[dreed3]

ok guys, why didnt you tell me i needed to "find" an old cast iron skillet??!! haha, just messing...everyone rants and raves about their oldest cast iron and how wonderful it is on here.

up until last week i had 2 cast iron skillets. One is a big 14" skillet that my wife got me for my birthday this past yr. The other has the grill plate in it. Both are real nice and i love them. I've always heard of ppl talk about their cast iron that is 20+yrs old or whatever...and i thought, oh mine does that too!

Well, at the beginning of the month my grandmother passed away...and my parents are in the process of cleaning out her house. Well my mom said she was going to look in the kitchen to see if there was anything of "value". Well i got a great pizza pan and some old old spices (i wouldnt use them, just grabbed them bc of the tin containers they are in. I hope she didnt use any of them recently...they are OLD!)

anyways, my mom says in passing, "oh yeah, i got a cast iron skillet for you from grandma's house!" So i was unpacking stuff from our recent trip home and VOILA there it is...

my ephiany? MY cast iron stuff is fine, but th one from grandma's is what YOU ALL are talking about! Finally, i am joining the club...a proud "new" owner of a 20yr+ old cast iron skillet just begging to be used!! Thanks grandma

 

[phatch]

Better than teflon isn't it.

 

[dreed3]

just too bad you cant buy them in this condition!

 

[kyheirloomer]

I realize that it's sacreligious to say so in today's world, but, unfortunately, some things can only be achieved through time in grade.

You cannot start a new interest today and have 20 years experience by next Tuesday. And you can't rush the deep cure on a cast iron skillet (although there are ways of hastening the process).

 

[gonefishin]

Hiya DrREED3,

Sorry to hear about your grandmother passing. It sounds as though you and your grandmother have formed a cooking connection even after her passing.

An old well seasoned cast iron pan is really something special. But don't neglect that new pan either. With time...and use...you will have two well seasoned pans that will only improve in years to come

happy cooking,
dan

 

[just jim]

Too cool.

On a side note....when I wasn't looking for one, I would see a cast iron pan at flea markets or what not.
I always wondered what the best way to handle sanitizing them the first time was.
For a pan I got from grandma, I would assume it is in ready-to-cook shape, but for one found in a dusty pile, I would want to make sure there were no tribbles or klingons.
So, hot water and an oil rub?
A scouring with Florida beach sand?

 

[kyheirloomer]

It's probably unnecessary, Jim. But on those flea-market and antiques-mall finds I usually strip them down to bare metal and start over again.

As to sanitizing: One of the points of the cure is to create that impervious layer. Any bacteria, etc. will be on the surface---just as with your "modern" cookware. Super hot water and a brush (no soap!) will take care of it.

 

[dreed3]

KYHeirloomer

How would you go about stripping it down to the bare metal? with salt and a firm wire brush? or are you talking like sander/grinder?

my brother-in-law is an antique dealer in Miami, and I have on the look out for cast iron and any other cool cooking "things". He said he has a meat slicer for me that he picked up at an estate sale for next to nothing. Still new in box! i'm not sure what i'll do with it, but for that one time that pops up and i do need it....i'll have it!!

 

[phatch]

Easiest is to put it in the oven on the clean cycle.

Also a burner (or other fire) on high though that's tougher to do as evenly.

 

[elchivito]

Congratulations! I cook almost exclusively on my grandmother's and mother's pans. I still have and routinely use the little 2 egg Wagner pan I first learned to cook eggs in 50 years ago. I taught all my kids to cook using that little skillet too, and my daughters have an ongoing family feud over who's going to get it. Too bad it's gonna be my son's some day :lol:It has a finish that you can almost see your face in. I've found some gems in yard sales here and there. If the finish on a flea market find looks like something you want to preserve, just give it a good scrubbing without soap, wipe it with oil and put it in a very hot oven for a while. I've also found fairly rare Wagners that while rusted, weren't pitted. Those I scrub with a wire brush and hot soapy water, dry thoroughly and wipe all over inside and out with lots of lard. Then I bury them in the hot coals of a burned down oak or mesquite fire until the fire is cold. They come out nice and black and on their way to being useful again. Remember with your grandma's pan, it's best to clean it while it's still warm, right after using it. Scrub it with a tablespoon or so of kosher salt and paper towels and wipe it out. Depending on what you've cooked in it, if you let it sit and get cold you may have to do more scrubbing and need to use water. Not good for the finish.

 

[kyheirloomer]

>How would you go about stripping it down to the bare metal?<

There are several ways.

I'm told that if you put it in the oven and turn on the self-clean cycle it will do the job. Sounds right in theory, but I've never done it.

A good hot fire can do it, too. But you have to keep the piece "submerged" (can't think of a more descriptive word) in the flames at all times. And it rarely does a consistent job.

Boy lye and dilute sulphuric acid (i.e., battery acid) work superlatively. I prefer the latter, because I have more control with it. Diluted at the rate of 1 quart acid to 5 gallons water, it takes about 3 days to strip everything down to bare metal.

Some people then flush with baking soda, to neutralize any acid. But I find a thorough flushing with plain water is just as good. Then dry the piece, grease it well, and start the cure process.

 

[phatch]

The acid methods are also good for rusty cast iron. Heat treatments don't clean up rust problems. Most will scrub rust with steel wool. I had one bead blasted once that came out of the bottom of a scout troop closet. Saved a lot of hassle.

Some few of those afflicted with castironitis as they call it have set up electrolytic baths for reversing rust problems. I've seen pictures of the process and product and it looks impressive.

Phil

 

[kyheirloomer]

Absolutely right, Phil. In fact I first learned about it from a buddy who builds hot rods. He uses the acid bath to clean the rust from metal car parts. He's also, like me, a reenactor, and we salvage lots of cast iron cookware using the same process.

 

[dc sunshine]

Sorry to hear about your grandmother's passing - sounds as if she is still there in spirit with your with your love of cooking


Old pans can be the best. I have a little cast iron griddle pan that I lost for a while in moving . AAArrrghhhh. but I found it again. A good treatment with a wire brush then boiling hot water, then oil revived it.

It is soooo good for doing a really rare steak.....I can heat it up till really really smoking, chuck the oiled and peppered steak on, sear it one side for a minute, turn off the stove, sear it the other side for say 30 seconds , cuz by this time the pan is incredibly hot, then sear the sides if needed. Well, the smoke detector goes off but that's easily fixed.

The result is like no other result I have found with other pans. To clean, just really hot water, plastic scrubbing brush - thats it. Dry in a low oven for 5 minutes, I look after it, it looks after my food. I give it an oil every now and again, just canola oil, but take most of it off with kitchen paper towel while its still warm out of the oven.

I think its actually a camping pan, complete with fold away handle. Good only for one serve at a time, but I'd be lost without it. The rest of the family doesn't like it done my way, so come steak night, they get theirs first, and I'm with them in under 5 minutes (which is how long it takes them to get to the table anyway!).

 

[greyeaglem]

Just a side note here, but if you measure the diameter of the pan and it measures to the half inch, it's really old and worth some money besides being a good pan.

 

[dc sunshine]

Sounds like a solid way of doing it. My question - what do you do with the acid bath after? Prob not a good idea to flush it down the drain..... What do you with it?

 

[kyheirloomer]

I get several uses out of it, DC. Then use it to help control weeds in the driveway.

But I live on a farm, and can do things you can't do in the city.

 

[boar_d_laze]

If you're very cautious, you can pour it slowly down the drain while running a lot of water. Otherwise, depending on concentration, it's just homemade "drain cleaner." You can treat it the same way.

For what it's worth, there are a lot of ways to clean cast iron. In addition to the methods mentioned, old fashioned, caustic oven cleaners and even Brillo pads work too.

I"m not an expert, collector or even much of a cast iron user, but Phil and KY are -- not to mention a few other people already in this thread.. Why would you take it all the way down to bare metal unless there were rust or other obvious horribles in the pan's interior?

BDL

 

[kyheirloomer]

>Why would you take it all the way down to bare metal unless there were rust or other obvious horribles in the pan's interior? <

Very often you do find such horribles. Crap burned and crusted on. Rust. Chips and gouges in the finish. Rust under the cure. Pitting that may or may not go all the way through.

Collectors often paint their cast iron black---sometimes using stove black, other times actual enamal. Probably the second stupidest thing you can do, both as a user and collector. But it happens far too frequently.

 

[deltadoc]

Um, drain cleaner is a strong base, usually something like lye, maybe with a few aluminum shavings in it. The exact opposite of a strong acid like sulfuric acid.

Its not really a great idea to be pouring stuff like that down the drain. It can eat away at your sewer pipes. Also there are some pretty dangerous things that can happen that together can cause the release of pure chlorine gas. Don't wanna be breathing that, for true.

My wife used to empty coke cans in the sink. Now coke just has some minor stuff in it like phosphoric acid (the stronger version of which is what dentist coats your teeth with before putting in an amalgam!), but over time, it ate away at the garbage disposal to the point, it froze up and wouldn't run anymore. $100 for a new 3/4 hp one, and $100 bucks installation!

doc