What do you think is the cause?

J

JosephDurham

Member
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This is one of the skillets that I have been using for 4 years. I don't quite understand this, i recently started cooking bacon in this and this is what happens. I completely removed the seasoning with easy off and reseasoned it three or four times. Now here it is again.......any thoughts why?

---------- Post added at 05:11 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:03 PM ----------

And no, it's not been overheated. On the stove it goes to 3 and that's all. Perhaps from time to time 4.
 
Perhaps its how the pics are showing up on my PC but I am having trouble catching your quesiton -- is the seasoning wearing off?
 
Yes, wash hot water, oven at 200 for 15 minutes. Oil, apply, rub removing the excess.

---------- Post added at 06:22 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:28 PM ----------
Mike F said:
Perhaps its how the pics are showing up on my PC but I am having trouble catching your quesiton -- is the seasoning wearing off?
Click to expand...



Yes it is Mike

---------- Post added at 06:23 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:22 PM ----------

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This a better image?
 
Yes much better. When cooking bacon I stay away from the mass produced brands as my theory is that their curing process results in more water ending up in the bacon. When this bacon is cooked the water boils and eats away the seasoning. Sugar is also often added which is also not good for seasoning, but my guess is that the high water content is causing your issue.
 
To correct you simply cook foods that build your seasoning. You can also run the skillet through another seasoning cycle, but there is no need to strip and start over.

A newly seasoned skillet is not a strongly seasoned skillet; the best way to achieve a strongly seasoned skillet is through repeated use.

Once you have a strong base of seasoning your skillet should be able to cook that same bacon with no issues.
 
Mike-
Being a newbie to CI cooking myself, almost everyone says to cook bacon to help build seasoning, what your saying is the contrary. Not calling you or anyone else a liar, I am curious on the subject myself.

In my experience, I haven't had good luck doing bacon in my cast iron either, not that it strips my seasoning or sticks bad, but I get gummy bits on the bottom I have to scrape off
 
What I am saying is from my trial and error experience. I am more of a user rather than a collector, and have run into the same issues that you have. For example, I bought some mass marketed sausage patties at my local supermarket and thought "these have not been cured so this would be perfect for my newly seasoned skillet, right?"

Wrong:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/139658521@N07/shares/FW8252

---------- Post added at 05:33 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:14 PM ----------

Is it the water? Sugar? Another ingredient that eats seasoning in a way that I am not familiar with? Doesn't matter to me -- I just add it to the list of things not to cook in a newly seasoned skillet and move on.

I have also found that some brands of butter contain more water than I had expected and have wreaked havoc on my newly seasoned skillets. As a result I now clarify my butter and it has made a huge difference.

Again, this stuff doesn't matter much when you are using a strongly seasoned skillet, but I have learned the hard way to be selective when cooking in a newly seasoned skillet.
 
I used to re-strip and re-season every time my skillet got a bald spot or got splotchy looking. My advice is do like Grandmas did. Keep on cooking in it. They didn't have a choice. Their skillets were work horses. My Maternal Grandmother had 9 children and her skillets were cranking out something three times a day. All the splotches will fill in. That dark black burnt on carbon takes time. I have re-oiled my newly seasoned Pans and put them back in the oven but I didn't strip it back to bare metal again. To me bacon is not for newly seasoned pans. Grilled cheese, pan fried potatoes, baked or fried corn bread, pancakes all seem to work good for me! :glutton:
 
Mike F said:
What I am saying is from my trial and error experience. I am more of a user rather than a collector, and have run into the same issues that you have. For example, I bought some mass marketed sausage patties at my local supermarket and thought "these have not been cured so this would be perfect for my newly seasoned skillet, right?"

Wrong:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/139658521@N07/shares/FW8252

---------- Post added at 05:33 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:14 PM ----------

Is it the water? Sugar? Another ingredient that eats seasoning in a way that I am not familiar with? Doesn't matter to me -- I just add it to the list of things not to cook in a newly seasoned skillet and move on.

I have also found that some brands of butter contain more water than I had expected and have wreaked havoc on my newly seasoned skillets. As a result I now clarify my butter and it has made a huge difference.

Again, this stuff doesn't matter much when you are using a strongly seasoned skillet, but I have learned the hard way to be selective when cooking in a newly seasoned skillet.
Click to expand...

Good info Mike- I have laid off the bacon until I can build more season. Clarifying butter is our next adventure. Seems pretty simple from what I've read
 
There is bacon and there is bacon. I have not tried all the store brands, but the ones I’ve tried were horrible chemical tasting stuff shot up with water and who knows what so that the first few minutes of cook time was stewing the bacon to get it dry enough to fry. Some of the mail order brands are just as bad.

I get my bacon 100 miles from home but it’s worth it. I can only suggest you keep shopping and asking until you find a source that has salt cured bacon that isn’t shot up with curing brine, sugar, flavorings and preservatives. Real bacon is out there and cast iron loves it.

Hilditch
 
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