I do the same thing as wekick. I rinse them in hot water and either dry with a paper towel or place on the burner until it's dry. Then I wipe a small amount of oil on the inside. Since I have 2 skillets that I stack I place a paper towel inside. None of mine came with instructions to season after each use. If by chance you scrub it with soap and remove the seasoning then you'll have to redo it. If you have burned on particles of meat just use some kosher salt and a plastic scrubber and scrub. My kids gave me a Lodge pre-seasoned skillet last year and that one is my favorite. It just seems to have a better seasoning than the ones I did myself. I have 2 Le Creuset enameled cast irons Dutch Ovens. I bought mine at the Le Creuset outlet and saved a bundle. But I also have 2 Martha Stewart enameled cat iron Dutch Ovens that I bought at Macy's and the quality seems the same to me. I even like the fact that the lids on Martha's are dimpled on the inside so that the moisture that condenses on the lid drips back into the pot and doesn't run down the lid onto to the counter when you lift it up. Macy's frequently puts them on sale for 40% to 50% off. That's a great buy. Here is a link that might be useful: Martha's Dutch Ovens

I too wash my cast iron pans with soap and water. I would never just wipe them. YUK!!! I too agree, get yourself a good thick-bottomed stainless steel pan. I would never cook eggs in cast iron. Cast iron is great for searing, but for a more gentle cooking, I go for stainless. I think you're crazy not to use a non-stick surface. If you do not use metal utensils with teflon and buy a good quality pan, it should last for a few years. You can pick up a great little omelet size pan for $20. The testing has shown that if you use a medium or lower setting on non-stick, there are no fumes released. You really shouldn't be cooking on a higher setting with this type of pan anyway. That's what stainless and cast iron are for. Good luck and good cooking.

I'm a big fan of any vintage cast iron. I have quite a collection, and use many of my pieces on a daily basis. I could find lot's of uses for a pan that shape, in addition to what others have suggessted. Corn bread, casseroles, or just use it for a roasting pan. A nice pork roast, or prime rib would look and cook wonderfully in that! I can just see my Yorkshire pudding puffing up in a well seasoned black iron pan like that :) Great shape for several pork chops, or a bunch of chicken thighs/breasts, or a big batch of bacon. It would also be ideal on the BBQ for a rack of ribs, veggis, delicate fish, or anything you don't want falling through the grates. I'd be more than happy to take it off your hands! ;)

WalnutCreek, I've always had cheap pans, the most expensive thing I owned was a Revere Ware skillet, the old copper bottomed one. When I first got married I had 3 cast iron skillets and that's all I had. I cooked everything in them. My Mother started buying me one piece of Revere Ware for every birthday and Christmas. Eventually I bought some Calphalon which my ex took when he left and I was back to cast iron and Revere Ware. When Amanda moved out she took some of the Revere Ware and one skillet. Ashley moved out and took the rest, along with another skillet. At that point I wasn't doing much cooking anyway, the girls were gone and I was living alone, so I mostly had an English Muffin with peanut butter at work and a bowl of cereal when I came home. Then I met Elery, who also likes to cook. He had much better pans, including some of the hard anodized Calphalon and some really expensive copper, and I was back to cooking because there was someone to cook for. We bought a couple of All Clad from beachlily, they hummed on her new induction stovetop. Then I bought some All Clad at the auction, and some old Griswold cast iron and some Le Creuset and some more copper and a whole cabinet full of Pyrex and CorningWare. So now I'm keeping the good stuff and selling my old/cheap stuff back at the auction and I'm going to start buying good stuff for my daughters and they can sell their old cheap stuff too, LOL. LindaC, I make Colleen's lemon curd in the microwave, but now I'm going to have to try caramel. I've never made a successful batch of caramel, even with AnnT's recipe. It always turns out to be concrete. Annie