swamppirate
Lunatic Member
I use a cast iron skillet that is probably 100 years old.....wash with warm soapy water, dry, put a thin coat of oil and put in oven to "dry" . That's it.
Old cast iron griddle - prep before using?
- Thread starter Lo-Fidelity
- Start date
xero-D-hero
Super Member
If they're not too bad I usually scrub 'em down good w/coarse salt and paper towels or such.
Then rinse 'em off and towel dry 'em & reseason as most here describe.
HTH
Bret P.
Then rinse 'em off and towel dry 'em & reseason as most here describe.
HTH
Bret P.
Lo-Fidelity
Super Member
On closer inspection the crud was thicker than I was interested in scrubbing off. I heated it up on the grill to about 225 and put it on saw horses and hit it with the oven cleaner. Wow, the gunk just dissolved. When it cooled I washed off with cold water and gave it a light scrub with stainless steal pad. Back to the grill to dry throughly. Wiped it down with a thin later of Crisco. It's cooking now, and think it is going to turnout real nice. Thanks all for your thoughts and ideas here. Pictures to follow.
Lo-Fidelity
Super Member
We do it. In South Carolina we called them hoe cakes.
Lo-Fidelity
Super Member
I think it turned out pretty good.
Looks great!
soundmotor
super modified
That looks great!
Lo-Fidelity
Super Member
We've had some good breakfasts with toasted biscuits, bacon, and fried and scrambled eggs. The Coleman was a $5 estate sale find, and it cooks better than my propane unit.
There are a couple of areas on the griddle that aren't as seasoned as they should be and the food wants to stick. I may have to redo the cleaning and seasoning but it is really not a big deal.
There are a couple of areas on the griddle that aren't as seasoned as they should be and the food wants to stick. I may have to redo the cleaning and seasoning but it is really not a big deal.
Someone PM'd me and asked me to explain how I restore iron, so I'm posting below rather than replying to PM as this isn't a secret at all just stuff that I do that isn't in any online how-tos that I've seen.
Hi Anthony
there's nothing secret about my method, there's just a few things I do that aren't captured in any of the how-tos online
So let's assume that you've found a nice old Griswold #8 skillet in a thrift store (hey we can dream right?) but it's covered with crusty black stuff and worse, it was used by someone who didn't know how to care for it so there's some surface rust on it as well.
Step 1 for me is to get a bottle of lye crystals and mix it with water in a 5 gallon bucket (WITH LID - it'll smell pretty bad after it starts working) and then throw the skillet in until I feel like dealing with it.
Step 2, which you can skip if there is no rust, is a couple days in an electrolytic derusting tank. I just use another 5 gallon bucket, some plastic clamps, some rebar scraps, and an Astron 12V power supply (or you could use an old manual battery charger) that'll cook off all the old rust. I started doing this with old car parts back when I did stuff like that, but it works great on iron cookware too.
Now here's where the tricks come in. Before seasoning, I'll scrub the piece well with soapy water, then follow with a good scrub with a Magic Eraser to hopefully start pulling all the converted rust out of the pores of the metal. This will destroy the Magic Eraser but the goal here is to get the metal squeaky clean. Then I season using Jeff Rogers' method as detailed here:
http://theculinaryfanatic.com/cast-...nance/jeff-rogers-cast-iron-seasoning-method/
Jeff uses the blue disposable shop towels for wipe off; I use terry cloth towels from the auto parts store. Both work, but the key thing is that PAPER TOWELS DO NOT WIPE OFF ENOUGH OIL. you will get spotty seasoning unless you use something more absorbent than regular kitchen paper towels.
The other thing that I do that is not mentioned in Jeff's write up is if I am seasoning an old piece that has been stripped and derusted, I will hold the oven at 200F, wipe on some Crisco (or lard, or beef tallow, or whatever you prefer) let it sit at 200F for about 10 minutes, then wipe it off as if I am going to proceed with seasoning. If I see ANY brown or grey on my wipe off rag, I will wipe on some more Crisco and let it sit for another 10 minutes, then wipe off again. Repeat this as many times as necessary. The reason I do this is I have found NOTHING that will pull as much contaminants out of the surface of the metal as the hot oil, not soap, not Magic Eraser, not anything. The oil is the finishing clean before seasoning. Then after I get to the point where my wipe off rag comes off clean, I follow Jeff's method and let 'er rip, I usually season 3-4 times and then the pieces can be used. Baking cornbread in a skillet is a great way to break it in after initial seasoning, when I make it I set about half the butter aside that the recipe calls for and put that directly in the skillet. Then the other half goes into the batter. Pour the batter into the preheated skillet with melted butter already in it and bake per directions. Et voila, you have cornbread to go with your chili and have gotten one step closer to that good old Grandma quality black seasoning that only develops over time.
Hi Anthony
there's nothing secret about my method, there's just a few things I do that aren't captured in any of the how-tos online
So let's assume that you've found a nice old Griswold #8 skillet in a thrift store (hey we can dream right?) but it's covered with crusty black stuff and worse, it was used by someone who didn't know how to care for it so there's some surface rust on it as well.
Step 1 for me is to get a bottle of lye crystals and mix it with water in a 5 gallon bucket (WITH LID - it'll smell pretty bad after it starts working) and then throw the skillet in until I feel like dealing with it.
Step 2, which you can skip if there is no rust, is a couple days in an electrolytic derusting tank. I just use another 5 gallon bucket, some plastic clamps, some rebar scraps, and an Astron 12V power supply (or you could use an old manual battery charger) that'll cook off all the old rust. I started doing this with old car parts back when I did stuff like that, but it works great on iron cookware too.
Now here's where the tricks come in. Before seasoning, I'll scrub the piece well with soapy water, then follow with a good scrub with a Magic Eraser to hopefully start pulling all the converted rust out of the pores of the metal. This will destroy the Magic Eraser but the goal here is to get the metal squeaky clean. Then I season using Jeff Rogers' method as detailed here:
http://theculinaryfanatic.com/cast-...nance/jeff-rogers-cast-iron-seasoning-method/
Jeff uses the blue disposable shop towels for wipe off; I use terry cloth towels from the auto parts store. Both work, but the key thing is that PAPER TOWELS DO NOT WIPE OFF ENOUGH OIL. you will get spotty seasoning unless you use something more absorbent than regular kitchen paper towels.
The other thing that I do that is not mentioned in Jeff's write up is if I am seasoning an old piece that has been stripped and derusted, I will hold the oven at 200F, wipe on some Crisco (or lard, or beef tallow, or whatever you prefer) let it sit at 200F for about 10 minutes, then wipe it off as if I am going to proceed with seasoning. If I see ANY brown or grey on my wipe off rag, I will wipe on some more Crisco and let it sit for another 10 minutes, then wipe off again. Repeat this as many times as necessary. The reason I do this is I have found NOTHING that will pull as much contaminants out of the surface of the metal as the hot oil, not soap, not Magic Eraser, not anything. The oil is the finishing clean before seasoning. Then after I get to the point where my wipe off rag comes off clean, I follow Jeff's method and let 'er rip, I usually season 3-4 times and then the pieces can be used. Baking cornbread in a skillet is a great way to break it in after initial seasoning, when I make it I set about half the butter aside that the recipe calls for and put that directly in the skillet. Then the other half goes into the batter. Pour the batter into the preheated skillet with melted butter already in it and bake per directions. Et voila, you have cornbread to go with your chili and have gotten one step closer to that good old Grandma quality black seasoning that only develops over time.
KLH9
A Double Pair Sounds OK
I've cooked on cast iron for decades. All of which came to me through close relatives and they cooked on them for decades.
Some of my "hand me downs" are 19th century gate marked (read 1880's and earlier) and I have nothing newer than 1920's.
I've never done more than a bristle brush and hot water to clean. Paper towel moistened with oil to season
Some peoples obsession with "germs" is unnecessary. You breath in more germs in a single breath than you will get from a screaming hot piece of cast iron searing your favorite meat. If there was such a thing as a germ that could survive above 400 F we'd all been dead long ago.
And to stay on topic with the OPs griddle.... Here is my 1880's dual gate marked #9 in all its glory
And a batch of nanna cakes grilling up on it
And what's thread squatting without throwing in a few ah's and wows too
Some of my "hand me downs" are 19th century gate marked (read 1880's and earlier) and I have nothing newer than 1920's.
I've never done more than a bristle brush and hot water to clean. Paper towel moistened with oil to season
Some peoples obsession with "germs" is unnecessary. You breath in more germs in a single breath than you will get from a screaming hot piece of cast iron searing your favorite meat. If there was such a thing as a germ that could survive above 400 F we'd all been dead long ago.
And to stay on topic with the OPs griddle.... Here is my 1880's dual gate marked #9 in all its glory
And a batch of nanna cakes grilling up on it
And what's thread squatting without throwing in a few ah's and wows too
that fancy handle gate marked skillet is amazing. I have jealous.
My mom has a lot of large block logo Griswolds, but she's still using them, so I've had to build my own collection from thrift stores. I have one Griswold, and a lot of BSR and old Lodge. I haven't found a Wagner yet that didn't spin, and that makes me stabby, so those are in the "give away to someone who expresses an interest" pile as I find flatter skillets. I do have a new production Lodge chicken fryer (actually a "combo cooker" but don't buy that, the "lid" is so heavy that I'll never use it as a griddle - I do have a Lodge 4-in-1 star lid but alas can't find the matching chicken fryer, still looking...) as it was so cheap (Amazon Prime, yeah, go ahead and send me a big chunk of iron for $30-something and free shipping!) as to not make it worth restoring an old one, and I have a Wagner dutch oven that I need to finish restoring as well...
When I detailed my resto process above, that's for nasty rusty crap. I have a BSR Red Mountain #7 that I got for $6 I think at a thrift store and it NEEDED that treatment. It's now a great cooker and one of my favorites, other than some fine pitting on the cooking surface you'd never know that it was so poorly taken care of before. When you inherit iron that has been well cared for its whole life as you have, you don't need to go through all that trouble as you say... a good scrubbing and a touch up every now and then and it should last indefinitely.
My mom has a lot of large block logo Griswolds, but she's still using them, so I've had to build my own collection from thrift stores. I have one Griswold, and a lot of BSR and old Lodge. I haven't found a Wagner yet that didn't spin, and that makes me stabby, so those are in the "give away to someone who expresses an interest" pile as I find flatter skillets. I do have a new production Lodge chicken fryer (actually a "combo cooker" but don't buy that, the "lid" is so heavy that I'll never use it as a griddle - I do have a Lodge 4-in-1 star lid but alas can't find the matching chicken fryer, still looking...) as it was so cheap (Amazon Prime, yeah, go ahead and send me a big chunk of iron for $30-something and free shipping!) as to not make it worth restoring an old one, and I have a Wagner dutch oven that I need to finish restoring as well...
When I detailed my resto process above, that's for nasty rusty crap. I have a BSR Red Mountain #7 that I got for $6 I think at a thrift store and it NEEDED that treatment. It's now a great cooker and one of my favorites, other than some fine pitting on the cooking surface you'd never know that it was so poorly taken care of before. When you inherit iron that has been well cared for its whole life as you have, you don't need to go through all that trouble as you say... a good scrubbing and a touch up every now and then and it should last indefinitely.
KLH9
A Double Pair Sounds OK
One thing new users of iron do not know and can take lots of $$$ out of their pocket.
Iron needs time to heat up.
Always start at the lowest temp on your stove. Wait for it to become warm to the touch (can't touch it with a hand) before raising the temp/heat.
Sticking a cold pan on high heat will warp the bottom, making the pan permanently damaged and difficult to use. Once warped, you might as well get rid of it as no one else (who knows anything) will want it.
If you are wanting a pan to sear (steaks, blackened fish, etc), use a black steel pan instead. They are better suited for very high temps than heavy cast iron is.
Mauviel m'steel is a high grade commercial pan perfect for high temp work. Every kitchen needs at least one black steel pan in it.
https://www.mauvielusa.com/M-steel-Round-Frying-Pan-Steel-Handle-8--plu3651.20.html
.
Iron needs time to heat up.
Always start at the lowest temp on your stove. Wait for it to become warm to the touch (can't touch it with a hand) before raising the temp/heat.
Sticking a cold pan on high heat will warp the bottom, making the pan permanently damaged and difficult to use. Once warped, you might as well get rid of it as no one else (who knows anything) will want it.
If you are wanting a pan to sear (steaks, blackened fish, etc), use a black steel pan instead. They are better suited for very high temps than heavy cast iron is.
Mauviel m'steel is a high grade commercial pan perfect for high temp work. Every kitchen needs at least one black steel pan in it.
https://www.mauvielusa.com/M-steel-Round-Frying-Pan-Steel-Handle-8--plu3651.20.html
.
jimfet
Lunatic Member
One of the stories of my life. Mama told me to go get my older brother up out of bed. I was 7 or 8 and he was 11 or 12. I'm 60 now. Having seen one to many cartoons, I went in the bedroom with a cast iron frying pan. There he was sleeping with his head sideways on the pillow, and I cracked him upside the head with it. Needless to say I toted an ass whupping within minutes. How we are both still here, is a miracle.
Bogframe
Super Member
When The Lovely Blanche first came to live with me, I came home one night to find her scrubbing the hell out of my Grammy Pearl's #8 Griswold with an SOS pad. She didn't know about seasoning, she thought it was dirty. 15 years later and the seasoning is about where it was before thanks to her cooking bacon in it (and leaving the pan for me to clean) and me rendering schmaltz a couple of times a year. Live and learn.
Dswankey
Lunatic Member
Mmmmmmmm................ Cast Iron,
I picked up this griddle pan a couple of years ago and It was in decent enough shape so I didn't have to clean it too much.
The Cast Iron and vintage cookware folks I would say are on par with the Vintage audio crowd. Griswold collectors are way into as are the Le Creuset folks.
Here it is in action a few summers ago.
I picked up this griddle pan a couple of years ago and It was in decent enough shape so I didn't have to clean it too much.
The Cast Iron and vintage cookware folks I would say are on par with the Vintage audio crowd. Griswold collectors are way into as are the Le Creuset folks.
Here it is in action a few summers ago.
Apropos of this thread, we did real dinner yesterday not today. Rib roast baked in a #8 3 notch Lodge after breakfast potatoes in a #9 National.
All my recent restorations are getting to the point finally where they're a pleasure to use not a chore. Got a Dutch oven in the e-tank right now so next year's roast won't have to be done in a skillet with foil.
Question: what's her face has a set of stainless pots and pans with metal handles. She doesn't like them as much as my iron because they're a pain to keep from sticking. I was wondering if I found some similar ones in a thrift store, could I season them and then treat them from then on out like carbon steel? (metal handles important because otherwise I know I couldn't season them unless I did it on stove top)
All my recent restorations are getting to the point finally where they're a pleasure to use not a chore. Got a Dutch oven in the e-tank right now so next year's roast won't have to be done in a skillet with foil.
Question: what's her face has a set of stainless pots and pans with metal handles. She doesn't like them as much as my iron because they're a pain to keep from sticking. I was wondering if I found some similar ones in a thrift store, could I season them and then treat them from then on out like carbon steel? (metal handles important because otherwise I know I couldn't season them unless I did it on stove top)
Oh, and before I even got to season my DO, I ran to the local thrift to grab some AM antennas (they have a really good audio junk section) as I was giving away two receivers and didn't have any antennas to include with them... and what did I find but a cute little Crescent Ozark dutch oven that is in much better shape than the Wagner that's cooking in the e-tank now. Still needs to be stripped as someone burned the bottom of it and it's got a little rust both inside and out but that should take much less doing than the one I already started. I guess the way to build a collection of nice iron is to not be looking for it!