The Best Way To Clean and Season a Cast Iron Skillet | Epicurious 101

Want to keep your cast iron cookware looking like new? Chef Frank Proto demonstrates and explains everything you need to know to get the best out of your cast iron skillet, from seasoning to cleaning to storage.

Learn more with Chef Frank on his YouTube Channel ProtoCooks!
and follow him on Instagram @protocooks


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0:00 Introduction
1:01 Chapter One - Removing Rust
3:11 Chapter Two - Initial Seasoning
4:28 Chapter Three - Cleaning After Use
6:01 Chapter Four - Storing And Maintaining



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[epicurious]

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[danielreid]

My favourite part about owning a cast iron pan is that it is now my full time job to take care of my cast iron pan

[brandonkrause]

OF COURSE Frank found a way to use that much salt without ever cooking anything

What a legend

[raymaseacat]

Im 72 yrs old and I did not know this. I've always worked outside the home so I just cooked "easy" meals...a lot of fast food. My mother passed away and left me 4 iron cast pans. I also wanted to leave them to my daughter but didn't know how to take care of them. Frank, you have made me so happy with this video. I love the way you teach ( I have to be able to understand the steps and for me they have to be simple) Now to find easy recipes for my instant pot! Thanks again. I can take this off my list of things to learn .

[gillianellis]

I followed this fella’s instructions but used some avocado oil instead of shortening. It seasoned pretty well, there was a little bit of oil left after the oven seasoning, so I rubbed in that oil with a paper towel and let it heat up a little on the stovetop. Now the pan is actually completely nonstick! It’s a farging miracle! My hope is restored because I can do one very useful thing! Yaaay! Thank you thank you!!!❤

[Gww-]

My mother is 95 yrs. old and still has her cast iron skillets, they're well seasoned. She made my father cornbread in them since 1942. It's a southern tradition.

[ProtoCookswithChefFrank]

Thanks again Epicurious. Glad I get to share my experience with everyone.

[universalspirit]

I love it when a lesson is delivered with humour. I wanted to know about the subject but it was the delivery of the teacher that compelled me to stay. Great work.

[firerednaxela]

correction @ 3:22: polymerization actually allows you to combine monster cards together to summon a fusion monster, like Blue Eyes Ultimate Dragon

[KronosTheos]

History lesson here guys. The reason you don't use soap is because it has lye in the final product which removes the seasoning. At least this was the case 40 some odd years ago. Nowadays as long as you use a light detergent(most kitchen soaps) you don't have to worry. Don't have unsanitary cast iron because of out of date info.

[chicobicalho]

4:30 I find that pouring hot water in a dirty cast iron pan, and scraping with a flat bamboo spoon does the job of removing dried chunks of food quite easily. The rest of the tips here are excellent.

[fourieferreira]

Hi. Just another tip when you clean the pan with salt. Instead of using a cloth, use half a potato to scrub the salt with. That way you don't sacrifice your towels. Afterwards you can just chock the potato. Fourie Ferreira, South Africa. Blessings!

[ayom]

Cast iron AND Frank?! Man this a great!

[phunkydroid]

After washing and wiping it dry, before seasoning even, I put mine on the stove and heat it up for a few minutes, to drive any water out of the pores.

[mr.martyr]

I cook every week on a cast iron pan my great grandmother passed down to my grandmother that passed it down to my mother that passed it down to me. It still looks brand new because we took care of it.

[socialistcinema]

Just bought a new cast iron pan for the first time and I really needed a video like this to understand how to maintain it for a long time.

[guidichris]

Love your videos. A couple of things I've learned with cast iron. If you compare a brand new pan with one that was made decades ago, you will find that the "antique" pan has a very smooth surface on the inside, whereas the modern pan has a grainy appearance from where it was cast using sand. They used to finish the pans a bit better in the old days. I have found that a rotary sander can smooth out the cooking surfaces, and after proper seasoning, the pan is almost as non-stick as Teflon. I also will use my gas grill for the seasoning process, as this keeps the house cool and smoke free.

[johnhobson]

His comment about passing cast iron pans from generation to generation reminds me that I have a Griswold number eight Dutch oven that my wife's grandmother got in the 1920s. It came to my mother-in-law in the mid-1950s. Now I have it, and I fully expect that my middle son will have it. Along with the Griswold skillet that my mother bought in the early 1950s.

[jimespenoza]

If you repeat the initial seasoning a bunch of times (like at least 3 or 4) and are liberal with your oil the first few times you cook with it you can get a truly almost completely nonstick coating. After cleaning each time I also heat the pan up just enough so that it is on the verge of being too hot to touch the bottom and give it a quick wipe down with whatever oil you used to season before storing. I've been doing this with my cast iron for years and they are incredible non stick usually cleaning consists of a quick rinse out and I have no stickage regardless of what it is that I cooked

[elainechen]

I love Chef Proto. After months, I watched this video again, it's really helpful.