Stripping back steel (iron) pans (for cooking) - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: Halcyon
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: June 17, 2016, 09:15:52 am
content: I have a bunch of steel woks and pans which are fantastic however when I originally seasoned them, I kind of rushed it and some are uneven.I was thinking of stripping back the seasoning back to bare metal and starting over. I recall one site suggested using oven cleaner, but I'd rather not since these will be used to cook with. Does anyone know of another effective method which won't cause rusting? There are no plastic parts or rivets to worry about, they are all made of a single stamped pieces of steel.

author: Ian.M
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 17, 2016, 09:28:06 am
content: If you are bothered by the idea of using oven cleaner, you *really* don't want to know what chemicals have been in contact with your cookware during manufacture . . . . .Oven cleaner is basically caustic soda, a soap and a foaming agent. On a pressed steel surface it will leave negligible residue after three washings. Cast iron is more problematic because the surface tends to be microporous. I'd want to use pure caustic soda then rinse, and neutralise/passivate with food grade phosphoric acid.

author: Halcyon
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: June 17, 2016, 09:39:49 am
content: Quote from: Ian.M on June 17, 2016, 09:28:06 amThese pans are Aussie made (actually just down the road) and are marketed as being "ready for use" straight out of the box without any toxic coatings or lacquers. Although from new, everything sticks to them.Maybe Ill just try a little elbow grease and a scouring pad first.

author: tautech
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 17, 2016, 09:48:42 am
content: Same way as you'd do a BBQ.....lots of heat and copious amounts of beer.One for the pan.One for me.One for the pan.One for me.Bugger the pan, have the rest with

author: john_p_wi
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: June 17, 2016, 05:44:39 pm
content: Wipe on vegetable oil with a paper towel and smoke it off over high heat, repeat and repeat. It takes a loooong time to build a good seasoning. Never scour the pans - rinse with water and clean with a sponge if necessary. Dry off over medium heat. I'm guessing you need to use a little more oil in your cooking.I used to have a great wok that my ex wife now has, she could add oil and scramble an egg in and it would slide around like the "magic no stick Teflon pan commercials".Finally, never cook tomatoes in the pan / wok as that will strip the seasoning faster than anything.

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 17, 2016, 06:06:17 pm
content: Having a little cast iron cookware I would start with the application of a nice brand new 3M green or red Scotchbrite pad to scour the surface, then wash with warm water and dishwashing soap, and scour again with it wet. Then dry on the stove with low heat and then apply some flaxseed oil ( or linseed oil, as this is flaxseed oil but not food grade) using a clean paper towel, and wipe thoroughly. Then heat gently till it changes colour or starts to smoke a little, and apply more with a fresh paper towel. Cool down and it should be well seasoned and rust free.Apply inside the pan then use the remainder on the outside and bottom, so the contaminants end up outside and not inside. Works well on cast iron and reasonable on steel. Absolutely not on aluminium, though stainless does a so so result. Will taste like linseed oil the first time or two, so wipe down with cooking oil after use and wipe with a paper towel when hot after finishing cooking.Of course here in South Africa a popular use for cast iron cookware is pot bellied cookware used either over a fire or on a gas burner, to do traditional cooking. Some recipes you end up well oiled before the food is ready, as the most common methods are 4 hours or more, and involve something best described as brake fluid mixed with paint stripper, served with a beer chaser or just Whiskey as a chaser.

author: uncle_bob
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: June 17, 2016, 06:10:25 pm
content: HiAll you are doing in the seasoning process is building up a layer of polymerized oil on the surface of the pan. It works well on cast iron because the surface has some "grip" to it. Since the oil is whatever you have cooked with, who knows what the exact layer composition is in my pan versus yours. There is no single "right" thing to do it with. One approach:Bacon and eggs for breakfastSausage sandwich for lunchFried chicken for dinner(wipe pan between each meal)Step and repeat for a (burp) month. Pan will be well seasoned when you are done.Bob

author: Marco
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 17, 2016, 08:12:11 pm
content: I doubt anything in the oven cleaner is as bad as acrolein captured in the seasoning, but the oven cleaner is almost entirely washed away.High temperature cooking is not particularly healthy, don't sweat the small stuff.

author: sokoloff
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 17, 2016, 10:08:26 pm
content: If they're pure metal (no plastic or wooden bits), you can run them through an electric oven's self-cleaning cycle to burn off/ash up the existing coating. Then, clean well with a hot soapy solution and you'll be near virgin metal to then lay down a good seasoning layer of polymerized oil.Without access to an electric oven with self-clean, I've also done it with lye in a container, but that gets messy and caustic. (Not a concern for me by the time it comes to use the pan, but the process itself is messy and mildly dangerous.)Be aware that the self-clean cycle will smoke and stink a LOT.