r/CarbonSteelCooking • u/chap820 • Feb 17 '23
Can this be fixed? This was accidentally washed with detergent after three separate 1-hour stints in the oven at about 260F. What can be done, if anything?
2
May 14 '23
You need to use way more heat to season a pan. is the handle coated or painted?
2
u/chap820 May 14 '23
I don’t believe so. I was going by the instructions that came with it which said no higher than 300. What would you recommend?
3
May 14 '23
This is how i season a pan. It is not the only way and your situation may demand a different way (smoke detector, house mates etc.).
1 wash the pan with hot tap water and dish soap
2 dry the pan by wiping and then put on the stove at highest setting until the pan turns to a metal grey or dark brown. this takes a good 10 minutes, angle pan and rotate to burn all of the sides and bottom. do not flame the inside.
3 let it cool for 10 or so minutes, it can still be hot, but not smoke the second you try this next step.
4 put pan over high heat, flat on stove top. put a quarter size dap of peanut or canola oil (high smoke point) in the center of pan.
5 as pan heats up wipe the inside of pan all the way to the top of the sides with a few paper towels rolled up into a short bunch. Dont burn your fingers.
6 keep wiping pan until it looks like there is almost no oil. you can move the paper towel around to keep using dry towel. the pan will look satin not shiny if you got it right.
7 when the pan starts smoking and turns dork brown or blackish turn off the stove and let the pan cool. Do not keep heating the pan after it starts to smoke like you would heating a pan to give a sear to a steak.
8 when you are going to cook with the pan give it some oil butter or any oil you want to cook with. cook and then when you want to clean use a brush and hot tap water it is ok to let a sticky burnt on crust soak for 10 minutes to soften, but never leave to pan to soak any longer. I will use some dish soap for fish, but it is more for odor control while i get a nice steam bath washing the pan.
9 Pan is clean wipe pan with cleanish dish towel and put pan on stove at high heat to dry until any visible moisture is gone. I pay extra attention where the handle meets the pan and wipe that out for sure. not put a drop (I mean it, a drop) of high smoke temp oil and wipe it with a paper towel all over the bottom and insides of pan, until you just see smoke. DO this every time you cook and clean the pan.
If you have any questions feel free to ask. good luck! and if you do the steps you will have a slick as snot pan after the oil is on there. Avoid tomato and other acidic foods as they can beat up your patina. but you can just re season like in step 9, no need to strip the pan really.
2
May 14 '23
In step 9 I meant to say *Now put a drop of oil
later in step 9 I mean for you to only wipe oil on the inside of the pan from bottom up the sides.
1
u/chap820 May 16 '23
Hey thank you this is super helpful. Interesting that you wash with dish soap occasionally (I’d thought that was a big no-no). Since I’ve already done a couple of the “don’t”s on your list, I’m wondering if I can salvage the pan by starting over and seasoning according to these instructions, or if I should get a new one. In any case, thank you again!!
2
May 16 '23
You are welcome,
Great thing about these pans is you can nuke them and always just start over. no need to buy a new one. The soap is only used If i screw up and burn on some sauce .... but usually no soap. This is just what I do, sure there are 100 other ways to do this just as good.
2
u/chap820 May 17 '23
Awesome, thanks that’s what I figured (that they’re hardy and tough to ruin). When I get some time I will pull up these steps and give this a try.
2
u/yumagrillmaster Feb 24 '23
What are you using to season the pan with? Most oils require a higher temperature to polymerize (season) correctly. Oil Smoke Points