I've done a lot of "professional" cast iron resto's with electrolysis rigs and all. This that you show here is great for anyone not wanting to get so involved or having lots of pieces to do. I could only offer a couple of tips/suggestions that will help even the one-timer have great results and some info to share, which why we're all here, ya? The lighter you make each coating, the less smoke you'll have. If you do it in your oven, two things. Bring your oven up to about 400°. The higher heat helps with the conversion of the polymers. Go at least 1.5 hrs. I go two. Secondly... And most importantly, don't open the door! Let the oven cool down to room temp BEFORE you open the door. Dont be in a hurry! This process helps the conversion of the polymers and the coats "set" well (and it also helps keep any remaining smoke or unpleasantness from getting out). You're right, any hi-temp, edible oil will do however some are better than others. The secret is to, as you have done there, season with several, very light coats. Its tempting to want to "get it over with" and be heavy handed with the oil or fat but dont, or you'll be sorry, as it will smoke like crazy and be streaky (like paint runs), tacky and not very non-stick at all. The seasoning will come out much more even and hard and not tacky, if you have some patience. As to type of oil or fat, the best product, bar none, is bear tallow! "Bear grease," as my dad and granddad always called it, was used from everything from cast iron to waterproofing leather goods. They grew up in the North Carolina mountains during the depression and you did with what you had. And some of those things are still better than the "new stuff." But, I digress... No bears? Beef tallow is the very next best thing. Then pork lard and Crisco, then veggie oils. I just seasoned a new, carbon steel wok with beef tallow. Woks are tedious, as you cant just stick 'em in the oven and forget it... But the end result was worth it. If you cook some beef, after the pan full of juice cools off and the hard, white layer forms on top, that's beef tallow. Same goes for pork, etc.. What makes them work so well is the molecular structure of the fats and how the fat converts to the resulting polymers. It makes a type of "natural plastic" (yes, I know what I said) and when you're all done seasoning, as you cook and these layers continue to build up, you get a veritable skating rink of built up, non-stick polymers on the bottom (and sides, to a point) of your pot or pan. When I'm done cooking, I scrub loose any stuck bits with a wooden spoon and maybe a little salt as a helper and just wipe out the pan. That's all it needs. Sometimes, if needed, I'll rinse a hot pan with a quick blast of water, done. Just dry over the heat for a minute. If you do have to really wash your pan, that's fine. And soap IS ABSOLUTELY okay, just rinse well when you're done. Just be sure to use a gentle scrubber (Lodge sells a bristled scrub brush on a handle for just this purpose for just a few dollars on Amazon) so as not to scratch through the layer of slick. But, soap or no, after your pan is clean and dry, heat it to just nicely warm and rub in a *light* coat of fat or oil, wiping out the excess and leave it be. Do the same with those copper-coated, non-stick pans, as well! Yup, they have to be seasoned, too, or they stick like crazy. They leave that factoid buried in the fine print... lol. And dont use "Pam" spray or you will NEVER get off the burn stains. It's too low a smoke point, as is extra virgin olive oil. :) Anyway... The cooking oils will season almost as well as tallow, sort of, just not quite as slick or durable as the lards. Tallow will, ultimately, make a thicker coating on the bottom of your pan or pot. The bottom of the pan I only use for steaks feels like hard plastic, with silicone spray on it! (Ok, maybe I'll fry some eggs in it but, that's it). You can use canola oil, safflower oil, peanut oil, olive oil, etc.. Just dont ever use extra virgin olive oils. The process by which they're made makes them less temperature tolerant. It won't work. Dont fry with it, either, as it will just burn in the pan. Ggv "Use regular olive oils to cook with and the extra virgin to eat with" as my mom used to say. Its better for finishing off your dishes, topping your breads and pastas, etc. Plus, good EVOO is expensive. It's easy to make your own beef (or pork) tallow, just collect some fat trimmings from your beef cuts, saving up till you have a pound or so (keeps great in the freezer) or just ask the butcher for some trimmings. They will charge you but not much. Two simple steps. Ok, maybe three. Start by trimming as much of the meat as you can from the fat. Put the fat in a deep enough pot that you can stir and scoop without spilling over low heat and let it go. Stir occasionally, just until the fat melts down enough that nothing burns on the bottom. The fat doesn't burn, it's the meaty bits that burn. Let it render down until all of the remaining pieces of meat are just crispy bits floating on the top. It will take a while, so, be patient! Skim off said crispy bits and anything else that isn't pure, melted fat. Pure, rendered fat has a very low melting point, a high smoke point and is a very slippery product. When your tallow is ready, have some receptacles ready. Be sure it's enough to catch however much you have. I make quite a bit so I use mini-bread pans, lined with waxed paper so it doesn't leak through. But a simple bowl will work. You can always cut the cooled block into the desired size. When done with the blocks (mini-bread pans make aprox. a 1lb. block) I freeze the extras and keep one in my fridge. Note: This pure, rendered tallow will soften and melt at room temp. This tallow is perfect for everything from seasoning your cast iron to deep-frying the best French fries ever (that's what put McDonald's on the map, 'till the government stopped all the fun) and making your own candles if the power goes out! Tallow was a household staple and used for many things for eons. Every time a recipe calls for putting oil in the pan for cooking something up, I use a little beef lard. Frying eggs, yum. Really, any time you need a little lube in the frying pan, it works great. Point is, there are plenty of reasons to keep some on hand, so even if you just lift the "puck" off the top of the pan drippings you put in the measuring cup and stuck in the fridge to cool, you'll have it on hand any time your cast iron needs a touch up. And it will, from time to time and a little bit goes a very long way. :)
Good instructions. Thank you for sharing. I have a bowl of lamb tallow in the freezer not wanting to throw it for months. Now I know what to do with it including greasing elbows to get scrubbing all my old cast irons first.
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Everyone does their own thing, people don’t need to knock someone for showing you how they do it. I liked this video. I see it all the time, people being rude. You don’t like it, don’t watch it.
Keep in mind there's a difference between legitimate criticism and "knocking", or belittling, or just plain meanness, which is all-to-common on the interwebs nowadays.
@@reh2660 Yes, there is a difference but with just text and not being able to hear how they say it than it get into a grey area. Good intentions can type out the wrong way, I have done that. I do not always explain things the right way in text but one would know it by his voice.
I have so many cast iron pots and skillets I’ve collected over the years, last one was a Dutch Oven filled with 16 penny nails that sat outside and collected water and whatever. I used this same method, took all day basically but the end result was a priceless piece of cast iron I can hand down to my children, keep the Non-Stick junk, keep the cast iron well seasoned and you’ll never go wrong. Thank you for keeping an old school method alive, much appreciated.
I always enjoying reading the comments about how to clean a season cast iron. It's almost as much fun as the discussion around putting sugar in cornbread. Bottom line is the old rusty Dutch Oven turned out great and best I can tell that was the objective. Well done.
Cast iron...the ultimate survival tool. Looks to be a great job on restoration/reseasoning of it. Well done. You and your ancestors will be using that dutch oven for years and years to come!
This is the easiest to understand video on seasoning iron I’ve ever watched. Nothing to misconstrue and nothing left out. Thank you for making this DIY video. Liked 👍🏻 and 🔔
Finally a video on restoring iron ware that makes sense and is easy and won't stink up my kitchen and set off the smoke detectors. Thank you sir. I appreciate that you also provided the temperatures for each step. I love using the old pans the new one just are not the same.
That was truly amazing! You brought back an old cast iron Dutch oven that’s probably been baking in the sun and rain for years. I’ve never seen the vinegar method but from looking at how well that vinegar managed to break up that caked on rust, I’m definitely going to try this one at home. Thank you for sharing this nice tip on cleaning rusty cast iron!
Good job brother thank you so much, we just bought a Dutch oven at an auction site that was supposed to be new season. I got it Home opened it up and it is completely rusty. I didn’t know what to do with it and came looking at RUclips and found your video and you have given me the hope that I needed. I think I can save this beautiful gorgeous piece of cast-iron.
A tip I found to work soak any rusted tool in white vinegar 24 to 48 hrs and all the rust will be gone ( metal only ) being careful to not put wood or other types of handles in the vinegar.
I like this dude. Very short, sweet, and to the point yet effective and easy. Also really like his relaxed demeanor, this is the kinda fella that it's a pleasure to learn from
Thank you for sharing your time, knowledge, and talent with us. I used this method to restore some antique clothes irons I found today. They look great! My hubby wants to use them as bookends.
I watched every second of this video ... i have a collection of cast iron skillets I bought at my local goodwill and have seasoned all of them but this pot you have is the only missing piece to finish my collection I am dying to find one like yours. Great video! Thanks for sharing ❤️
Lots of good tips here. I “inherited” a Loge Dutch oven with a badly rusted lid, and burns inside. Following these guidelines, and adding a 3 inch nozzle wire brush on my cordless, did the major clean up in an hour. Used Crisco for the coating-baked until the smoke stopped. I’ll give it another cleaning in a day or so and be ready for a skillet steak and some potatoes, maybe throw some biscuit batter in on top with about 10 mins to go. Thank you for these great tips!!
That came out great! I like to use canola oil. It dries like linseed (which is flaxseed) without the smell or taste, and leaves no oily residue once it dries. After you use the pan, clean it and put on a thin coat of canola. Warm it up to “ouch that’s hot” , let it cool, and it will be ready for the next time!
Since I cook with tallow and lard (vegetable oil will clog arteries) that's what I season my cookware with. Yes, I DO know about polyunsaturated oils, I learned the hard way.
I have a few cast iron skillets that I need to work on. I think they're in a bit worse condition, but this looks like a great starting point. Thanks for the vid!
Much easier than the method I read about of soaking in lye! Flax oil has of of the highest smoke points and is very high in omega 3 fats, so it makes am excellent, if not one of the best, seasoning oil. I read it long ago and have implemented it with great success.
I use Crisco, also. After you apply it, take a clean blue Scott's shop towel and rub off as much melted shortening as you can before heating it, this prevents sticky residue. Nice job!
This is the way my grandma used to clean all her iron skillets which I still have to this day, they are at least 82 to 89 yrs old. Trust me these make the best cooking for a meal. You can't beat originality.
I received my mom's old, pots a few years ago from my sister after she passed,so glad I didn't give them away and even more glad I ran across your posting😤 tnk-u.
Hello from Southampton England! Thank you for this excellent video, I have an unused cast iron pot in. The shed which has gone a bit rusty. Gonna clean it up and season this weekend. Thanks!
The true meaning of elbow grease. Great work. I have restored many old cast iron pieces. This is pretty much my method as well, but with rendered lard. I agree, outdoors only. Boy those things sure get to smoking.
Your efforts were so successful. That is one beautiful dutch oven. I'm sure you will get some wonderful meals out of it. Thanks for sharing your methods.
I think this is the first time anyone I have watched has actively said the following: 1. Heat it up first to drive off all the moisture before you apply your oil 2. Put it in the oven (where ever) until it stops smoking - which in itself is smart 3. Repeat this process 2 or 3 times and this bakes on your coating Brilliant! makes more sense now WHY we do this. Consider that I gave your video 11 thumbs up....you can just mentally add on those extra 10.
First video i ran across to that pointed that out too. Every time im done cooking in mine i just clean oil smoke it and stop i repeat that every few weeks.
Likewise - I've watched a few and they assume you already know what you're doing. Chances are, if you're looking on a video to cure your cast iron, you don't have a nan who showed you how already.
Thanks for showing the start-to-finish on how much scrubbing it takes - amazing transformation and totally worth the effort imho. I especially like your combo of s/s scrubbie and cleaning vinegar (12%) - looks very effective. I had already cured mine, but I wondered how long to leave it in. I pulled it out when I set off my smoke detector (forgot to close the kitchen door!) and thought I used the wrong oil. *phew* Now I'm relieved. Wish I'd seen this before I cured mine - it would have started off better and left it in longer. Next time ...
Turns out a beautiful like new pot. You did a great job with a little old fashioned elbow grease. I gotta tell you though, you are hilarious to watch when it shows you cleaning it in high speed mode. Great video and a very nice lob.
Before I watched this I was wondering if I could use my Traeger. After watching your video that is exactly what I have done. I’ve seasoned before but someone I loaned my Dutch oven to left it out so it has rust. Not as bad as that one but bad enough not to cook in it. Your way was so much faster. Thanks for the video.
@@josephchampagne9134 Oh c'mon, you know by "chemicals" he was referring to some nasty oven cleaner in a spray can type thing. At least vinegar is edible.
Well done. Not belabored or going off topic, just the stuff you need to get a job done. Should have figured this out myself, as I use vinegar on rusty auto sheet metal.
Thanks for every ones input on cast iron conditioning....... I just bought a NEW wood(coal) cook stove and can't wait to get out my old collection of cast iron cook ware that I've stored for years and start using it(I do have a few I use daily). I have heritage hog lard and grass feed beef tallow, now I know another way to use the fats!! Thanks ya'll.
Experience of a South African , where we regularly have a Potjie (As we call it) To refresh a pot, heated in a oven / fire 100% scrubbed clean by steel wool, but my experience, 100% (Ive used 400gr water sandpaper) Veg oil dries into a plastic coat which needs to be scrubbed off at every use, Once baked and scrubbed, I use animal fat and cook that into the potjie, (dutch oven) (My number 3 pot used 4kg of animal fat offcuts) storage tip, I don't coat the pot with any oil, final wash and rinse in HOT water, let the pot dry by itself, crumple up lots of balls of newspaper and leave this in the pot to absorb any moisture, Yes I know there may be a fine coating of rust, this just gets scrubbed off before you use the pot, Its better than having to scrub off a layer of cooking oil that's dried to a thin film in the pot, We have a rule for Potjie cooking competitions, your pot must be silver clean inside :) Another bit of info, The Dutch oven name, came from heating the pot up completely, try using the pot over a low fire coals, cook slow, (4 to 5 hours) the main purpose is to enjoy the kuier (Afrikaans for socialise) :)
OMGOODNESS! This was perfect! My Dutch oven looks brand new! It has sat outside for a good two years; thank you for sharing. Also, thank you to @MtnBadger, I took some of your advice as well.
My grandmother was the same, and her sister. They lived to 101 and 100 respectively. Amazing women, like many in that generation, they had energy for 20!
Interesting. I use a fire pit I made lined with stones and build a large fire and put the object to be cleaned in it directly. I keep it flaming and very hot. Probably 800 degrees or so. In an hour the grime brushes off easy. Then I coat the object in Navel Jelly for 30 minutes. Wash it off with plenty of water and you have My Easy Way to clean and remove rust. Then heat the object up at 200 degrees and then bath it in Vinegar to completely remove the Navel Jelly. The Jelly smells terrible but the Vinegar neutralizes it and it's clean. I use Refined Safflower Oil to season my cast Iron. The smoking point of Refined Safflower Oil is around 510 degrees. It really does not have a detectable smell either. I am sure there are as many methods and people doing this. But this was a good video and I learned a new method.
That’s all I cook with is cast iron I love my collection. Many people don’t realize that cooking with cast iron will naturally add iron into your food 🥘 it’s much better getting your iron this way than taking iron pills that’ll constipate you. Cast iron is so much easier to clean and it’s the original ‘non-stick’, You won’t start consuming chips of that nonstick stuff that is sprayed on the newer pans that are made nowadays. Try it, the next time you stop by a flee market or tag sale pick one up for a few dallors clean it up real good, season it and the next time you get your physical ask your doctor to check your iron levels. Happy Cooking
Turned out nice. But my easy way is soak that joker in a bucket of vinegar for two to three days with about 4 tables spoons of salt . Take it out blast it with a water hose with a good spray nozzle then use the scrubbies on the rest that didn’t come off then season. That vinegar bath will take 90% of that work away and when you use a water hose on it after it comes out . It will lift 90-95% of the rust extremely easy .
I'm lucky (or my neighbors are), I have a variable pressure blasting cabinet (glass bead). I've taken the rust off cast iron cookware more than a few dozen times. Never takes me more than 20 minutes.
Nice work! That's the fastest restoration process I've seen. There's an easier, but more time consuming process involving molasses. 1) Get some molasses, mix it with water. The right ratio is 1 part molasses to 7-10 parts water. 2) Submerge the corroded metal in the molasses/water mixture. 3) Wait at least 3 weeks. 4) Take out, rinse off and season. It takes a little while, but has some unique advantages over other methods. For one, it takes minimal effort compared to other ways of doing it. But most importantly, its an edible product which removes corrosion while minimizing metal loss. Acids (such as acetic acid in vinegar) will also remove rust, but can also result in some metal loss (both corroded and "good" metal) depending on how long a metal is immersed in them.
@@hickoryridgehomestead9177 no problem, and thanks for your video. If you do pick up some molasses, I believe the feed (livestock) grade is preferred for this application. It's much less likely to form mold in the solution compared to food grade.
Great video, I’ve got some cast iron cook wear to try this on. One thing I would recommend is using industrial chemical safety gloves when doing this might be easier on your hands , the gloves I use are Solvex Ansell pn 37-165 they are great . You can get them on amazon; I highly recommend them. I’ve been using them for years. I even use them when doing my dishes because I use boiling hot water and do my dishes by hand a hole lot faster than a dishwasher but you got to be careful when handling boiling water because you could end up with 3rd degree burns on your body. I’ve been handling hot stuff for years so I’m used to it. And if you got children around be extra safety conscious, I can’t stress that enough, as the same as handling firearms.
I'm absolutely not disagreeing with you. As I said, it's not that flax isn't good enough, I was pointing out the many good points of tallow, one of which is the good job it will do in a pan. That's all. Flax oil is easier to deal with, does a good job, etc. Tallow is easy to come by (just cook something, for enough to do a pan) and works well. And it makes a good candle, too. ;).
I use cider vinegar for old iron tools and such. Just soak them in it for a couple days. Then wire brush it. Cleaning vinegar is just a higher percentage of acid than the 5% cider or clear vinegar. Rather than spending an inordinate amount of time hand scouring with the higher acid vinegar just soak the item for however long you want. Rust away - now that is easy.
Thanks for a greatly informative video. Excellent info! And I appreciate the "why's" for doing each step along the way. Really helpful information here.
I did enjoy it... thank you! I've always loved cast iron because my grand parents made slamming food with them that I remember from my childhood, I've had a few very nice pieces but could never seem to use or keep them long term. They always rust after the first or second use and I can never figure out why. I actually threw out brand new sets out of frustration after just a few attempts at cooking with them. Well actually I let my husband hang them up for his own use (note to self and everyone else reading this... cast iron pans make very DANGEROUS shooting targets!!! They basically send the bullets right back to you like playing a fucked up version of racket ball/Russian roulette!..unless of course you want someone dead...like my now ex, if so then donate your pans to the cause!!!😜) Anywho after watching this I realize I should give them more than one "coating " in the oven. It doesn't specify that in directions and everyone I could have asked in my family is dead, No! I did not shoot them! LoL So again... thanks! You've possibly saved many of my newer pans. We'll see
Done this several times with cast iron. It gets crusty after a lot of use. I take it camping. It goes in the campfire at the end of the evening, buried in the remaining coals. I dig it out in the morning, scrub the light coating of ash etc. off, and then heat it on the cooktop and re-oil it. The oil smokes and I oil it again. Mom used to get hers really hot, oil it up, and toss a bunch of sliced or shredded potato’s in to fry. The starch would help with the reseasoning.
Some family members gave me a 12 inch Dutch oven, and it looks like crap mostly on outside . Surprisingly, the inside is not as bad. I see rust and different layers of spot seasoning in the inside. I have been scrubbing, but it looks like it will need a vinegar bath and more scrubbing inside and out. Will apply your advice
While cleaning out my garden I threw all rotten tomatoes in my rusty wheel barrow so I could put them in the compost pile. I forgot to dump them out and they spent the night in the wheel barrow. When I dumped them the next day the bottom was shiney steel. All the rust had disappeared. Rather than throw rotten tomatoes out, keep them for rust removal.
If its bumpy or uneven in the bottom...just pull it all the way down to bare cast...then sand it smooth. Wash rinse, dry, Then reseason. Self cleaning ovens are GREAT for doing it quick indoors in the cold weather, or do it this way the rest of the year. Some of these new Lodge skillets are like small pebbles in the bottom with that preseasoning stuff they use. I have to use 80 grit and a mouse sander to get it smooth and start over.
That is the way I would clean an old piece of cookware also and I have several skillets and dutch ovens and try to keep them looking like they did when I got them new. I still have a skillet which was my grandmother's and it is kept clean like that also and love it. My sister have our mother's skillet and she cooks in it. I got tired of the so called non stick skillets and ended up with too many water containers for the animals so I went back to the original cast iron cookware and love it.
A 50/50 water/vinegar bath for 30 minutes at a time would save all of that elbow grease for rust. Repeat as needed. As for the grill method, you can wind up warping or cracking your iron. The old iron pieces were usually thing walled and can't take those high temperatures. Easy Off for crud is fine or if you have multiple pieces a lye bath works great, just add 1 lb. of 100% lye crystals to 5 gallons of water and you can use the lye over and over but wear rubber gloves and eye protection.
Great video ...maybe I would try it your way with the heat and vinegar but use a power drill with a wire brush wheel. Everyone needs a big pot like that ! Thank you
@@hickoryridgehomestead9177That is awful! Not from a person who loves the 2nd amendment I bet. Libber nutso. I am gonna search the web to find a sweatshirt like yours!
abcjerilee Grunt Style Ammo Flag 2.0 Hoodie, Color Charcoal, Size XXX-Large www.amazon.com/dp/B0754LVL84/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_RaGlEb408YRY0 . There you go. I ordered 3 more myself.
Leave a cast iron in the oven on 4 hours self clean cycle. Less scrubbing. Just wash in soapy water. Dry over heat like he says. Grease with shortening, the preservatives in the shortening keep the oil from going rancid. Don’t preseason if you use it for a variety of dishes. Use shortening to grease the oven before cooking.
Hi!!! You did a great job on this pot. I have several cast iron skillets my husband♡ bought me from Jamie's Flea Market here. Im going to have to give this a try!!! Great video.
Good video. I use vinigar to remove rust from anything that will fit into the plastic bin. I switched from a big cast iron frying pan to a pressed steel pan when the CI got too heavy. I rinse the pan after use and, as I have a flat cooktop the residual heat dries the pan after cleaning.
Greg, I have a flat cooktop and the ladies that I purchased this home from said that *IF* I used cast iron it would *shatter* my cooktop. I have been heartbroken, as I have not used *any* of my skillets or dutch ovens.... Is there truth to this? i mean, I don't want a shattered cooktop to find out.... *sigh*
@@EarthChickadee This never happened when I had one of those flat cooktops. Maybe if you start to pick it up barehanded and it's too hot and you drop it, it would shatter.
true , but you could also add some regular olive oil (not the extra virgin kind) and the acidity working with apple cider vinegar works like a charm ... no scrubbing, just wipe off with a paper towel ...
Do NOT let your cast iron soak in vinegar more than 30 minutes! Solution should be 50/50 vinegar to H2O. Let it sit 10 minutes, bring it out and scrub, then, 10 more, etc. Do not exceed 30 minutes.
Thank you for this! I have 2 cast iron pans. One is a grill that is pretty rusty, the other one is a big skillet that's only a little rusty. I'm going to use this method to clean and season them 💯💯👍👍
......Just fill a laundry tub with vinegar, (and baking soda bath later), and let the Rusted Cast Iron device sit for an afternoon in it. The rust is neutralized without all that Scrubbing....or use a drill with a stainless steel brush disk to scrub off the last bits of rust.....Sand Blasting works also.
I have a rusty tea kettle that I want to re finish. I have vinager and scrubby balls! Thank your for showing me how to get rust off, I'll let ya know how it goes when I scrub it down!
I was making that every morning for a while...you can substitute apple sauce for the butter. I would eat the whole loaf. Tasty, tasty! Halapenos and some corn Kernels.
I agree, this is the real way to do cornbread. I feel even older by agreeing with you, ugh. But it doesn't cost all that much to live, you just gotta tame down your "wants", why not want this for example? Sorry, ranting.....
Make sure you dry your pan thoroughly. It shouldn't rust then. I always put mine back on the burner (and set the timer so I don't forget about it) then wipe with a little lard or grape seed oil. My Mom had a huge one. One day my brother had Dad's hunting rifle and blew a hole through the stove drawer right through the cast iron too. Mom used that whole for draining off any fat left in the pan.
Dude... just a home person. Lots of cast iron. "Grandma's famous" chicken pot with dotted lid". I made English Toffee in it for years. Not knowing you don't use soap, and I took ALL the seasoning out of it. Heart broken! Got another Lodge dutch oven (no dots on the lid). Did the same, and same results. I guess it took 2 times for reality to smack me in the noggin I was messing up big time. Trying to find a fix, now this has been YEARS. Heat to 200, oil, turn upside down in the oven, blah blah blah.... nothing has really worked. I'm looking forward to trying your method. Grandma born like 1908. Married Grandpa early 1920's. She was a master, as a home cook. Wood stove. I remember her biscuits and gravy. That is the only recipe I have.In my head, I remember asking her to teach me. But her fried chicken... to die for. I remember low oil temp, cover. Let the meat cook. Then, remove the lid, and let it brown. Sorry, got lost in my cast iron. I STILL have yet to fix her prized dutch oven. I'm going to try your method. I know now, clean with HOT water. That melts my toffee. Oil after. If things are stuck, Daddy taught me to just put salt and hot water in the pan/pot. It removes it w/out taking the seasoning off. Thanks for giving me new hope. I'm 60 now, I'd like to make Grandma's chicken in her pot. : )
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I've done a lot of "professional" cast iron resto's with electrolysis rigs and all. This that you show here is great for anyone not wanting to get so involved or having lots of pieces to do.
I could only offer a couple of tips/suggestions that will help even the one-timer have great results and some info to share, which why we're all here, ya?
The lighter you make each coating, the less smoke you'll have. If you do it in your oven, two things. Bring your oven up to about 400°. The higher heat helps with the conversion of the polymers. Go at least 1.5 hrs. I go two. Secondly... And most importantly, don't open the door! Let the oven cool down to room temp BEFORE you open the door. Dont be in a hurry! This process helps the conversion of the polymers and the coats "set" well (and it also helps keep any remaining smoke or unpleasantness from getting out).
You're right, any hi-temp, edible oil will do however some are better than others. The secret is to, as you have done there, season with several, very light coats. Its tempting to want to "get it over with" and be heavy handed with the oil or fat but dont, or you'll be sorry, as it will smoke like crazy and be streaky (like paint runs), tacky and not very non-stick at all. The seasoning will come out much more even and hard and not tacky, if you have some patience.
As to type of oil or fat, the best product, bar none, is bear tallow! "Bear grease," as my dad and granddad always called it, was used from everything from cast iron to waterproofing leather goods. They grew up in the North Carolina mountains during the depression and you did with what you had. And some of those things are still better than the "new stuff." But, I digress...
No bears? Beef tallow is the very next best thing. Then pork lard and Crisco, then veggie oils.
I just seasoned a new, carbon steel wok with beef tallow. Woks are tedious, as you cant just stick 'em in the oven and forget it... But the end result was worth it.
If you cook some beef, after the pan full of juice cools off and the hard, white layer forms on top, that's beef tallow. Same goes for pork, etc.. What makes them work so well is the molecular structure of the fats and how the fat converts to the resulting polymers. It makes a type of "natural plastic" (yes, I know what I said) and when you're all done seasoning, as you cook and these layers continue to build up, you get a veritable skating rink of built up, non-stick polymers on the bottom (and sides, to a point) of your pot or pan. When I'm done cooking, I scrub loose any stuck bits with a wooden spoon and maybe a little salt as a helper and just wipe out the pan. That's all it needs. Sometimes, if needed, I'll rinse a hot pan with a quick blast of water, done. Just dry over the heat for a minute. If you do have to really wash your pan, that's fine. And soap IS ABSOLUTELY okay, just rinse well when you're done. Just be sure to use a gentle scrubber (Lodge sells a bristled scrub brush on a handle for just this purpose for just a few dollars on Amazon) so as not to scratch through the layer of slick.
But, soap or no, after your pan is clean and dry, heat it to just nicely warm and rub in a *light* coat of fat or oil, wiping out the excess and leave it be. Do the same with those copper-coated, non-stick pans, as well! Yup, they have to be seasoned, too, or they stick like crazy. They leave that factoid buried in the fine print... lol. And dont use "Pam" spray or you will NEVER get off the burn stains. It's too low a smoke point, as is extra virgin olive oil. :) Anyway...
The cooking oils will season almost as well as tallow, sort of, just not quite as slick or durable as the lards. Tallow will, ultimately, make a thicker coating on the bottom of your pan or pot. The bottom of the pan I only use for steaks feels like hard plastic, with silicone spray on it! (Ok, maybe I'll fry some eggs in it but, that's it).
You can use canola oil, safflower oil, peanut oil, olive oil, etc.. Just dont ever use extra virgin olive oils. The process by which they're made makes them less temperature tolerant. It won't work. Dont fry with it, either, as it will just burn in the pan. Ggv "Use regular olive oils to cook with and the extra virgin to eat with" as my mom used to say. Its better for finishing off your dishes, topping your breads and pastas, etc. Plus, good EVOO is expensive.
It's easy to make your own beef (or pork) tallow, just collect some fat trimmings from your beef cuts, saving up till you have a pound or so (keeps great in the freezer) or just ask the butcher for some trimmings. They will charge you but not much.
Two simple steps. Ok, maybe three.
Start by trimming as much of the meat as you can from the fat. Put the fat in a deep enough pot that you can stir and scoop without spilling over low heat and let it go. Stir occasionally, just until the fat melts down enough that nothing burns on the bottom. The fat doesn't burn, it's the meaty bits that burn.
Let it render down until all of the remaining pieces of meat are just crispy bits floating on the top. It will take a while, so, be patient! Skim off said crispy bits and anything else that isn't pure, melted fat. Pure, rendered fat has a very low melting point, a high smoke point and is a very slippery product.
When your tallow is ready, have some receptacles ready. Be sure it's enough to catch however much you have. I make quite a bit so I use mini-bread pans, lined with waxed paper so it doesn't leak through. But a simple bowl will work. You can always cut the cooled block into the desired size.
When done with the blocks (mini-bread pans make aprox. a 1lb. block) I freeze the extras and keep one in my fridge.
Note: This pure, rendered tallow will soften and melt at room temp.
This tallow is perfect for everything from seasoning your cast iron to deep-frying the best French fries ever (that's what put McDonald's on the map, 'till the government stopped all the fun) and making your own candles if the power goes out! Tallow was a household staple and used for many things for eons.
Every time a recipe calls for putting oil in the pan for cooking something up, I use a little beef lard. Frying eggs, yum. Really, any time you need a little lube in the frying pan, it works great.
Point is, there are plenty of reasons to keep some on hand, so even if you just lift the "puck" off the top of the pan drippings you put in the measuring cup and stuck in the fridge to cool, you'll have it on hand any time your cast iron needs a touch up. And it will, from time to time and a little bit goes a very long way. :)
excellent info. Thank you for sharing.
Thanks man, this is good advice.
Good instructions. Thank you for sharing. I have a bowl of lamb tallow in the freezer not wanting to throw it for months. Now I know what to do with it including greasing elbows to get scrubbing all my old cast irons first.
@@MtnBadger I think this is great info for people to read and it is now pinned to the top of the comments for everyone to read.
@@hickoryridgehomestead9177 That's the way to have an intelligent conversation guys.Cheers!
There's nothing in the world like a handyman. Somebody that can do things and make things and grow things.
No one can compare because these are the basics and essentials of life
thank you so much
Best video ever! Short and to the point, I’ve watched so many videos on restoring cast iron and it is so time consuming! Ugh thank you so much!
Everyone does their own thing, people don’t need to knock someone for showing you how they do it. I liked this video. I see it all the time, people being rude. You don’t like it, don’t watch it.
Keep in mind there's a difference between legitimate criticism and "knocking", or belittling, or just plain meanness, which is all-to-common on the interwebs nowadays.
I was going to be rude, but you talked me out of it😉
@@reh2660 Yes, there is a difference but with just text and not being able to hear how they say it than it get into a grey area. Good intentions can type out the wrong way, I have done that. I do not always explain things the right way in text but one would know it by his voice.
I have so many cast iron pots and skillets I’ve collected over the years, last one was a Dutch Oven filled with 16 penny nails that sat outside and collected water and whatever. I used this same method, took all day basically but the end result was a priceless piece of cast iron I can hand down to my children, keep the Non-Stick junk, keep the cast iron well seasoned and you’ll never go wrong. Thank you for keeping an old school method alive, much appreciated.
the new cheap stuff cant compare to the older heavy built ones
I always enjoying reading the comments about how to clean a season cast iron. It's almost as much fun as the discussion around putting sugar in cornbread. Bottom line is the old rusty Dutch Oven turned out great and best I can tell that was the objective. Well done.
im the same way.. lol
Cast iron...the ultimate survival tool. Looks to be a great job on restoration/reseasoning of it. Well done. You and your ancestors will be using that dutch oven for years and years to come!
the speed at which you scrub the pot is truly amazing!
Superman... Flash...
I believe he fast forwarded the video lol
Demetra Nakos don’t ruin the magic
Demetra Nakos the NSA needs you
Thomas Van Nuland no thanks lol
This is the easiest to understand video on seasoning iron I’ve ever watched. Nothing to misconstrue and nothing left out. Thank you for making this DIY video. Liked 👍🏻 and 🔔
Finally a video on restoring iron ware that makes sense and is easy and won't stink up my kitchen and set off the smoke detectors. Thank you sir. I appreciate that you also provided the temperatures for each step. I love using the old pans the new one just are not the same.
That was truly amazing! You brought back an old cast iron Dutch oven that’s probably been baking in the sun and rain for years. I’ve never seen the vinegar method but from looking at how well that vinegar managed to break up that caked on rust, I’m definitely going to try this one at home. Thank you for sharing this nice tip on cleaning rusty cast iron!
Good job brother thank you so much, we just bought a Dutch oven at an auction site that was supposed to be new season. I got it Home opened it up and it is completely rusty. I didn’t know what to do with it and came looking at RUclips and found your video and you have given me the hope that I needed. I think I can save this beautiful gorgeous piece of cast-iron.
A tip I found to work soak any rusted tool in white vinegar 24 to 48 hrs and all the rust will be gone ( metal only ) being careful to not put wood or other types of handles in the vinegar.
I like this dude. Very short, sweet, and to the point yet effective and easy. Also really like his relaxed demeanor, this is the kinda fella that it's a pleasure to learn from
That looks great
I have a lodged duch oven that looks worse than that one I'd like to try this
Very nice thanks for the video
I’ve got about 12 Dutch ovens n the shed this helped me a lot
God bless
Ty
Thank you for sharing your time, knowledge, and talent with us. I used this method to restore some antique clothes irons I found today. They look great! My hubby wants to use them as bookends.
I watched every second of this video ... i have a collection of cast iron skillets I bought at my local goodwill and have seasoned all of them but this pot you have is the only missing piece to finish my collection I am dying to find one like yours. Great video! Thanks for sharing ❤️
I got lucky and found it cheap on facebook
Amazon lol
I got one cast iron dutch oven for $2 in a garage sale this past weekend
Thanks for sharing!!!
I actually didn't know you can clean a Dutch oven like this. You just save me some money.
I clean mine with lard and a fire instead of all that scrubbing the rust does come off
Lots of good tips here. I “inherited” a Loge Dutch oven with a badly rusted lid, and burns inside. Following these guidelines, and adding a 3 inch nozzle wire brush on my cordless, did the major clean up in an hour. Used Crisco for the coating-baked until the smoke stopped. I’ll give it another cleaning in a day or so and be ready for a skillet steak and some potatoes, maybe throw some biscuit batter in on top with about 10 mins to go. Thank you for these great tips!!
That came out great!
I like to use canola oil. It dries like linseed (which is flaxseed) without the smell or taste, and leaves no oily residue once it dries.
After you use the pan, clean it and put on a thin coat of canola. Warm it up to “ouch that’s hot” , let it cool, and it will be ready for the next time!
Since I cook with tallow and lard (vegetable oil will clog arteries) that's what I season my cookware with. Yes, I DO know about polyunsaturated oils, I learned the hard way.
Thanks for this! Found my grandmother's old dutch oven, did this... and wow, looks new!
I have a few cast iron skillets that I need to work on. I think they're in a bit worse condition, but this looks like a great starting point. Thanks for the vid!
Hotter makes it easier... Put it in the self clean oven.
Awsome results. I've had my Dutch oven for decades, and its in use regularly in my home. It's like an old friend now lol 😁
That is awesome!
Much easier than the method I read about of soaking in lye!
Flax oil has of of the highest smoke points and is very high in omega 3 fats, so it makes am excellent, if not one of the best, seasoning oil. I read it long ago and have implemented it with great success.
I use Crisco, also. After you apply it, take a clean blue Scott's shop towel and rub off as much melted shortening as you can before heating it, this prevents sticky residue. Nice job!
This is the way my grandma used to clean all her iron skillets which I still have to this day, they are at least 82 to 89 yrs old. Trust me these make the best cooking for a meal. You can't beat originality.
There are old Southern Kitchens that have never cleaned the skillet. Some salt and a little scrub is all they need.
Great job. We still use Chris' grandma's cast iron skillets everyday.
Most of mine are in storage 400 miles away while I work on the house. I found this one locally cheap and couldn’t pass it up.
@@hickoryridgehomestead9177 don't blame you gotta love a deal
I received my mom's old, pots a few years ago from my sister after she passed,so glad I didn't give them away and even more glad I ran across your posting😤 tnk-u.
Hello from Southampton England! Thank you for this excellent video, I have an unused cast iron pot in. The shed which has gone a bit rusty. Gonna clean it up and season this weekend. Thanks!
The true meaning of elbow grease. Great work. I have restored many old cast iron pieces. This is pretty much my method as well, but with rendered lard. I agree, outdoors only. Boy those things sure get to smoking.
Your efforts were so successful. That is one beautiful dutch oven. I'm sure you will get some wonderful meals out of it. Thanks for sharing your methods.
I think this is the first time anyone I have watched has actively said the following:
1. Heat it up first to drive off all the moisture before you apply your oil
2. Put it in the oven (where ever) until it stops smoking - which in itself is smart
3. Repeat this process 2 or 3 times and this bakes on your coating
Brilliant! makes more sense now WHY we do this.
Consider that I gave your video 11 thumbs up....you can just mentally add on those extra 10.
Oil and water don't mix guy, if you want the oil to penetrate properly you have to remove any water moister duh...
@@MakeMineaDouble Duh. But it is the fact that others have not said it was my point.....but also, good point :-)
First video i ran across to that pointed that out too. Every time im done cooking in mine i just clean oil smoke it and stop i repeat that every few weeks.
@A A Nope....not nearly enough....got other stuff to do.
Likewise - I've watched a few and they assume you already know what you're doing. Chances are, if you're looking on a video to cure your cast iron, you don't have a nan who showed you how already.
Thanks for showing the start-to-finish on how much scrubbing it takes - amazing transformation and totally worth the effort imho. I especially like your combo of s/s scrubbie and cleaning vinegar (12%) - looks very effective.
I had already cured mine, but I wondered how long to leave it in. I pulled it out when I set off my smoke detector (forgot to close the kitchen door!) and thought I used the wrong oil. *phew* Now I'm relieved.
Wish I'd seen this before I cured mine - it would have started off better and left it in longer. Next time ...
Turns out a beautiful like new pot. You did a great job with a little old fashioned elbow grease. I gotta tell you though, you are hilarious to watch when it shows you cleaning it in high speed mode. Great video and a very nice lob.
Before I watched this I was wondering if I could use my Traeger. After watching your video that is exactly what I have done. I’ve seasoned before but someone I loaned my Dutch oven to left it out so it has rust. Not as bad as that one but bad enough not to cook in it. Your way was so much faster. Thanks for the video.
Glad I could help
Appreciate you showing us a way to do it WITH OUT chemicals. Elbow grease = personal satisfaction. Thanks.🙂
Vinegar is a chemical mixture. He used vinegar to clean the Dutch oven. Therefore, he did use chemicals to clean it.
@@josephchampagne9134 Oh c'mon, you know by "chemicals" he was referring to some nasty oven cleaner in a spray can type thing. At least vinegar is edible.
Well done. Not belabored or going off topic, just the stuff you need to get a job done. Should have figured this out myself, as I use vinegar on rusty auto sheet metal.
Thanks for every ones input on cast iron conditioning....... I just bought a NEW wood(coal) cook stove and can't wait to get out my old collection of cast iron cook ware that I've stored for years and start using it(I do have a few I use daily). I have heritage hog lard and grass feed beef tallow, now I know another way to use the fats!! Thanks ya'll.
Experience of a South African , where we regularly have a Potjie (As we call it)
To refresh a pot, heated in a oven / fire 100% scrubbed clean by steel wool, but my experience, 100% (Ive used 400gr water sandpaper) Veg oil dries into a plastic coat which needs to be scrubbed off at every use, Once baked and scrubbed, I use animal fat and cook that into the potjie, (dutch oven) (My number 3 pot used 4kg of animal fat offcuts) storage tip, I don't coat the pot with any oil, final wash and rinse in HOT water, let the pot dry by itself, crumple up lots of balls of newspaper and leave this in the pot to absorb any moisture, Yes I know there may be a fine coating of rust, this just gets scrubbed off before you use the pot, Its better than having to scrub off a layer of cooking oil that's dried to a thin film in the pot, We have a rule for Potjie cooking competitions, your pot must be silver clean inside :) Another bit of info, The Dutch oven name, came from heating the pot up completely, try using the pot over a low fire coals, cook slow, (4 to 5 hours) the main purpose is to enjoy the kuier (Afrikaans for socialise) :)
I have one in my backyard now that need to be cleaned ...I know what I will be doing this weekend .
Thanks
OMGOODNESS! This was perfect! My Dutch oven looks brand new! It has sat outside for a good two years; thank you for sharing. Also, thank you to @MtnBadger, I took some of your advice as well.
My granddad always used lard.i still have 2 of his pans. He died in 1975 he was 85 yrs old.
My grandmother was the same, and her sister. They lived to 101 and 100 respectively. Amazing women, like many in that generation, they had energy for 20!
I cook with lard also. Trying to keep it natural with no processed in my life or gut.
My mum she used to use lard sometimes motton to clean metal pans and pots 🇮🇪☘️👍
Thats what i use lard and a fire
Rest In Peace Grandpa ! You are blessed by having his cookware.
Thank you for a nice educational video. I have a Dutch oven and a skillet that I will be working on this cold January afternoon here in PA.
brilliant idea to use your grill!! the thought of keeping my oven on 500 for two hours scares the beegeebers outta me!! thanks!
David Hamilton .........yea, i know. too chicken to use it. i clean by hand
Great job! No harmful chemicals, and you got a solid cardio workout
Exactly how we do it here mate.
Great tutorial.
G'day from Australia 🇦🇺😉
Howdy, from Oklahoma...
Interesting. I use a fire pit I made lined with stones and build a large fire and put the object to be cleaned in it directly. I keep it flaming and very hot. Probably 800 degrees or so. In an hour the grime brushes off easy. Then I coat the object in Navel Jelly for 30 minutes. Wash it off with plenty of water and you have My Easy Way to clean and remove rust. Then heat the object up at 200 degrees and then bath it in Vinegar to completely remove the Navel Jelly. The Jelly smells terrible but the Vinegar neutralizes it and it's clean. I use Refined Safflower Oil to season my cast Iron. The smoking point of Refined Safflower Oil is around 510 degrees. It really does not have a detectable smell either. I am sure there are as many methods and people doing this. But this was a good video and I learned a new method.
That’s all I cook with is cast iron
I love my collection.
Many people don’t realize that cooking with cast iron will naturally add iron into your food 🥘 it’s much better getting your iron this way than taking iron pills that’ll constipate you. Cast iron is so much easier to clean and it’s the original ‘non-stick’, You won’t start consuming chips of that nonstick stuff that is sprayed on the newer pans that are made nowadays. Try it, the next time you stop by a flee market or tag sale pick one up for a few dallors clean it up real good, season it and the next time you get your physical ask your doctor to check your iron levels.
Happy Cooking
Thank you for posting! I finally learned an easier way to clean my cast iron pots.
Getting the rust off most of the time is usually easy, because it's more often than not just surface rust. Keeping it that way is the trick.
Turned out nice. But my easy way is soak that joker in a bucket of vinegar for two to three days with about 4 tables spoons of salt . Take it out blast it with a water hose with a good spray nozzle then use the scrubbies on the rest that didn’t come off then season. That vinegar bath will take 90% of that work away and when you use a water hose on it after it comes out . It will lift 90-95% of the rust extremely easy .
This hasn't worked for me -- the vinegar starts to dissolve the iron when the rust is gone. I pitted a beautiful skillet with that method.
I'm lucky (or my neighbors are), I have a variable pressure blasting cabinet (glass bead). I've taken the rust off cast iron cookware more than a few dozen times. Never takes me more than 20 minutes.
Nice work,thanks for showing us the results and the work you put in to clean it.
Brilliant job, you should be well pleased! Hope the house is finished. Kind regards from deepest Dorset England 🇬🇧🇺🇸
Nice work! That's the fastest restoration process I've seen. There's an easier, but more time consuming process involving molasses.
1) Get some molasses, mix it with water. The right ratio is 1 part molasses to 7-10 parts water.
2) Submerge the corroded metal in the molasses/water mixture.
3) Wait at least 3 weeks.
4) Take out, rinse off and season.
It takes a little while, but has some unique advantages over other methods. For one, it takes minimal effort compared to other ways of doing it. But most importantly, its an edible product which removes corrosion while minimizing metal loss. Acids (such as acetic acid in vinegar) will also remove rust, but can also result in some metal loss (both corroded and "good" metal) depending on how long a metal is immersed in them.
I have never heard of that but it sounds pretty neat. I'll have to try it one . Thanks for the info.
@@hickoryridgehomestead9177 no problem, and thanks for your video. If you do pick up some molasses, I believe the feed (livestock) grade is preferred for this application. It's much less likely to form mold in the solution compared to food grade.
Great video, I’ve got some cast iron cook wear to try this on. One thing I would recommend is using industrial chemical safety gloves when doing this might be easier on your hands , the gloves I use are Solvex Ansell pn 37-165 they are great . You can get them on amazon; I highly recommend them. I’ve been using them for years. I even use them when doing my dishes because I use boiling hot water and do my dishes by hand a hole lot faster than a dishwasher but you got to be careful when handling boiling water because you could end up with 3rd degree burns on your body. I’ve been handling hot stuff for years so I’m used to it. And if you got children around be extra safety conscious, I can’t stress that enough, as the same as handling firearms.
I'm absolutely not disagreeing with you. As I said, it's not that flax isn't good enough, I was pointing out the many good points of tallow, one of which is the good job it will do in a pan. That's all.
Flax oil is easier to deal with, does a good job, etc. Tallow is easy to come by (just cook something, for enough to do a pan) and works well. And it makes a good candle, too. ;).
Wow your house looks like it will be beautiful and the view…priceless.
I use cider vinegar for old iron tools and such. Just soak them in it for a couple days. Then wire brush it. Cleaning vinegar
is just a higher percentage of acid than the 5% cider or clear vinegar. Rather than spending an inordinate amount of time
hand scouring with the higher acid vinegar just soak the item for however long you want. Rust away - now that is easy.
Cast iron can always be restored, the beauty of cast-iron.
Thanks for a greatly informative video. Excellent info! And I appreciate the "why's" for doing each step along the way. Really helpful information here.
I did enjoy it... thank you! I've always loved cast iron because my grand parents made slamming food with them that I remember from my childhood, I've had a few very nice pieces but could never seem to use or keep them long term. They always rust after the first or second use and I can never figure out why. I actually threw out brand new sets out of frustration after just a few attempts at cooking with them.
Well actually I let my husband hang them up for his own use (note to self and everyone else reading this... cast iron pans make very DANGEROUS shooting targets!!! They basically send the bullets right back to you like playing a fucked up version of racket ball/Russian roulette!..unless of course you want someone dead...like my now ex, if so then donate your pans to the cause!!!😜)
Anywho after watching this I realize I should give them more than one "coating " in the oven. It doesn't specify that in directions and everyone I could have asked in my family is dead, No! I did not shoot them! LoL
So again... thanks! You've possibly saved many of my newer pans. We'll see
Make sure you keep them far away from water. If you wash, dont use soap and dry them fast.
Nice job‼️😀. I’m binge watching your channel, in case your wondering why I’m suddenly showing up everywhere 😀👍🏻 lol
Done this several times with cast iron. It gets crusty after a lot of use. I take it camping. It goes in the campfire at the end of the evening, buried in the remaining coals. I dig it out in the morning, scrub the light coating of ash etc. off, and then heat it on the cooktop and re-oil it. The oil smokes and I oil it again. Mom used to get hers really hot, oil it up, and toss a bunch of sliced or shredded potato’s in to fry. The starch would help with the reseasoning.
Nothing beats elbow grease.. and the will to get it done!
Some family members gave me a 12 inch Dutch oven, and it looks like crap mostly on outside . Surprisingly, the inside is not as bad. I see rust and different layers of spot seasoning in the inside. I have been scrubbing, but it looks like it will need a vinegar bath and more scrubbing inside and out. Will apply your advice
My wife brought a rusted Dutch oven home. My easy way was to blast it with crushed walnut shells.
Wow! Looks great but your log home is going to be incredible!!
While cleaning out my garden I threw all rotten tomatoes in my rusty wheel barrow so I could put them in the compost pile. I forgot to dump them out and they spent the night in the wheel barrow. When I dumped them the next day the bottom was shiney steel. All the rust had disappeared. Rather than throw rotten tomatoes out, keep them for rust removal.
So it's the acid doing the trick. Interesting!
Perhaps a coke would also do the trick...
That was a great tip to stumble across accidentily. I'll have to remember this, thank you!
@@FZAMORAB I was wondering the same thing. It gets rust off of guardrails!
Very helpful thank you been looking for a way to season mine
Thank you for sharing this method. You use Crisco because that the way our Momma and Grandmother did it! Did you get a smooth inner bottom?
If its bumpy or uneven in the bottom...just pull it all the way down to bare cast...then sand it smooth. Wash rinse, dry, Then reseason. Self cleaning ovens are GREAT for doing it quick indoors in the cold weather, or do it this way the rest of the year. Some of these new Lodge skillets are like small pebbles in the bottom with that preseasoning stuff they use. I have to use 80 grit and a mouse sander to get it smooth and start over.
That is the way I would clean an old piece of cookware also and I have several skillets and dutch ovens and try to keep them looking like they did when I got them new. I still have a skillet which was my grandmother's and it is kept clean like that also and love it. My sister have our mother's skillet and she cooks in it. I got tired of the so called non stick skillets and ended up with too many water containers for the animals so I went back to the original cast iron cookware and love it.
A 50/50 water/vinegar bath for 30 minutes at a time would save all of that elbow grease for rust. Repeat as needed. As for the grill method, you can wind up warping or cracking your iron. The old iron pieces were usually thing walled and can't take those high temperatures. Easy Off for crud is fine or if you have multiple pieces a lye bath works great, just add 1 lb. of 100% lye crystals to 5 gallons of water and you can use the lye over and over but wear rubber gloves and eye protection.
I have use the grill or the oven for decades without any issues. I only bring it up to 500 degrees which shouldnt hurt it in any way.
Great video ...maybe I would try it your way with the heat and vinegar but use a power drill with a wire brush wheel. Everyone needs a big pot like that ! Thank you
lots of ways to do it for sure.
very nice, going to get mine out of the shed and do the same, thanks.
I LOVE your sweatshirt! Nice work on dutch oven too!
I actually received a death threat over the sweatshirt. 🙄
@@hickoryridgehomestead9177That is awful! Not from a person who loves the 2nd amendment I bet. Libber nutso. I am gonna search the web to find a sweatshirt like yours!
abcjerilee Grunt Style Ammo Flag 2.0 Hoodie, Color Charcoal, Size XXX-Large www.amazon.com/dp/B0754LVL84/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_RaGlEb408YRY0 . There you go. I ordered 3 more myself.
💖👍 I bought one for $7.00 I like the idea of the grill I will try thanks
Thanks for sharing the video mate.great technique came up like new.cheers🙂👍
Leave a cast iron in the oven on 4 hours self clean cycle. Less scrubbing. Just wash in soapy water. Dry over heat like he says. Grease with shortening, the preservatives in the shortening keep the oil from going rancid. Don’t preseason if you use it for a variety of dishes. Use shortening to grease the oven before cooking.
Exactly as I have done. Much easier.
Wow that really is impressive! I have seen a lot of these cast iron videos.but I have to say this is the easiest and the most effective.
Hi!!! You did a great job on this pot. I have several cast iron skillets my husband♡ bought me from Jamie's Flea Market here. Im going to have to give this a try!!! Great video.
Good video. I use vinigar to remove rust from anything that will fit into the plastic bin. I switched from a big cast iron frying pan to a pressed steel pan when the CI got too heavy. I rinse the pan after use and, as I have a flat cooktop the residual heat dries the pan after cleaning.
Greg,
I have a flat cooktop and the ladies that I purchased this home from said that *IF* I used cast iron it would *shatter* my cooktop. I have been heartbroken, as I have not used *any* of my skillets or dutch ovens....
Is there truth to this? i mean, I don't want a shattered cooktop to find out.... *sigh*
@@EarthChickadee This never happened when I had one of those flat cooktops. Maybe if you start to pick it up barehanded and it's too hot and you drop it, it would shatter.
I used a cast iron skillet on a glass cook top for over 20 years without a single issue.
The easy way is just soak in vinegar for a day or so , remove when all rust gone then scrub off black dissolved oxidation , then reseason.
That's kind of what I was thinking. His method doesn't look all that easy to me (too much scrubbing!).
I was thinking the same thing. Plus I have arthritis in my hands. All of that scrubbing would cause LOTS of PAIN !!!!
true , but you could also add some regular olive oil (not the extra virgin kind) and the acidity working with apple cider vinegar works like a charm ... no scrubbing, just wipe off with a paper towel ...
what a miserable bunch
Do NOT let your cast iron soak in vinegar more than 30 minutes! Solution should be 50/50 vinegar to H2O. Let it sit 10 minutes, bring it out and scrub, then, 10 more, etc. Do not exceed 30 minutes.
Howdy, I enjoyed the video,I have a garbage can full of cast iron skillets/ Dutch ovens to clean up and reseason, I will give it a try. Thanks.
You'd be surprised at how many people have these in their cupbords and never use them.
Thank you for this! I have 2 cast iron pans. One is a grill that is pretty rusty, the other one is a big skillet that's only a little rusty. I'm going to use this method to clean and season them 💯💯👍👍
I bet that log turned an interesting color.
thanks for the tip buddy… hope to see more kitchen pan tips. watching from italy.
Great restoration and reminds me of why I made a shot and bead blaster . Cool video and Happy Holidays .
Nice refurb project. I like to put Vinegar in a spray bottle you use less & its easier to control.
we usually wash ours with dawn in hot water and do the same as you did. I know some will scream at the idea of washes in soap.
I always wash with dish detergent. Just dry well and rub on some PAM.
Thanks for sharing I just did the same to my Dutch oven it looks great 👍🏽
......Just fill a laundry tub with vinegar, (and baking soda bath later), and let the Rusted Cast Iron device sit for an afternoon in it. The rust is neutralized without all that Scrubbing....or use a drill with a stainless steel brush disk to scrub off the last bits of rust.....Sand Blasting works also.
I have a rusty tea kettle that I want to re finish. I have vinager and scrubby balls! Thank your for showing me how to get rust off, I'll let ya know how it goes when I scrub it down!
Soak the kettle in the vinegar for a day or two. They longer you let the vinegar work the less you need to scrub.
Nothing cooks cornbread like a cast iron skillet.
I was making that every morning for a while...you can substitute apple sauce for the butter. I would eat the whole loaf. Tasty, tasty! Halapenos and some corn Kernels.
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OK, I will use nothing.
You can cook cornbread in the oven.
I agree, this is the real way to do cornbread. I feel even older by agreeing with you, ugh. But it doesn't cost all that much to live, you just gotta tame down your "wants", why not want this for example? Sorry, ranting.....
Thank you for sharing! I needed this top one of my cast iron pans just starting to rust and getting difficult to cl
Make sure you dry your pan thoroughly. It shouldn't rust then. I always put mine back on the burner (and set the timer so I don't forget about it) then wipe with a little lard or grape seed oil. My Mom had a huge one. One day my brother had Dad's hunting rifle and blew a hole through the stove drawer right through the cast iron too. Mom used that whole for draining off any fat left in the pan.
Much healthier than teflon🤠👍
Dude... just a home person. Lots of cast iron. "Grandma's famous" chicken pot with dotted lid". I made English Toffee in it for years. Not knowing you don't use soap, and I took ALL the seasoning out of it. Heart broken! Got another Lodge dutch oven (no dots on the lid). Did the same, and same results. I guess it took 2 times for reality to smack me in the noggin I was messing up big time. Trying to find a fix, now this has been YEARS. Heat to 200, oil, turn upside down in the oven, blah blah blah.... nothing has really worked. I'm looking forward to trying your method. Grandma born like 1908. Married Grandpa early 1920's. She was a master, as a home cook. Wood stove. I remember her biscuits and gravy. That is the only recipe I have.In my head, I remember asking her to teach me. But her fried chicken... to die for. I remember low oil temp, cover. Let the meat cook. Then, remove the lid, and let it brown. Sorry, got lost in my cast iron. I STILL have yet to fix her prized dutch oven. I'm going to try your method. I know now, clean with HOT water. That melts my toffee. Oil after. If things are stuck, Daddy taught me to just put salt and hot water in the pan/pot. It removes it w/out taking the seasoning off. Thanks for giving me new hope. I'm 60 now, I'd like to make Grandma's chicken in her pot. : )
Not sure how easy that was, but you did a fine job of it.
wow can you scrub fast! lol. amazing job well done