Seasoning Got Brown

A

Adam_R.

Member
Hello,

I'm pretty new to restoring and seasoning old cast iron. The first two skillets I restored, a Wagner & Iron Mountain, turned a beautiful black color after the below seasoning method. I just recently found a BSR & Lodge, which using the same seasoning method turned brown. Any idea why? I included a picture of the Iron Mountain & BSR to show the difference.

*Seasoning Method*

Preheat skillet in electric oven at 200 degrees. Rub down with Crisco, then rub off. Place in oven for 15 minutes at 300 degrees then rub off any pooling Crisco. Then put back in oven at 400 degrees for 2 hours. This process was done 3 times.

Thanks,

Adam
 

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The color of that Lodge skillet is about the same color that I get when I re-season newer Lodge pieces that have been pre-seasoned. I am sure that it will darken with time. Mine have.

Bruce
 
One baking at 400° will brown one coat of Crisco. Two coats of Crisco is enough. Put the pans back in at 400 or better 450° without any new Crisco and they will now come out black.

Hilditch
 
I've got a couple of pieces that have come out bronze-ish that were done using the same technique as others that have come out quite black. I don't know if there was a little flash rust and didn't darken, or if the iron used was somewhat different... perhaps less carbon content?
 
My gem pans did the same thing. But I followed the technique followed on the website. I didn't put any crisco on until it was at the 450 mark. Wiped it all off, and back in at 500 for 15 minutes. A couple of times doing that and I have a beautiful sheen to them. Baking my banana nut gems helped quite a lot! I've learned that cooking really is the key.
 
I find baking really helps darken the seasoning... Many recommend bacon as a starter, I always find it makes more of a mess.

Cornbread or fresh bread in newly seasoned skillets or DO's.
 
Hi all,

Thanks for all of the responses. I tired just throwing them in the oven at 450 for a while but it didn't change the color. I'll just have to cook in them!

Thanks for all of the responses.

-Adam
 
RobM said:
I find baking really helps darken the seasoning... Many recommend bacon as a starter, I always find it makes more of a mess.

Cornbread or fresh bread in newly seasoned skillets or DO's.
Click to expand...

Bread is an excellent starter. I also strongly suggest Alton Brown's Dutch Baby recipe if the skillet's big enough. You get to preheat the pan in the oven with a whole bunch of butter in it.
 
Hi All,

Thanks everyone for all of the responses. As a newer member of the forum and new cast iron user/collector, I really appreciate all of the help.

Hilditch - I tired baking the BSR in the oven at 450 for 8 hours. It didn't change a single shade. Still brown...out of frustration I decided to hose it down in oven cleaner and start over. This time I used the seasoning method outlined on this website to no avail. Still brown...

Guess its the pan. I'm going to try cooking in it relentlessly until it turns black. I can't stand the brown!

-Adam
 
Adam, I feel your frustration. Just isn’t making sense. So I went and looked at my Crisco can. Bingo! The last time I looked at a Crisco can the main ingredient was canola oil. Canola oil has a smoke point of 400°, so if you go over that it will smoke and burn. Just like butter does over 350°.

Well, Crisco changed the game. My present can has the main ingredient listed as soybean oil. Smoke point of 495°.

Under normal circumstances going over 500° is flirting with hurting the seasoning made with smoke points of 350 to 400’ish degrees. However, with just soybean oil it may very well take 525° or 550° to get that oil to burn.

BTW, once a piece comes up to temp. an hour or so should be enough time to burn it in.

Check your can man.

Hilditch
 
W. Hilditch said:
Adam, I feel your frustration. Just isn’t making sense. So I went and looked at my Crisco can. Bingo! The last time I looked at a Crisco can the main ingredient was canola oil. Canola oil has a smoke point of 400°, so if you go over that it will smoke and burn. Just like butter does over 350°.

Well, Crisco changed the game. My present can has the main ingredient listed as soybean oil. Smoke point of 495°.

Under normal circumstances going over 500° is flirting with hurting the seasoning made with smoke points of 350 to 400’ish degrees. However, with just soybean oil it may very well take 525° or 550° to get that oil to burn.

BTW, once a piece comes up to temp. an hour or so should be enough time to burn it in.

Check your can man.

Hilditch
Click to expand...

So I checked my can, the main ingredient is indeed soybean oil followed by palm oil. I had a chance to try and increase the heat, my ovens highest setting is 525. Left a few in for an hour and they were still brown.

Does anyone else have this problem? 5 of the 7 skillets I've seasoned have come out brown. Time to try another seasoning oil I guess, any crowd favorites besides Crisco?
 
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Ty is right, for a lot of reasons. I recently did a SS cookie sheet with canola oil and after 4 rounds in the oven at 475° it is still a dark brown. Historically I have used lard & it always got shiny black on the second round. It worked on the SS but started chipping and letting go. So I cleaned it and am going with the canola. Never had that issue with CI/lard even though I put it on too heavy.

Hilditch
 
I want to suggest a couple of thoughts, One, is it possible that Adam seasoned over a flash rust or maybe a pan that got to hot? I would think black with red would result in a brown color. Two, maybe Adam's oven is off and not getting the desired temp to season the pans? I'm most likely wrong on both parts but you never know.
 
The brown is not from flash rust, which should have wiped off with the excess oil removed before baking it. The brownish caste is not that unusual. You may not like it, but it's not an error in seasoning procedure. It's just how some pans in some situations turn out. Blackening comes with time and usage, and from cooked food components in the fat, not necessarily just the fat itself, that carbonize and darken.
 
DSBradley said:
I want to suggest a couple of thoughts, One, is it possible that Adam seasoned over a flash rust or maybe a pan that got to hot? I would think black with red would result in a brown color. Two, maybe Adam's oven is off and not getting the desired temp to season the pans? I'm most likely wrong on both parts but you never know.
Click to expand...
That has me thinking... I have a couple of pans that have a red stain... not rust... the iron itself is reddish. I don't know for sure, but I believe that it is caused by overheating. Possibly by somebody that burned old seasoning off. I haven't been able to scrub through it or remove it with vinegar or electrolysis. But even in those cases, the entire piece isn't discolored.
 
Fire damage is typically blotchy. Different areas will be hazy white, rosy red, or bluish.
 
Doug D. said:
The brown is not from flash rust, which should have wiped off with the excess oil removed before baking it. The brownish caste is not that unusual. You may not like it, but it's not an error in seasoning procedure. It's just how some pans in some situations turn out. Blackening comes with time and usage, and from cooked food components in the fat, not necessarily just the fat itself, that carbonize and darken.
Click to expand...

After about 10 days through cooking and baking has darkened up an Erie for me.
This was following the advice on this site about seasoning. Cook with it and you should get the darker finish shortly.
 
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