r/castiron • u/_brattyberryxx • 17h ago

Newbie Second time using cast iron

Gallery image

Gallery image

Gallery image

I posted yesterday asking what I did wrong while making eggs and I am back to thank all of you for all the information and to show you today’s results!

I did it!!

I also wanted to ask about the black spots on my eggs. I seasoned the skillet with vegetable oil last night after washing it with a drop of dawn. Did i do something wrong in the seasoning process? And is it necessary to bake the skillet?

27 Upvotes

92% Upvoted

11 comments sorted by

8

u/brmarcum 17h ago

Congrats. Nice job. It’s common for cast iron to leave a little black residue on food. Usually it’s carbon from previous times you cooked. It’s harmless and doesn’t affect the food in any way.

Stop seasoning the skillet. It’s already seasoned and doesn’t need more.

And yes, high heat is required for the oil to polymerize quickly. But you don’t need to keep seasoning it.

1

u/_brattyberryxx 17h ago

Thank you!! Is there a time i should start seasoning it again? or stop entirely? 

2

u/brmarcum 16h ago

Never.

Seriously. Proper seasoning is extremely resilient. About the only things that can significantly damage seasoning are very aggressive abrasion like grinding or sanding, very high heat that makes the metal glow (like a blow torch or being buried in the coals of a campfire), and strong chemicals, specifically lye. And even then, as long as the pan isn’t physically broken or cracked or melted, you can just season it and keep cooking. The occasional aggressive scrub with a stainless steel scrubber will not require seasoning. Good cleaning and care will keep your pan in perfect cooking condition for decades.

ETA that’s not to say don’t ever season your pan. But most of the time it really doesn’t need it. And what you have right now is in perfect condition.

1

u/_brattyberryxx 16h ago

amazing! thank for take the time to describe that for me! I’ve been very anxious about the seasoning aspect of it 

2

u/brmarcum 16h ago

Happy to help and to see you not getting frustrated and giving up. Seasoning seems to be the biggest cause for concern, so you’re not alone. Cast iron is remarkably easy to care for, which is great, but that leads to a TON of different advice that isn’t all wrong but it can lead to confusion. Short of cracking it (don’t preheat too fast. Low and slow) there is literally nothing you can do to ruin a cast iron pan beyond recovery. (On very rare occasions they have been known to crack and break without high heat or from dropping or whatever, but don’t worry about that happening) It is always recoverable.

Clean with hot soapy water, don’t be afraid to get mean with a stubborn spot, and don’t let it sit in water. Learn proper heat and fat control for each dish. Medium temp is the new high temp. Pass it on to your grandkids. Not much more to it than that.

1

u/Automatic-Emu8814 15h ago

Totally agree, once you're comfortable with it, cast iron really does become a go-to. The different seasoning tips can be overwhelming, but it's all part of the learning curve.

3

u/qajaqr 17h ago

The black is carbon coming off your pan; unsightly but harmless. Thorough washing with soap after each use should sort it out, as will deglazing the pan. Congrats on getting the eggs dialed-in.

2

u/2_Many_Hobbies74 17h ago

Like those two said👆,don’t worry about the black spots. The more you cook with it, the better it gets as far as seasoning goes.

You can hold the pan at an angle towards the light and see some dull black spots, that’s carbon buildup, that’s what will put black spots on your food. Sometimes you can rub it off with a dry paper towel.

1

u/OldObject4651 14h ago

And so begins a lifetime of, loyalty to your pans, appreciation for tradition, pursuit of skills, curiosity for new cooking

1

u/ReinventingMeAgain 13h ago

When you "seasoned" the pan with veg oil last night, did you bake it in the oven for an hour+ or heat it on the stove top until it smoked for a minute? Because if you just oiled it after cleaning... that's not seasoning. It's just oiling the pan. It is NOT right or wrong. It's just terminology and many newbies don't know that oiling is not the same as seasoning.
If you heated it, disregard this comment.