, second is we all have skills that we can pass along to others.

First off, is the cast iron you’re wanting to season a modern day piece?
From Lodge or another manufacturer?

If it is… then the pan surface is likely rough from the molding process.
If your cast iron is an older piece and has a smooth surface you can skip this step and can generously clean it with soap and hot water to remove old seasoning and dirt.

This step isn’t required, however, it helps significantly so I would very much recommend you do it.

Sand down the pan surface to get as smooth as a surface as possible. This will help you get an even seasoning coat onto the pan and make it even more non-stick.

You can do it by hand or with an electric sander.

Once you’ve sanded the surface down smooth, make sure you wash it with warm water and soap to get rid of any dust.

After that give it a final good scrubbing and once over with some steel wool to refine that surface some more.

Wipe it dry, throw it in the oven at 400 degrees, give it an even coat of olive oil, and bake it for an hour.

After an hour has gone by.
Pull your one time season skillet out, give it some more olive oil, rub it evenly over the surfaces, and toss it back in the oven. Bake it again for an hour.

Repeat this process at least 4 times to get a nice seasoning on the pan.

Once you’re happy with the seasoning level, give it a wipe down with some oil on a cloth, and let it cool down in the oven. The last little wipe down with the oil will give it a nice shine and be ready to cook with the next time you go to make a meal.

Here are some tips to make sure your cast iron skillet remains non-stick. Especially when cooking eggs.

Make sure you allow your skillet time to heat up. By doing this you’ll allow the pores in the pan to expand and soak up more oil/butter pending what you use; this helps create that non-stick layer.

Once your pan is heated up, I like to give it a once over with an oily cloth and then toss in some butter to give the pan a nice non-stick layer. This will ensure that even eggs won’t become part of the pan surface.

After you’re done cooking, scrap any bits off, give it a good wipe with a cloth and add some oil on top as it cools.

Once a week I give it a good clean with soap and water, not a lot, just enough to wipe it down and rinse it off quick. After you wash it, towel dry it, toss in on a burner or in the oven to get the rest of the water off and give it some oil.