This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure.
My grandma was from Tennessee, and once a month on a Sunday she would make us all supper. There was fried chicken, corn bread, mashed potatoes, and all kinds of amazing southern food. I don’t remember her recipes {I was still pretty young at the time}, but I do remember by grandma’s cast iron skillet. It was always on her stove and ready to cook with. When Grandma passed, I didn’t have the good fortune to get my hands on her skillet, but a couple years ago my mom bought me one for my birthday.
With cast iron comes great responsibility. A cast iron skillet is something to be treasured, loved, and seasoned. Then passed down generation to generation – which is totally feasible with the proper care. So how do you love your cast iron and make it last (presumably) forever? Clean it right and season it regularly. I’m not talking salt and pepper. I’m talking fat, lots of happy fat.
Let’s clean the skillet first.
I made you some steaks. See: butter, browned bits, stove top heat, and oven heat all working the cast iron.
I didn’t clean the skillet right after cooking. Which isn’t the best thing ever, but also not the worst. Please please please don’t soak your skillet in water or leave it in the sink. This can encourage rust to form.
Now your first reaction may be to reach for these stand by’s.
STOP! The sponge – fine, but ignore the scrubby side. The soap – NO.
Run your water until it’s super hot.
Rinse your skillet under the hot water as best you can.
Use the soft side of your sponge to remove any residue you can.
If there are still food bits stuck to the skillet, like this…
Mix a paste of Kosher salt and water.
Rub the salt paste around the skillet with the soft side of the sponge.
You can use some more force when rubbing to really clean the skillet.
Now the skillet is clean, but we’re not done yet.
{If your skillet is brand new, you can scrub it with the coarse side of your sponge and use soap. Just this ONE TIME.}
Now it’s time to season the skillet. This is what a cast iron skillet is all about. The seasoning process will keep your skillet in excellent working condition, and impart that extra deliciousness that only comes from cast iron cooking.
Each time, after you clean your skillet, you should coat the inside with a thin layer of solid shortening. You can use vegetable oil too, but shortening doesn’t leave as much of a “sticky” feeling as the shortening. This step is really important – it’s like doing a mini seasoning for the skillet.
If your skillet is brand new, you will need to do the full seasoning process to get things going.
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil; set aside.
Using a paper towel, apply a very generous layer of solid shortening to the inside of the skillet.
The cooking surface, the sides, handle, edges, everything. {I like to lay down a kitchen towel so my counter doesn’t get messy.}
Flip the skillet over and apply a generous coating of shortening to the bottom of the skillet and sides.
Place the skillet upside down on your prepared baking sheet and put everything in the oven.
Bake the skillet for 1 hour.
Turn off the oven and leave everything in the oven.
Once the oven and skillet are cooled, remove the skillet and pan.
Now your skillet should be nice and shiny.
Apply a thin layer of shortening to the inside of the skillet.
And you’re done!
Your cast iron skillet is now ready for cooking.
Preparing fatty foods like bacon or frying chicken in the skillet will help give the skillet a little extra oomph since they help season the pan for you. Over the years, the shortening layers and foods fats will give your skillet flavor and provide a natural non-stick surface that is unique to cast iron. Happy seasoning!
You can find Julie here as well: White Lights on Wednesday, Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter
Love cast iron cookware! I live in the south and those pans are a staple! Have never thought to clean them this way, super idea! Thank you for sharing at Uncommon!
I have had good luck cleaning my cast iron by heating water after cooking then use a brush or wood spatula to scrape it. Works every time. Before using it, I give the pan a wipe down with coconut oils again. It seems to keep things from sticking less and helps build my nonstick easy release finish.
Thanks for information. Just gave a grill and pan to my daughter. This was the first question she asked. Thanks for refresher .
cleaning iron frying pans thick build up what is wrong with SOS steel pads , I am not talking about meat grease or crumbs , that thick layer of what feels like charcoal gritty layer . I clean that of with SOS pads and after more cooking further cleanup with hot water after more use a breeze . I read once no dishwasher soap gets into this charcoal layer and then on your food , you get the trots . I never heard about this other cleaning methods . once I get that layer off I oil the pan with a light layer and regular cooking no charcoal layer happens . I am doing this wrong or what ?
I have never really heard of cast iron cooking, this is fascinating. My grandma was a great cook but for some reason she didn’t use these. I am going to ask for one for Christmas and give it a shot. Do you several recipes for cast irons specifically that you could recommend to a newbie? Thanks!
Great tips! I also use a stiff nylon brush and a plastic scraper. The scraper is put out by Lodge so I trust that it will not damage my cast iron or the precious seasoning! I usually find that a super thin coating is oil or shortening is better than using a bunch. If you put a lot of fat on there you will probably end up with a sticky kind of seasoning rather than a hard non-stick surface. Thanks!
I have a griddle that I have totally messed up because I haven’t seasoned it properly. This will help me SO much! Wonderful tutorial, Julie, thanks!
We LOVE our cast iron!
Great post!
Ah yes, I need this! I’ve seen my dad and my aunt season a skillet but I can’t remember exactly what they did. I know my aunt did it on the stove top. Thanks for the info!
Brilliant! I knew about not using soap, and using salt instead to scrub my cast iron pans, but the part about seasoning it is super helpful!
Thanks for posting this! Cast Iron Skillets scare me LOL I am never sure how to clean them, and I know you can ruin them if you don’t do it right.
I so miss the glass smooth antique cast iron pans at my mother’s house. Those were awesome & they just don’t make them like that anymore.
My mom has one like that….I hope it gets handed down to me someday. 🙂
I recently got my grandma’s Wagoner skillet, as it needs reasoned from years of not being used. Grandma was 94 and had arthritis bad, so the skillet had gotten to heavy for her to cook with. I have yet to reseason it because first I need to burn off all the old build up. In the past couple of days I was told by my father in law, to put it in the fire next time we have limbs to burn (I live out, way out), that it would burn off the build up. Then he said just reseason it, his Mom use to do it every couple of years, he still has and uses his mom’s old skillets that he grew up eating out of as a kid.
You should totally do it! You will love using the cast iron for your cooking.
I still remember walking into the kitchen where my mother-in-law was “helping” by working up a vigorous soapy lather in my beloved cast iron skillet . . .
I guess I probably can’t share this link with her without reminding her of the look of horror on my face.
Ah well, thanks, Julie, and thanks, Wendy!
OH NO! Hope you were able to salvage your skillet!
Awesome! Going to using a lot more cast iron skillets, so these are GREAT tips!
Thanks Belinda!
Thanks I have a few I use for camping time to clean and re-season the correct way!
You’re welcome! I love using mine when I camp too!
Nothin’ like a refresher course!
Agreed Ashley! 🙂