I have recently discovered the wonders of cooking with cast iron pans. Why has it taken this long? The only answer that comes to mind is comfort and fear, fear of the unknown and comfort of the familiar, which would be stainless steel. This fear and comfort is the same reason, I think, that prevents others from using cast iron pans.  

 Cast iron pans are heavy, inexpensive and last for generations. My father cooks with cast iron pans that his mother owned, these pans are almost 100 years old. Where else can you find value like that? For the price of a cheap 10 inch skillet you can buy a cast iron skillet that will last much, much longer and deliver better results.

 What always prevented me from using the 2 cast iron pans that sat in the bottom of my oven for years was the care and initial seasoning. As it turns out the seasoning was a piece of cake and the care takes minutes.

 Seasoning a cast iron pan

 1)     Use a sponge and light, soapy water to quickly remove any remaining surface dirt and dry the pan thoroughly with paper towels or by air drying.

 2)      Pre-heat oven and dry the pan. Take a vegetable oil, I have Wesson but it really doesn’t matter. I’ve heard that lard or shortening works too. Using a paper towel, coat the pan with a thin layer and place upside down in an oven set to 350 degrees. Use foil paper on bottom of the oven to catch oil dripping. Bake for an hour.

 3)      You’re done.

 Care for your pan

After using my cast iron pan I wash with hot water and a stiff brush, no soap, don’t worry, its fine. I dry it thoroughly with a towel and set it upside down on a few paper towels. If it’s at night, after I dry it I rub a little vegetable oil on and heat it up on the stove for a little while, 20-30 minutes. After a while it should get a nice black shine to it.

If your cast iron pan happens to become rusty, it is because it is not seasoned correctly. Don’t worry, I had this problem, just get some sand paper and sand it off and re-season it. Bam! I don’t see Emeral telling you that.

That sounds pretty easy, right? Yeah, I thought so.

 Now that you know how easy it is to care for cast iron, don’t be shy, give it a try!

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