- You may have cast iron dutch ovens, skillets, griddles, kettles or baking pans.
- You have the option of flat bottom or spider ovens(with legs) and there are flat or domed lids.
- Flat bottom pans are what you want if you are cooking on the stove(home or camp), spiders are best when cooking over coals.
- Flat tops on cast iron or aluminium are best for cooking on coals, as coals can be heaped on top to cook from above and below. The flat lid can also be used as a griddle on it's own.
When you buy a new cast iron item it usually comes seasoned. Seasoned means that the cast iron has been heated and oiled with a food quality oil. You can buy this special oil where you buy your cast iron and the companies recommend that you use their oil, however, olive oil or any other oil you have on hand will work fine. Yes, food oils will go rancid over time. If you use your cast iron regularly no need to worry. If you only use you cast iron once in a while you can just wash it with a little soap in hot water, which will not be enough to strip all of the seasoning away. Or you may want to use the company recommended oil. Another option is if you have jojoba oil use that, jojoba oil does not go rancid.
When you use a cast iron(or any pan) over a wood fire or coals, use liquid soap and coat the outside of the pan before cooking. This will allow you to wash all of the soot off easily. Thanks to my Girl Scout leaders for this oh-so-helpful hint. You may have learned this in Boy Scouts or Camp Fire USA too.
When cooking with a cornbread pan or other kind of pan that gets buried in the coals wrap it in heavy duty foil before burying it. No worries about ash getting in your food and the pan has no soot on it to be cleaned off. The same for waffle irons or sandwich irons on the long handle that you cook over flame.
When cleaning cast iron, wipe out the pan and then if you have cooked-on food use either sand or salt to scrub out the pan. If you have one, scrub with a ring pad(this is a chain mail square that is about 8 in.) this handy scrubby is great!
DO NOT SCRUB WITH SOAP on cast iron, it removes the layer of seasoning that protects the pan from rust. If you must....rinse very well and then dry over burner of your stove . Once dried, coat immediately with oil while the pan is still warm! A light application of soap will not damage the finish nor will coating the outside of a pan used over an open fire.
If you happen upon a cast iron pan that is rusted, rough-textured or just plain nasty at a yard sale, resale shop or in the bottom selves of a friend or loved ones kitchen or shed, revive it and give it new life. Start a good size fire in a grill or fire pit and if you have one, a charcoal starter can. Once the coals are red and white place the cast iron in the coals, dump or scoop coals into the pan. Let the fire burn away the debris. Once the pan is burned clean, set aside to cool completely, then rinse off the ashes, reheat on the stove to dry and coat with oil.
Cast Iron can and will break. Do not hit it with or against something hard when hot, if there is a fault in the metal it can crack. If there is a fault you probably can't see it. Just dropping it on the floor can cause your pan break. My folks had a skillet that fell to the floor and a pie shaped piece broke off the side to about half way down. We continued using that skillet for many years just couldn't fill it all the way up with liquids or cornbread batter, but it worked just fine to cook hamburgers, brown meats or cook pancakes.
When you use a cast iron(or any pan) over a wood fire or coals, use liquid soap and coat the outside of the pan before cooking. This will allow you to wash all of the soot off easily. Thanks to my Girl Scout leaders for this oh-so-helpful hint. You may have learned this in Boy Scouts or Camp Fire USA too.
When cooking with a cornbread pan or other kind of pan that gets buried in the coals wrap it in heavy duty foil before burying it. No worries about ash getting in your food and the pan has no soot on it to be cleaned off. The same for waffle irons or sandwich irons on the long handle that you cook over flame.
When cleaning cast iron, wipe out the pan and then if you have cooked-on food use either sand or salt to scrub out the pan. If you have one, scrub with a ring pad(this is a chain mail square that is about 8 in.) this handy scrubby is great!
DO NOT SCRUB WITH SOAP on cast iron, it removes the layer of seasoning that protects the pan from rust. If you must....rinse very well and then dry over burner of your stove . Once dried, coat immediately with oil while the pan is still warm! A light application of soap will not damage the finish nor will coating the outside of a pan used over an open fire.
If you happen upon a cast iron pan that is rusted, rough-textured or just plain nasty at a yard sale, resale shop or in the bottom selves of a friend or loved ones kitchen or shed, revive it and give it new life. Start a good size fire in a grill or fire pit and if you have one, a charcoal starter can. Once the coals are red and white place the cast iron in the coals, dump or scoop coals into the pan. Let the fire burn away the debris. Once the pan is burned clean, set aside to cool completely, then rinse off the ashes, reheat on the stove to dry and coat with oil.
Cast Iron can and will break. Do not hit it with or against something hard when hot, if there is a fault in the metal it can crack. If there is a fault you probably can't see it. Just dropping it on the floor can cause your pan break. My folks had a skillet that fell to the floor and a pie shaped piece broke off the side to about half way down. We continued using that skillet for many years just couldn't fill it all the way up with liquids or cornbread batter, but it worked just fine to cook hamburgers, brown meats or cook pancakes.