Beginner at cooking - Cast Iron question

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Liquidus

Assistant Cook
Joined
May 24, 2010
Messages
3
Hello, I'm a college student and have started cooking for myself for the first time.

Today I used a Lodge Logic cast iron skillet to fry a piece of chicken. I burnt a piece of the chicken but that wasn't really a problem. As I was cleaning the skillet after (the instructions say not to use soap), I noticed there were some marks on the skillet and running my finger across it produced some black residue. Is this just from the chicken or is the cast iron rubbing off?

Also, I used a Calphalon turner to turn the chicken in the pan. Now I've noticed that the tip of the Calphalon has been burnt and black residue scratches off. Did I do something wrong? Is it safe to use the turner anymore?

Thanks for the help.
 
the black crud is prolly fond or sucs residue from the chicken..or it could be the seasoning coming off the CI. pics?
 
What about the Calphalon turner? The description says its heat resistant to 400F though. It could be that the residue melded with the turner.
 
Clean and dry the pan. If it rusts, you took off the seasoning - I think that's unlikely. If it doesn't rust, you're all set for the next meal.

Buy some wood/bamboo utensils. They last and don't melt or scratch.
 
Clean and dry the pan. If it rusts, you took off the seasoning - I think that's unlikely. If it doesn't rust, you're all set for the next meal.

Buy some wood/bamboo utensils. They last and don't melt or scratch.
+1 for wood/bamboo utensils. I either use a wooden spatula with my CI, or bamboo tongs.

I have used OXO's black tipped tongs before, but also noticed that the tips melted slightly. That's when I got the wooden spatula & tongs. The OXO tips prolly just melt and build up on itself .. I have not seen/eaten any hard black plastic bits in the food I have cooked in my CI.
 
What about the Calphalon turner? The description says its heat resistant to 400F though. It could be that the residue melded with the turner.
If you are cooking in CI, you might not want to use plastic turners. Searing will get above 400 pretty quickly. Metal turners will not melt. If you burnt the chicken and the turner melted, I would guess you were cooking at over 400 degrees. It is also possible that at least some of the black in the pan is melted plastic. I would use one of metal spiral steel pads and scour the pan. The spatula can be re-edged if you want to bother. I'd just toss it. Plastic should be used in tin lined copper or non stick.
 
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