I LOVE cooking with my cast iron skillet, and I have all of the secrets to doing it right! Here is a step by step tutorial for Seasoning Cast Iron, plus cooking and cleaning. Did you know that you can cook everything from pizza, to cornbread, to desserts like brownies in a cast iron skillet? Oh yes, you can!
Cooking in cast iron rocks!
I could gush about the depth of flavor. I could go on and on about the perfect sear that it gives vegetables and meats.
And I’d love to show you how easy it is to clean up when we’re done cooking. But first thing’s first – seasoning your cast iron skillet is a must before you cook anything!
Why do we season cast iron pan?
We’re not talking about salt and pepper here. The “Seasoning” process of cast iron is really the fancy way of getting your skillet to do amazing things every time you cook (sear, flavor, easy to clean, etc.). And we make the magic happen with fat.
Seasoning Cast Iron Step-By-Step
Step 1. Wash your skillet
If you are using a brand-new OR a new-to-you cast iron skillet, gently scrub your cast iron skillet clean with warm soapy water. You don’t need to do this if you’ve owned your skillet for a while, and there’s even a good chance you’ll never use dish soap again.
Psst – If you’re just bringing your skillet out from the depths of the pots and pans drawer, you can skip this step.
Step 2. Dry your skillet very well
- Your skillet needs to be 200% dry (<–not a typo) every time it gets wet, including this first time because you want to avoid long term moisture.
- I like to put mine on top of my stove and turn the heat on medium low heat until I can no longer visibly see water on the surface. Turn the heat off and let it cool before handling.
- Some people might use the oven, but I like the stove top because it’s quick and easy. Plus, having it in plain sight means I won’t forget about it later.
Step 3. Grease your cast iron skillet
- While your skillet is still warm from drying on the stove, take one tablespoon of coconut oil, lard, tallow, or pure flaxseed oil (not linseed) and thoroughly coat the entire cooking surface – bottom, sides, even the lip.
- Use a paper towel or an old rag and REALLY rub it in there. It’s important to not cheat here and do a half-way job, otherwise your cast iron skillet won’t maintain the seasoning and you’ll have to start over.
- Once it’s nice and shiny and coated, take another paper towel (or fold the old rag) and wipe off the excess oil. Yep, wipe it off! You’ll be leaving a thin layer of fat on the skillet and it should look dull at this point.
Step 3. Bake your skillet
- Preheat the oven as high as you can (but at least 400F).
- Then put the pan in upside down on a rack.
- Set the timer for an hour and let the fat become one with the cast iron skillet.
- When the timer goes off, turn off the oven but leave the door closed with the pan still inside.
Note: If the pan starts to smoke, do not call the fire department. That is the old gunk coming off (factory sealant and/or old food that someone else left behind!) and possibly the fat cooking. This is normal, but open windows and/or turn on fans as needed. The smoke will lessen with each subsequent bake and will eventually stop.
Wait… we’re not done yet?
4. Bake the skillet again…and again
Repeat steps 3 & 4 five more times, for a total of SIX rounds of greasing and baking. Think I’m crazy? I assure you I’m not and I have a very nicely seasoned cast iron skillet to prove it!
Why should I bake the skillet for six rounds?
The pores in cast iron are really, really small. Even the best greasers will miss some and only a thoroughly seasoned pan will create an awesome cooking surface.
How to cook with cast iron
It’s probably just me, but I prefer to add cooking oil or butter to my skillets before cooking. My cast iron is non-stick at this point, but the flavor of butter or bacon grease enhances whatever I’m cooking. I always add it before I cook anything anyway.
Whether you add butter or oil before you cook is up to you, but if you’ve followed the steps above, you should have a nicely seasoned cast iron skillet on your hands!
Cleaning cast iron
- It’s best to clean the pan as soon as it’s cool enough to handle (cool, not cold). Then you can easily remove whatever is left in the pan.
- To clean a cast iron skillet, simply wipe it out with a cloth or paper towel. That’s it!
- If you have any stubborn pieces of food left, you can scrub those out with a bit of warm water (no soap). If you do this, be sure you thoroughly dry the skillet on the stove top as mentioned in step 2 above.
- Now, if you cooked something extra greasy, you might need a drop or two of dish soap. Some people say not to use dish soap, but I’m not one of them. Granted, you don’t want to use it EVERY time, but using it on occasion when the level of grease seems to be out of control is fine.
This last bit is entirely optional, but I like to add a wee bit of fat (½ tsp) to the pan as it dries on the stove top. I’ll smear it over the bottom as soon as the pan is cool and let it absorb. Totally optional of course, but I always do this if I have to use the dish soap. It’s a trick I learned from my step-mom (who never steered me wrong in the kitchen).
Put the pan away when it’s completely cool and you’re done!
FAQs
You’re about to season your cast iron skillet with fat, and if you recall from science class, fat and water don’t mix. If your pan isn’t dry, it won’t absorb the fat and won’t create that awesome non-stick layer of seasoning we’re aiming for. Kapeesh?
Coconut oil, lard, tallow, or pure flax seed oil (not linseed) are your best options.
Some people use spray vegetable oil, but you want to be sure that you use pure oil without any chemicals or additives in it.
When you fill the pores of cast iron with fat, a non-stick sealant-type layer is created when the pan is put over heat.
It’s this layer that turns a normal cast iron skillet into a non-stick cooking phenomenon!
Plus you don’t want the pan to rust. (It IS iron, remember?)
Preheat the oven as high as you can (but at least 400F).
Then put the pan in upside down on a rack.
Set the timer for an hour and let the fat become one with the cast iron skillet.
When the timer goes off, turn off the oven but leave the door closed with the pan still inside.
Recipes for the Cast Iron Skillet
- Cast Iron Skillet Brownie
- Cast Iron Skillet Cornbread
- Easy Pan Roasted Broccoli
- Cast Iron Skillet Pizza
Jennifer
Does anyone know if the Pioneer Woman cast iron brand can go in an open fire? I want to purchase a cast iron finally, but love the look of the Pioneer Woman brand, but want it not only for cooking at home, but also when we go camping. If anyone has used one for an open fire please let me know.
Thanks
Claudia
I have a lodge pan and its a compleat pain, I waited months for the handle by which time I was used to using it without and it ade the handle rust. Sigh.
I dont have any proble at all with seasoning, sticking rust (now the handle is no longer in use) my problem is uneven heating !!!!!!!!! Its driving me to buy a stainless steel pan if you cant help !
So I like large wraps and I make them using the pour method. My problem is no matter what method I use heating slowly, heating same rate as normal pan etc always testing the heat with water drops first it is ALWAYS hotter in the middle so it is undercooked on the outside and burnt in the middle. Its a shame because it stated even heating as a selling point. I am using it on a flat top electric.
I have tried using a stainless steel pan slightly smaller and apart from breaking when turned over because it is a frying pan it cookit it far better than my Lodge :o( I would prefer to keep using my Lodge and not buy yet another pan if anyone can help I would be very grateful !!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tiffany
Claudia – do you think it could be your cooktop? I’ve used cast iron skillets on an electric top (not flat) and gas and never had issues with uneven heating. Uneven distribution of oil maybe, but that’s from my oven not being level, lol. I think a better way to test whether it your stove or pan would be to cook something in the oven with the cast iron. Let it preheat in the oven, cook something like cornbread and then see if the inner part of the pan creates a darker crust than the outer part of the pan.
Claudia
Oh I have it makes loverly pizzas :o) I thought it should heat outside the top hob evenly as well ? I tried the same recipe with a stainless steel pan thatwas slightly smaller and that made a better job than the cast iron which is why I have been thinking about buying a big chipatti pan instead really would prefer to find a way to make this work though. I did read someone say that it was the lodge logo on the bottom making it heat up more in the middle ? I would happily grind that off.
Claudia
Yer kinda came to the conclusion that they were just plain rubbish glad I didnt bother to grind the logo off stainless steal all the way !!!!!!!! Apart from pizzas that is.
John
I’m seasoning my CI skillet and griddle, using coconut oil. I just finished the third round and they both have a slightly tacky feel to them. Is that normal, or am I doing something wrong?
Tiffany
I don’t remember my skillet feeling tacky, but one way to see if you’re on the right track is to cook something! Try frying some potato. Add some fat, cook it up and it should cook without sticking much. If it’s like scraping the potatoes every time, you can either keep seasoning, or just keep cooking. I stopped after 3 rounds, but the skillet actually cooked better the more I cooked with it!
John
I figured it out, after sleuthing around the Internet. I had the oven set at 400, but in my fourth go round I tuned it up to 475 and that did the trick. I read that coconut oil has a higher smoke point and needed the extra degrees. I just finished my fifth round. One more to go.
Tiffany
Glad to hear that John!
Debra
Great article Tiffany! I have a cast iron skillet that I’ve used almost every day for more than 40 years. Interestingly, I love it more every time I use it. Yours is the only article on cast iron that is honest and sensible — sometimes you just HAVE TO use a bit of soap on it and it’s NOT the end of the world. 🙂 For those of you who are just getting started on your cast iron journey, I urge you to bear with it (through the seasoning phases). It will be well worth it and soon, your pan will seem like a reliable old friend. (Okay, I’m sounding crazy now, I admit it! LOL)
Tiffany
I don’t think you sound crazy at all Debra! Thanks for the compliment, and the encouragement to fellow readers!
kaylynne
I worry and expect that one day I will pull my cast iron skillet out and find grease ants (or something worse) nibbling at the grease or the tiny ant sized bits of food I missed when I wiped out the skillet before putting it away. Any bad experiences or horror stories I should expect or find out about now?
Mark Smith
You shouldn’t have that much grease in it. After cleaning with hot water and drying on the stove you could heat the pan up to just about smoking add a little grease/oil or if you use it PAM spray. Then take a wad of paper towels and using tongs wipe the oil around the pan and then wipe it off. Then turn the burner off and let the pan cool. It should not feel tacky gummy or sticky. it should feel slick. If it is tacky or gummy wipe it with a towel, then heat your oven up to 300 to 350 degrees place the pan it the oven upside down. Let it come up to temp bake for one hour. Then turn oven off let pan cool in oven and then remove. It should be dry and slick with no tacky gummy feeling.
Tiffany
LOL, I think you’ll be okay Kaylynne! Just wipe it all out. You don’t want to leave much in there – wiping as much grease out as you can and drying on the stove will take care of it!
Deb
I’m purchasing a pre-seasoned cast iron skillet. Will I need to do my own seasoning on it?
Mark Smith
Won’t hurt. But you could just remember to start the pan heating on medium low heat then add a little oil before you put the food in the pan. Also for the first few times cooking with it try frying some potatoes or bake some cornbread. This helps the seasoning process. Depending on how big the skillet and if you have a lid that willful it try hoping some popcorn in it. really helps the seasoning.
Tiffany
I would Deb, that way you know it’s done right and well.
kelly
I have a skillet I’ve had for a long time. I keep using it off and on because it always seems to have food stick. I always coat with oil when done using it. I really don’t even know if it was seasoned properly. Do you think I need to reseason it?
Tiffany
If you HAVE to use oil every time you use it and food always sticks, then yes, I’d say re-season.
Libbie
I have several pieces of cast iron – Griswold and Wagner brands- 6″, 8″, 12″ and a Dutch oven. All purchased about 25 years ago at farm auctions. Some had good- but not great- seasoning and some I had to start all over with.
The absolute best way I have found to season cast iron is to fry bacon outside over an open fire. Like Mark Smith commented, do not use just any bacon. It must be natural without sugar, therefore no flavor, maple, apple etc. Just good old plain bacon- organic if you can get it. Side pork will work great too!,
The smoke form the fire and grease from the pork will make a non-stick seasoning that you won’t believe and will cherish for many years! So take your cast iron camping!
Mark Smith
There are easy ways to clean Cast Iron skillets. One is to put about an inch of water in the skillet and bring to a boil. This loosens the debris and then just rinse it out and oil. Two is to add about two tablespoons of oil and then about a quarter cup of kosher salt heat and use paper towels holding with tongs rub the salt and oil around the area to be cleaned. Then wipe it out with another wad of clean paper towels. Wipe the oil out and reheat. Allowing the pan to go to smoking hot turn off and let cool. Your then ready to cook next time.
Remember it is not Teflon so get your pan hot then add some oil let it get hot before adding the food.
The reason your bacon stuck is bacon today has a lot of sugar in the cure and sugar will stick just like eggs to a new skillet. Even one that is preseasoned. Try cooking some 85/15 or fatter ground beef or make some cornbread in the skillet. Just remember to preheat the skillet with some oil coating the inside before adding the batter for the cornbread. These work real good in helping get a good seasoning.
Cara
Please need help. Bought a lodge cast iron. Cooked bacon in it twice and now there is a brown coating on some parts of the bottom. What do I do? Soak? Scrub with what? Put in oven?
Tiffany
Hi Cara! Brown coating is bits of food left over. It needs to be scraped off and the skillet needs to be seasoned (i.e. sealed with healthy fat) before you cook with it. 🙂
Cara
How do i do that ? I am very new to this. Scrape with what? And I only have unrefined coconut oil can i use that? And how could this have happened after only using two times and with something as greasy as bacon?I wiped after each use but couldnt get the brown off.
Cara
And any help u can give id appreciate it . It actually looks like the lodge pan in ur post above. Its just a slight film on bottom in some spots.wish i cd send a pic. I am changing over so much in my house and am overwhelmed. My 3 yr old just was diagnosed with a cancerous tumor sadly
Tiffany
If the skillet isn’t seasoned well in the first place, food can get cooked/burned onto the pan. It’s somewhat normal Cara and happens to the best of us. Scrub as hard as you can with whatever you have, then be sure to oil well before using. If you continue this, you should be fine.
Cara
Ok I used a dishcloth and scrubbed with warm water and looks better. Glad i didnt have to do the whole oven seasoning thing
Robyn
Kosher/vegetarian household here.
Cast iron has its uses, and there’s no need for animal fats of any kind to season it.
Think about what seasoning really is. We read polymerization without thinking of what that means: plastic. Not petroleum based plastics, but plant (or animal) oil based plastics. Done right at home.
What we are doing is creating a second, almost pit-less surface.
Go for high viscosity oils, coconut and the last of that transfat laden shortening you won’t eat are fine. Just avoid allergens.
For cleaning, I use the last of the tea water, still boiling, as a rinse. Very little water left behind since the water is phase changing to steam. Blot with a bar mop (no paper towels in my home). Use that same bar mop to spread a couple drops of oil over the interior, and dry on a burner. (Oven if it’s already in use- I try to use the least amount of electricity for this)
Will CI add iron? Yes. But that means acidic food or improper seasoning are in play.
We are creating a plastic layer that seals iron molecules away from the atmosphere. That layer has to be breached for iron molecules to leach into food.
Jenn
I found a 10 inch Wagner skillet at Goodwill for $8! It’s currently going through round one of oil in the oven (I already let it soak in lye for 24 hours to loosen the unknown scum). CThanks for all the helpful hints and comments everyone! Fingers crossed I’ll cook with it later this week! Any helpful first recipes? Meat?
Tiffany
What a great score! As for the first recipe, I’d go with bacon. Can’t ever go wrong with extra bacon grease. 😉
Heather
I’m new to a cast iron skillet. I was wondering if I can bake deserts and cook dinners with the same one or would my desert have a weird flavor after cooking dinner in it?
Tiffany
You can bake in the same skillet Heather – no weird flavors at all (just be sure to wipe out, and rinse if needed).
K
I just received a Pioneer Woman cast iron skillet. It says it’s already pre-seasoned, so do I need to do anything more before using it? Or should I season it again?
Also, it’s quite a bit bigger than my largest stovetop burner. Will the skillet conduct the heat well enough to cook evenly?
Thanks!
Tiffany
Hi K! Personally, I’d re-season so I know for sure the quality of it and for the experience. As for the heat, I think it will mostly – in my experience, it’s when burners heat unevenly that contribute to the hot spots, like my current electric top that is crooked, lol. If it’s flat and you preheat well, you should be okay. 🙂
K
Thanks!
robert
Even if you are germ phobic no need to clean cast iron with soap. Heating the pan very hot after rinsing basically sterilizes the pan, making it the cleanest item in the kitchen. If there is some residual food stuff left in the pan 5 minutes on the stove top will carbonize anything attached to the pan and help seal and season the pan.
Katie
I know Christmas week is a crazy week to be trying this…but I just drug 3 old skillets out of the cabinets. Seasoning starts tomorrow.
Tiffany
LOL – no time better than the present Katie!
Julia Kelly
I have a whole stack of cast iron…try to fry something in them periodically to reseason them. My mom and grandma taught me to wash them with the hottest water you can stand under the faucet but no soap, dry right away with a paper towel, never let air dry or have standing water in them, they will rust and always leave them out on top of the stove to dry completely before putting away….best cornbread recipe is to put skillet on stove top burnet, melt butter in, pour cornbread batter in let brown for just a minute on stove top and then finish in oven….yum
Tiffany
I’d love to try cornbread in my skillet – thanks for the reminder Julia!
PatDaz
Julia, I totally agree with your method of seasoning. I am from Georgia and inherited my Mom’s and her Mom’s cast iron skillets (some of Granny’s belong to HER Mom, my Great Grand!!), plus I have a large one I bought brand new from an Army Surplus store. They both taught me your method verbatim …. and my pots I’ve had are 40+ yrs, my Mom’s are 60+ yrs and my Granny’s are 80-100+ yrs old!!!!
My Granny didn’t have all the fancy coconut, flax seed, olive etc. oils, she used real plain old LARD for seasoning (inside ONLY) and put them in the oven to season them if new (her Mom, my Great Grand … {before ovens} used to put them upside down on the old pot belly stoves to season them!!
For cooking, Granny only used Lard to just barely coat the inside before cooking, OR if something was really sticky to cook, she used a little more Lard, or bacon drippings solidified in a ‘grease can’ she kept in the icebox. Later my Mom started using just Crisco, which is about the same as Lard, since Lard is not as readily available. I also use JUST Crisco, sometimes bacon grease for sticky cooking.
For cleaning after cooking, I also use their same methods. I wipe out my pans, WHILE STILL WARM, with paper towels …. run them under ONLY scalding hot water (NEVER any soap before seasoning or after cooking … EVER)and wipe them down thoroughly with paper towels again. I air them on the stove top overnight, NOT ever turning on the burners AT ALL.
For storage, the next day I know they are completely dry and no risk of rusting, and I store each of them in their own plastic bags and stack them on an enclosed storage shelf in my garage.
I have never had any problems with all the different aged pans I have … NO flaking, peeling, rusting, nothing. Just stick to this KISS (keep it simple ___ you know!!! ) … and not all this fancy dancy stuff all are trying to do nowadays. If this method has worked for over 4 generations down to me (and I am in my mid-60s), it must work!! 🙂
Mark Smith
When you season your cast iron, you season both the inside and outside. This protects the outside from rust. just take care of the outside like you would the inside, no dishwasher etc. You don’t have to oil the outside the seasoning protects it.
Tiffany
Mark – for most people “season” means to use oil… so can you explain a bit more how you would season the outside without using oil?
Mark Smith
I use oil to season the out side of the cast iron. Here is how it is done. On the first seasoning of cast iron before it is used you wash it with soapy COLD water. Rinse well and dry with lots of paper towels. This is the one time you need to wash the cast iron with soap. Place it in a pre heated 200 degree oven for about 15 minutes to make sure it is dry. Remove it and let it cool till you can handle it safely.
Now rub it with the oil of choice. I have used Crisco, lard, bacon grease, cooking oils such as grape seed, canola, etc. i have used spray on PAM with good results. I do not recommend using olive oil or flax seed. I rub the oil all over the inside and outside of the cast iron. Then I rub it off. You can’t rub all of it off, but try to rub it all off. Then place the iron back into the oven upside down. Also turn on the exhaust fan and maybe open a window. You may get some smoke that is fine. Turn up the oven temp to 450 degrees . Bake for one hour. Then turn off the oven leave the door closed and let the pan cool. . Don’t worry you are baking the oil onto the surface of the cast iron. It will change to a hard dark brown or black finish.. Repeat the oiling and baking one more time. The outside and inside is now sealed and won’t rust. Then after each use rinse with warm or hot water, NO SOAP. Dry then place on stove burner with medium low heat. Let the Cast Iron get hot apply a little oil or a squirt of PAM or other non flavored non stick spray and wipe it around the inside of the pan with a wad of paper towels. Then let it sit for a few minutes turn off the burner. Let the cast iron cool wipe one more time and it is ready for the next time you need it to cook. This maintains the seasoning. The more you use it the blacker and slicker it gets.
The fastest way to the slick finish is to fry or bake with it. No acidic foods or sauce to start with. When you want to cook with it remember a little oil before you cook keeps food from sticking.
Tiffany
Thanks for sharing your method Mark. I’ve heard of something similar, but was taught differently and so far, my bottom hasn’t rusted. I would caution against using Crisco, bacon grease, grape seed oil, canola oil and Pam though, as all but bacon grease are unhealthy oils. (Bacon grease is fine for cooking, just not the best option for seasoning.) Coconut oil and flax seed are the healthiest options for seasoning.
Mark Smith
As for the health factors of the oils used to season there should be no problems cause your not eating the seasoning. it is reduced by heat to a thin coat of hard polymer and solidly adhered to the cast iron.
The Flaxseed craze has seen to have problems. I belong to the WAGS Wagner and Griswold Society, the cast iron collectors. They have had multiple member try the Flaxseed seasoning and it looks good from the start but in about 6 to 9 months heavy use it starts to peel and has to be redone. I also asked my son about the Flaxseed and he said no way that even belongs in a kitchen. He is a Chef and has a degree with a major in organic chemistry. Also asked my wife about the Flaxseed same response. She has a Phd in Molecular Biology and taught Anatomy and Physiology for 25 years in college.
Tiffany
I appreciate your response Mark and the opinions of your wife and son. We might have to agree to disagree on this issue. 🙂
Lyn Henderson
Thinking about it I expect you would need to put that fat on outside otherwise that would rust am I right.
Tiffany
You can Lyn, but I haven’t and my outside hasn’t rusted. Just have to make sure it thoroughly dries every time.
Lyn Henderson
Thanks for that Tiffany.
Kim
Do any of you CI user have a new stove with the glass top burners? I would love to cook with CI but am afraid of using it on my stovetop.
Tiffany
I don’t have a glass top burner, but maybe another reader can chime in with some help! 🙂
Sandy
I have a glass topped induction stove. I use cast iron on it. With the induction stoves you can place a piece of paper towel in between the stove-top and the cast iron cookware, it helps so the top doesn’t get scratches and reck your stove.