Gummy Surface on Cast Iron

[JGDean]

I just pulled out a skillet that I haven't used in awhile. The surface has a weird gummy feel. How do I deal with it other than soap and scrubbing??

 

[CWS4322]

If you heat it, the gummy stuff will soften. Once the gummy stuff is softened, I use coarse salt and a clean pad (one of those round, plastic ones). I then wipe it with a paper towel, and then reseason it.

 

[JGDean]

OK. Thanks much!

 

[JGDean]

Which type of oil or fat do you find to work best when seasoning?

 

[Katie H]

You might want to start from scratch seasoning your pan. It's not difficult, especially if you have a self-cleaning oven and/or an outdoor barbecue grill.

You could run it through a cycle of oven cleaning with your self-cleaning oven to remove all the old seasoning or put it on your outdoor grill on "blast" temperature for a little while to achieve the same end.

Once you've done that, wipe it down and reseason with a nice even coating of Crisco. That's what I use. Put it in your oven turned upside down, with a layer of foil under to catch any drips, and "cook" it at about 325F for about 2 hours. Check it at about 15 minutes to see if there are any drips you might want to dab off. Let cool completely.

If you're starting from scratch, you might want to go through this process a couple of times to build up the seasoning.

After that, use it, use it, use it and, in time, it will be just as nice as any Teflon pan you could find anywhere.

 

[Dawgluver]

I followed a similar process after accidently leaving my little cast iron grill out in the rain. I used bacon grease. Took some time, but it worked.

 

[JGDean]

So, use real fat. I was going to use grapeseed oil. Do you think it would work ok?

 

[Dawgluver]

So, use real fat. I was going to use grapeseed oil. Do you think it would work ok?

There's a thread here somewhere with more information. I had asked about restoring my grill and got good advice. I don't think grapeseed oil was mentioned.

 

[taxlady]

So, use real fat. I was going to use grapeseed oil. Do you think it would work ok?

I think any food oil or fat with a high smoke point would work. I have no idea what the smoke point is for grape seed oil.

 

[justplainbill]

FWIW, Lodge states they use "a proprietary soy-based vegetable oil to season our cookware. The oil contains no animal fat or peanut oil. The seasoning is functional application and slight inconsistencies may appear in the seasoning finish. The inconsistencies will not affect cooking performance".

 

[Bigjim68]

I redo several cast iron pans a year, and recently have come to prefer flaxseed oil over any other for a durable finish. Flaxseed produces a highly polymerized finish that is as good as a nonstick finish. The downside is that is is somewhat of a time consuming process requiring several thin coats. Once seasoned, the only cleaning the pans get is a slight scraping with with a broken off spatula and a wipe down with a paper towel. A very small amount of water for lubricant, never soap.

IMO the gummy residue on a pan not used for a while is the result of too large a coat of oil left on the pan when storing. I would assume it to be rancid and the pan to require a total reseason.

A well seasoned pan does not need an additional coat of oil or grease when storing. The CI should be already covered. Just store them in a dry place.

 

[gadzooks]

When you season your cast iron, use meat grease, animal fat. If you have a vegetarian in the house, use coconut oil. Other vegetable oils leave that sticky stuff, don't use 'em.

 

[Bigjim68]

Here are three that I seasoned last summer with flax oil. These get little use and were stored just as cleaned after their last use.



None have shown any signs of rust, none get a light coat of oil before storing, all are virtually non stick

 

[taxlady]

Here are three that I seasoned last summer with flax oil. These get little use and were stored just as cleaned after their last use.



None have shown any signs of rust, none get a light coat of oil before storing, all are virtually non stick

Looking good.

I'll try to remember about the flax oil if I need to season/re-season a CI pan.

 

[lightning2fst]

I bought into the flaxseed oil camp and redid my cast iron but it isn't worth it to be honest. I paid over a dollar an ounce and it did a fantastic job but soybean oil can also do a fantastic job for MUCH cheaper and much less trouble finding and keeping the flaxseed oil which goes bad so fast. And stinks.

Chemically soybean oil isn't quite as good but it is pretty good and probably the next best thing.

 

[PolishedTopaz]

I think any food oil or fat with a high smoke point would work. I have no idea what the smoke point is for grape seed oil.

Grapeseed has one of the higher smoke points of oils, 425? somewhere in that range. I use it all the time for any neutral oil application. LOVE the stuff.

Edited Googled 421 smoke point.

 

[lightning2fst]

Smoke point is not the issue. You will be going way above the smoke point when seasoning. If you didn't the oil would stay as oil.

The thing to look at is iodine value which is what determines how much cross linking can occur. Flax seed is very high, but soy bean is just under.

 

[Andy M.]

Lodge recommends melted shortening or vegetable oil for seasoning. To me this suggests the type of fat is not of primary importance.

 

[Bigjim68]

Smoke point is not the issue. You will be going way above the smoke point when seasoning. If you didn't the oil would stay as oil.

The thing to look at is iodine value which is what determines how much cross linking can occur. Flax seed is very high, but soy bean is just under.

True, and whatever suite your needs, is within your time constraints, and budget, is what should use. I don't find the cost of flax excessive, I have a small problem with the time. Because of that, I seldom reseason less than 4 at a time. I start over on any I buy as I don't know how or where they have been used. The results I get are for me equivalent to the results you get for you.

In the end, I think we would all agree that the best seasoning is use. The more you use a pan, the better it gets.

 

[lightning2fst]

I have never used soybean oil. I paid 12 bucks for 8 ounces of flax seed oil last week though so....will be using something else in the future.