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kitchendetective

Lodge Pre-Seasoned Cast Iron

kitchendetective
17 years ago

DH came home from the Farm and Ranch store with two new Lodge pre-seasoned cast iron pans. The 50-year old, wonderful, inherited one disappeared in the move, sadly :(

I thought some folks here might want to see the directions for care:

1. Rinse with hot water before first use. NO SOAP.

2. Before cooking, prepare surface with cooking spray or vegetable oil.

3. After cooking, clean with stiff brush and hot water. Avoid soap.

4. Towel dry immediately, and apply a light coat of cooking spray while utensil is still warm.

5. Store in cool, dry place.

6. Do not use in dishwasher.

Comments (6)

  • gardenlad
    17 years ago

    >The 50-year old, wonderful, inherited one disappeared in the move, sadly :( Bummer, KD. There's nothing like a piece of old, well cured, cast iron. Of the 16 or so "everyday" pieces I use my favorite is a chicken fryer from the '30s.

    Fairly recently I saw a film about how Lodge makes the pre-seasoned stuff. Really interesting, and I wish I had a copy of it.

    One thing to keep in mind. The preseasoned is about equal to the first curing stage (that is, what you get if you follow Lodge's directions for raw cast iron). It's certainly not a deep cure. So it's also best if you only use the piece for frying the first few times, until the cure deepens.

    The instructions you posted are good for any cast iron, btw, whether preseasoned or home cured.

  • kitchendetective
    Original Author
    17 years ago

    Thanks, G-L. I thought that was weird, that the instructions looked pretty much the same as for any cast iron pan.

  • marvelousmarvin
    17 years ago

    I don't quite understand step 2, where you're supposed to 'prepare' surface. Does this simply mean that you put oil on the pan, and swirl it around to get the pan all oiled up? And, how much oil do you use?

  • gardenlad
    17 years ago

    All that means, marvelousmarvin, is that you do not want to start cooking in a dry pan. Instead, add at least a film of oil. How much oil depends on what you are cooking.

    Eventually you will create a deep cure that is, in effect, a non-stick surface. At that point you could start with a dry pan. But it won't really be dry, because your last maintainance step, always, is to regrease the pan before storing (basically, step 4 above).

    BTW, step 1 above only applies to their pre-seasoned stuff. Raw cast iron is shipped with a coating (wax, in America, edible shellac, in Asia) which needs to be removed. You do that by scrubbing with hot water, a scouring pad, and soap. And elbow grease, of course. Immediatley dry and grease the pan. Then cure it.

    That's the very last time soap should touch that piece.

  • deanb
    17 years ago

    One more thing; even with well seasoned cast iron it is important to pre-heat the pan. It's also important to pre-heat the fat, no matter how much you use. If you care for cast iron properly and pre-heat it, it will indeed be non-stick yet able to leave a good fond for sauces.

  • kitchendetective
    Original Author
    17 years ago

    Well, DH is really on a kick. He came home with a wok to match the other Lodge stuff. I love it (not that I needed another wok, but now I can use two at once). He might have done it out of guilt. I discovered one of my old cast iron pans in his shop with some obscure model airplane-related substance from Mars melted in it.