Kitchen

[sabatini]

I'm not an expert either, but:

If something has stuck in the pan, use salt to scrub out the residue - not soap.

After you rinse the pan, dry it over a burner, then rub on some solid Crisco. Your pan will stay beautiful!

HTH!

ETA: As @IamMrsG said - the residue you see on your paper towel is 100% normal. Don't give it another thought. 

[Imaoldhippie]

Its not rusty, just residue from the iron.  I season my cast iron after each use.  As I said, my cast iron skillet is darn near 50 yrs old and has been on campfires, had burned, charred potatoes in it and its still going strong.

[Imaoldhippie]

Never use steel brushes on your cast iron.  I dont know about the clean cycle in the oven, but I would not do it.  Believe me if you wash it, I use Dawn, rinse and wipe dry it is a clean pan.

[blackhole99]

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@Mimi 1883 wrote:

I have many cast iron pieces and love them. I wash, dry, and then rub in "cast iron oil" (all natural.) You just use a small amount and the pans look amazing. You can find it online or maybe even the grocery store. HTH :-)

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@Mimi 1883thanks for the tip about the cast iron oil, I wash my cast iron every time I use it and heat it up on the stove to dry it and then wipe it with coconut oil. I inherited an old cast iron Dutch oven and lid, I would not think of not washing that out after I cooked something in it.

[SharkE]

First time I fried chicken in mine and just had to let it soak and not use dish liquid in it to clean up the grease and chicken bits. Scape and scape. I said for the birds and pitched mine out to the curb. Who's got time now days to baby a skillet. Heavy ol' thing. KIcked it to the curb.

To those who love theirs , Yay !   Doesn't suit my lifestyle.

[Mimi 1883]

@blackhole99 You're very  welcome. The oil is made by Caron & Doucet and contains coconut oil. They even make a special soap to wash cast iron. 

[sabatini]

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@SharkE wrote:

First time I fried chicken in mine and just had to let it soak and not use dish liquid in it to clean up the grease and chicken bits. Scape and scape. I said for the birds and pitched mine out to the curb. Who's got time now days to baby a skillet. Heavy ol' thing. KIcked it to the curb.

To those who love theirs , Yay !   Doesn't suit my lifestyle.

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@SharkE, if we were neighbors & I'd seen your cast iron skillet in the trash, it would've been a banner day for me when I pulled it out!  

[Abrowneyegirl]

Thank you all who took the time to respond.  No it is not rust, just a dark iron color.  I was not sure if that was part of the 'natural joy' of cast iron.

So far I have used my cast iron on the grill, oven and gas cook top.

I bought this from Amazon and LOVE it!  It works wonders, even on my cast iron grill pans.

[IamMrsG]

@Abrowneyegirl  I have that chain mail in my Amazon Wish List; however, my cast iron  is so old (covered wagon days) and well-seasoned, it is as non-stick as any non-stick cookware out there. 

Edited to insert a missing word. 

[goldensrbest]

I used crisco shortening years ago,now use coconut oil,i am going to buy that oil for cast iron,learned something new,thanks.