First Seasoning Attempt ~

J

Jeffrey F

New member
My first seasoning attempt.
OK first a little history... This pan isn't the best and is not a "collectible". Having said that it IS the one my mother used to cook for us when we were growing up. So even though it is a non brand and a tad beat up, not to mention has a ring on bottom rendering not useable on my glass cooktop, Im restoring it. I plan to use it in the oven - Roasted chickens, Roast beef with potatoes and carrots, baked beans etc.. (I have a collection of Griswolds I will start on next )~
So my first e tank worked like a dream. Small battery charger, rebar, and 1 tbs per gallon washing soda. Scotch Brite pad after the "simmer" in e tank - rinsed good, washed with DAWN, rinsed good again, dried with paper towels and in the oven (200 degrees) to dry. wiped with Crisco and in 400 degree oven for an hour. Had a small problem I talked about in another thread that I now know how to correct. A picture of the seasoning is in the thread "seasoning problem"
Here is a few other pictures of the before and after - Not that you all haven't seen this before :) Last pic is of my failed seasoning on cooking surface. will give it another go after work tomorrow. With the pan wiped with crisco and wiped down as if drying it, does it still need to go in the oven upside down ? Image Image Image
 
Is your skillet hanging perpendicular, in the tank ? Appears to be laying down, in the bottom of the tank !
 
Yes, put it in the oven upside down. I'm confused on your etank set up, also. The pan should be hanging vertically and not lying horizontally on the bottom. Looks like you only have about half the amount of electrolyte you need.
 
You CAN use a pan with a heat ring on the glass top stove. Most of my pans have heat rimgs and I only use cast iron. Ive never jad a problem with hot spots or cool spots. It may take a little longer to heat up and may not get as hot bit rest assured that itll sear a steak just as well. Happy cooking!
 
KevinE said:
Yes, put it in the oven upside down. I'm confused on your etank set up, also. The pan should be hanging vertically and not lying horizontally on the bottom. Looks like you only have about half the amount of electrolyte you need.
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It was actually hanging on that wire on about a 45 degree angle. Its not in there in that picture. The reason I did it that way was due to an error I made zip tying rebar - i drilled holes for the ties TOO LOW.. can't raise the level too high or leaks out of the tie holes... UGH hahah so I actually have another tub I plan to move bars into.
Having said that, it worked perfectly as is. I flipped it once but it was clean end to end top to bottom.

---------- Post added at 08:48 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:45 PM ----------
Robert.Aarstad said:
You CAN use a pan with a heat ring on the glass top stove. Most of my pans have heat rimgs and I only use cast iron. Ive never jad a problem with hot spots or cool spots. It may take a little longer to heat up and may not get as hot bit rest assured that itll sear a steak just as well. Happy cooking!
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Good to know ! Thanks !
 
Ty L. said:
Looks like you saved mom's pan in the nick of time! It looks like it was only just beginning to pit along the sidewalls. It'll fill in with seasoning in no time. While not a Griswold or Wagner, that pan is collectible. Some history in case you haven't seen it yet.
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I hadn't seen that ! Thank you. Now I know what it is !

---------- Post added at 06:11 AM ---------- Previous post was at 06:04 AM ----------

So when I get the inside back to where I want it and ready to season again - I'll heat it up, apply Crisco, then " dry" it with a cotton t shirt. In the 400 degree oven it goes for an hour, turn off oven and let it cool. I'll check it 15 minutes in on the cook.
After it cools, can I then just repeat process? Warm it, oil it, and cook it again. And again etc....
Thank you for the advice !
 
I know everyone seasons differently but here is how i do it.

Warm pan in 350 degree oven, wipe with your choice of oily product, place in oven for 10 minutes, wipe pan dry, increase temp to 450 (400 is perfectly fine), leave for 1 hour, pull pan out and re wipe with oil while hot and repeat process until pan looks like you want it to.

Some people season at 350 and some at 500, some people use all organic non gmo olive oil and some people use bacon grease. I may be the only person who doesnt invert the pan. I figure if i dont wipe it good enough it will be splotchy either way and its easier to grab when its right side up. Watch a lot of YouTube videos and read a lot of peoples suggestions here and then form your own way of doing it.

Happy cooking!
 
Robert.Aarstad said:
I may be the only person who doesnt invert the pan. I figure if i dont wipe it good enough it will be splotchy either way and its easier to grab when its right side up.
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No Robert, you are not the only non-inverter. I agree 100%, and it's also easier to peek into the oven, just to do a quick visual check.

Also, a suggestion for Jeffery, on the re-seasoning. There should be ample opportunities for reseasoning, just during normal everyday cooking. Any time that I am working on seasoning something, I tend to just let it hang out in the oven, all the time, waiting for something to be cooked. Then, when time comes to roast something, cook cornbread, bake some potatoes, etc, (no matter the temperature) I just shuffle things around, so my CI piece gets to ride along on an empty oven rack, and enjoy the heat. This way, I don't feel so much like I'm wasting electricity, as I do when baking an empty skillet.
 
Robert.Aarstad said:
I know everyone seasons differently but here is how i do it.

Warm pan in 350 degree oven, wipe with your choice of oily product, place in oven for 10 minutes, wipe pan dry, increase temp to 450 (400 is perfectly fine), leave for 1 hour, pull pan out and re wipe with oil while hot and repeat process until pan looks like you want it to.

Some people season at 350 and some at 500, some people use all organic non gmo olive oil and some people use bacon grease. I may be the only person who doesnt invert the pan. I figure if i dont wipe it good enough it will be splotchy either way and its easier to grab when its right side up. Watch a lot of YouTube videos and read a lot of peoples suggestions here and then form your own way of doing it.
Happy cooking!
Click to expand...

Thank you Robert - That's my plan starting this afternoon. I'll clean up the splotches and begin - running seasonings back to back - I'm using Crisco. Bought Flax but just wasn't sure. Want to make this BSR skillet ready to go and cook something in it ! Share some pics with my mom -
 
I invert pans because I put several in the oven at a time and they're easier to stack inverted. I wipe, wipe wipe and have never had a drip.
 
Well I have to say the pan is coming along nicely ! I scrubbed out the inside and took off all the "blotches" and washed it out. In the oven it went to dry at 400. Crisco'ed it up good when it was hot and "dried" it. Did that twice with an hour cook - raised temp along the way to 475. Did another one hour cook at the 475. left it in oven to cool when done. MUCH less smokey stink in house - and pan is getting black and shiny. Love it. Thanks for the tips. I will post a pic after a few more runs this afternoon and then its done ! I guess it will be about 6 or 7 thin layers baked on. OH and non inverted !
 
Why all the extra coats of seasoning? It's ready to use now, and cooking on it will give it a more satisfying blackened coating than manually seasoning it.
 
Ty L. said:
Why all the extra coats of seasoning? It's ready to use now, and cooking on it will give it a more satisfying blackened coating than manually seasoning it.
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Oh I thought the more coats would mean the less stick it would be right off the get go -
 
I used to apply 5~6 coats but it often made the outcome less desirable. I'd sometimes get light/dark patches on the cooking surface like a leopard skin, or the pan wouldn't hold its seasoning and I'd be down to bare metal after one use. Typically I'll do 2 coats with lard or Crisco, and then do something like pancakes or grilled cheese as the first thing I cook. I just did a #5 BSR Century Series (same series as your mom's pan) yesterday. After 2 coats, I made my daughter a grilled cheese on it for dinner last night. This morning I flipped an egg on it without a spatula. Since it was newly seasoned I used more butter than I normally would for the egg.

On a side note, I don't recall ever seeing a BSR smaller than a 10 that was warped, and the 10 that I tested only had an ever so slight rock to it (I really should have bought that pan!). Those are some sturdy pans. I frequently see BSR's in perfect condition (other than gunk build-up) with lower prices than warped/pitted Wagners and Griswolds when hunting for CI. I get a chuckle when they're mixed in with a bunch of unbranded Made in China/Taiwan/Korea pans and priced as such.
 
Ty L. said:
On a side note, I don't recall ever seeing a BSR smaller than a 10 that was warped, and the 10 that I tested only had an ever so slight rock to it (I really should have bought that pan!). Those are some sturdy pans.
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Ty-

I have always read about the BSR's being really sturdy and not easily warped, I found a red mountain 5 that sits flat and all my moms centuries sit flat. But lately I have come across 2 red mountain 5's that rocked, i was surprised such a heavy pan that small could have a rock to it like that, especially since they dont look heavily used.
 
Ok then - change of plans. Tonight's seasoning run is going to be an eye roast surrounded by potatoes and carrots - in the oven at 325 convection roast :)
I'm putting it into service tonight.
Edit -- BACK into service
 
Electrolysis for the most part works on line of sight. Just going from one to two anodes makes a world of difference since you can have cleaning action on the front and back at the same time.
 
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