:Cast Iron Cookware
Source of Recipe
I do not remember exactly where I found this any more, on a food site somewhere.
List of Ingredients
Cast Iron Cookware and It's Care
Cast iron cookware, if properly cared for, will last many a generation. The treatment and care instructions are applicable to ANY piece of cast iron cookware.
The secret of cast iron's long life is really no secret at all.
C o n s t a n t
and
p r o p e r
c a r e,
beginning with the day it is purchased, will keep the cookware in service for many years.
All quality cast iron cookware is shipped with a protective coating that "MUST" be removed. This will require a good scrubbing with steel wool, not the kind that comes with the soap in it, but the real curly kind, and, some elbow grease. Once removed, the oven needs to be rinsed well, towel dried and let air dry.
While it is drying, pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees F. After the cookware appears dry, place on the center rack with the lid ajar. Allow to warm
s l o w l y
so it is "just barely" too hot to handle with your bare hands.
This pre-heating does 2 things:
It drives any remaining moisture out of the metal and it opens the pores of the metal.
Use a clean rag, or, preferably, a paper towel and apply a thin layer of salt free cooking oil.
(Oils such as peanut, Olive or plain vegetable oil are fine. Tallow or lard will are okay, but these have animal fats that tend to break down during the storage periods that the cookware experiences between uses and are Not recommended.
Make sure the oil covers EVERY INCH of the cookware, INSIDE and OUTSIDE.
Place the cookware onto the oven's center shelf, again, with the lid ajar. Bake for about an hour or so at 350 degrees F.
This baking hardens the oil into a protective coating over the metal.
After baking, allow the cookware to cool SLOWLY.
When it is cool enough to be handled, apply Another, thin coating of oil. Repeat the baking and cooling process.
Again apply a thin coating of oil when it can be handled again. Allow the cookware to cool completely now.
It should now have 3 layers of oil. 2 baked on, and 1 put on when it was warm.
The cookware is now ready to use or to store.
This pre-treatment procedure only needs to be done once, UNLESS rust forms, or, the coating is damaged in storage or use.
This baked on coating will darken and eventually turn black with age; and is a sign of a well kept piece of cast iron cookware, and, of it's use.
The pre-treatment coating's purpose has 2 purposes.
1st, and most important, it forms a barrier between moisture in the air and the surface of the metal. This effectively prevents the metal from rusting.
2ndly, it is to provide a non-stick coating on the inside of the cookware. When properly maintained, this coating is as non-stick as most of the commercially applied coatings.
Cleaning of your Cast Iron Cookware
The cleaning is the same as for ordinary pots and pans, except, more often than not, cleaning cast iron is much easier than scrubbing other pots and pans.
For cast iron, the cleaning process is in 2 steps.
1st, food is removed and second, maintenance of the coating.
To remove stuck on food, place some warm CLEAN water into the cookware and heat until almost boiling. Using a plastic mesh scrubber or coarse sponge and
NO SOAP,
gently break the food loose and wipe away. After all food particles have been removed, rinse with clean warm water.
Soap is NOT recommended because its flavor will get into the pores of the metal and will get into the (taint) flavor of the next thing you cook in it.
After cleaning and rinsing, allow it to air dry.
Heat over the fire, just, until it is hot too the touch. Apply a thin coating of oil to the inside of the cookware AND to the underside of the lid, if applicable.
Allow the cookware to cool completely.
The outside will need little attention other than a good wipe down unless you see signs of rust forming. As a suggestion, it is a good idea to keep a scrubber JUST for cast iron and never use it with soap.
A few NO, No's
Never, NEVER allow cast iron to sit in water or allow water to stand in or on it. It will rust despite a good coating.
NEVER use soap on cast iron. The soap will get into the pores of the metal and won't come out very easy, but will return to flavor your next meal. If soap is used accidentally, the cookware should be put through the pre-treatment procedure, including, the removal of the present coating.
Do NOT place an empty piece of cast iron cookware over a hot fire. Aluminum and many other metals can tolerate it better, but, cast iron will Crack, or Warp, ruining it.
Do not be in a hurry to heat cast iron cookware, or, you will end up with burnt food, or, a damaged piece of cookware.
NEVER put cold liquid into very hot cast iron cookware. It will crack on the spot!
Recipe
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