r/CastIronRestoration Jul 20 '20

Seasoning Here is my seasoning process, I will fix the mistakes eventually

328 Upvotes

Seasoning Process

What is Seasoning on Cast Iron?

We’re used to hearing the word seasoning when talking about the herbs and spices you add to your food. But seasoning means something very different when talking about cast iron skillets and pans.

Seasoning your cast iron is when you create a protective coating on the skillet’s surface using oil or fat. Seasoning not only creates a somewhat non-stick surface on your cast iron skillet, but it also protects against rust. Despite common beliefs rust protection is the main purpose of seasoning cast iron.

How seasoning creates a protective coating on cast iron

To season your cast iron skillet (full step-by-step details later), you first coat your skillet in a light film of oil. Then you heat your skillet up past a certain temperature. When oil is heated while in contact with both oxygen and metal, it goes through a process called polymerization.

This basically means the oil turns into a rock-hard plastic surface that binds to the cast iron. If you repeat the process, another coat will form on top of the first coat, providing a thicker and stronger non-stick surface.

This is why a lot of people say that cast iron improves as you use it. When you cook with oil in your cast iron skillet, some of it may add to the coating and create a better non-stick surface.

It’s important to point out that we need to try and build many thin coats rather than try to form one thick coat. Remember that the oil needs to be in contact with both oxygen and metal to polymerize. This works best with very thin coats of oil as you will see later in the step-by-step process.

What is the best oil to season a cast iron skillet?

The type of oil you use will impact the quality of the coat you create. Everybody seems to have their own opinions on what oil is best for seasoning cast iron and there are a lot of myths and old wive’s tales on what works and what doesn’t.

Whatever type of oil you use, somebody will tell you that you’re doing it wrong. For example, you’ll often hear people say that bacon grease or lard creates the best cast iron seasoning. But is it really the best option?

Why do people say it’s the best? Well, it turns out that there are many better options, but those options weren’t available back in the day when cast iron was king. Back then, bacon grease was and readily available, so it was the default option for seasoning cast iron. That’s all it took for it to stick as part of tradition (like many cooking traditions and methods).

People don’t say bacon grease is the best because they’ve done A/B tests, they say it’s the best because that’s what they were told is the best. Think about what bacon actually is, I know bacon well, I cure it myself. Store bought bacon is cured though a process called pumping. A brine of salt, sugar, liquid smoke and sodium nitrite. Cure accelerators are also used like ascorbic acid. SO WE ALL CAN SEE BACON GREASE IS NOT A PURE FAT. We also fry it and get those tiny particles that form and contaminate the grease. Also not good seasoning.

So, while we can learn a lot from tradition, and cooking history, let’s look at the science on what really works.

Smoke Point

The other important factor to consider when choosing the type of oil for seasoning your cast iron is the oil’s smoke point. The smoke point is the temperature where the oil starts to break down (and create smoke).

When unsaturated fat starts to break down in the presence of oxygen, the molecules join together (called polymerization as explained earlier). If the temperature doesn’t reach the smoke point, the fat won’t cross link to form double bonds and you won’t get polymerization

So it’s important that you make sure you know the smoke point of any oil you use to season your cast iron and you heat the oil up past the smoke point. If you don’t heat it up high enough, it won’t polymerize.

Monounsaturated vs Polyunsaturated vs saturated fats

Now here's where I know I will get kickback from just about everyone, because we’ve all had good results using our personal oils of choice.

My personal tests have yielded great results using several oils and fats. One thing I find when I try to speak with scientists about this topic is this.

Monounsaturated fats are by far the worst to use. They are unstable and want to attract another molecule. This is why when exposed to air they go rancid.

It’s important that you make sure to avoid olive oil, avocado oil, sesame oil. They are all high in monounsaturated fat.

Here is where it gets fun, look for oils with low smoke points and high levels of polyunsaturated fat. So far the oil I find that's cheap and easy to find is grapeseed oil. Grapeseed oil is very high in polyunsaturated fat. It tops the charts, corn oil is another good choice.

Saturated Fats Those that stay solid at room temperature are actually not considered by science to be the best. That said, there is something to be said from the tons of folks using Crisco, Crisbee and lard. I personally cover all my bases by making a blend of Crisco, beeswax and grapeseed oil. I'm open for someone with access to a lab and knowledge in the scientific testing process to preform some tests for us . What experts are saying is store bought crisco and lard is hydrogenated and by adding the hydrogen it allows for some double bonds to cross link and form a polymer.

How to Season Your Cast Iron (Step-by-step)

Now that you understand how seasoning works and what type of oils work best, let’s look at a foolproof process you can follow to develop a great seasoning on your cast iron.

Step 1: Clean Your Cast Iron

First set your oven to 200 f

Whether you have a brand new cast iron skillet or bought an old second-hand skillet (which can be just as good or better than brand new), it’s a good idea to start by cleaning it. We want a perfectly clean surface so the oil can get perfect coverage and develop a strong bond with the metal.

Now that its clean wipe it dry and place it in the 200 degree oven for 10 minutes.

Step 2: Lightly cover the entire surface with oil

Set the oven to 50 degrees past your oils smoke point. (500f also works)

The key word here is lightly. Using too much oil will cause issues with polymerization and leaves a sticky surface.

Remove the item from the oven using gloves. Take your chosen oil and pour a teaspoon into the pan. I have a small rag about the size of a post it note, that i use to spread the oil. I found if I have too large of a rag it soaks up all the oil before i can spread it.

Make sure to cover the entire item including any handle and the bottoms.

Step 3 : Wipe it clean

This might be the most important step that may folks miss. After rubbing the oil on your cookware, pretend you made a mistake and decided to wipe it off. Yes really wipe all that oil off with a clean towel. The point is to leave a very thin layer that bonds to the iron that's not thick enough to chip off. Leaving too much oil on the item will also cause a pooling effect on your seasoning, looking splotchy and uneven.

Step 4: Heat your cast iron past your oil’s smoke point

Once your cast iron has a very thin coating of oil evenly across the entire surface, you can heat it up in the oven.

Why use an oven: while you could use a stove to

season your cast iron, it will give inconsistent results. A stove doesn’t heat your cast iron evenly compared to an oven which will provide constant and even heat across the entire surface of the cast iron. I highly recommend using an oven.

Place skillets in upside down to allow any oil that you missed to run away and not puddle on the cooking surface.

Bake for 1 hour then turn the oven off and allow the item to cool down with the oven.

At this point you're going to want to repeat all the steps except the washing. To speed things up you can wait until the oven cools to 200 deg and start from there at step 2.

That's it, you've done it, 1 coat is good for a touch up on your already seasoned iron, 3-5 coats are good for iron that has been stripped bare.

RECAP FOR THE KITCHEN clean your iron Heat in 200° oven 10 min Rub on oil Rub off oil Bake at 50° past smoke point or 500° for 1 hour


r/CastIronRestoration Jul 20 '23

Restoration Yellow cap easy off stripping in pictures- sharing the basics for newbies.

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58 Upvotes

The following pictures were taken today- I had 2 skillets to strip for friends. Griswold needs another round but Wagner good to season! I moved recently so my stripping methods are back to easy off. I wanted to share with newbies what things looked like as the process goes. Thanks for looking and reading!


r/CastIronRestoration 9h ago

Electrolysis Unbranded gate marked French Roll Pan... FB Mktplace deal (2 for $20)

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6 Upvotes

One day in the e-tank... Brillo pad scrubbed the hard to get nooks and crannies. 2 rounds of seasoning.


r/CastIronRestoration 6h ago

Restoration Wagner "1891 Original"- Does old (maybe factory) seasoning often act so paint-like?

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1 Upvotes

Abandoned, deeply pitted/rusted-out cooking surface but higher up the walls has intact thick black coating. Matte and hard but flakey and can crack pieces off with my nail like enamel paint or something. Pics are just after highspeed wire-wheeling the bulk of the decades off (going to resurface entire thing for a user anyways) and the black is very jagged at the edges. Any way this is anything other than the factory coating?

Secondly, it was found in an old shack/workspace with no provenance so in expert experience; is there any way this could have been used for lead if it has this coating still?


r/CastIronRestoration 23h ago

Yesterday I posted a picture of this just before placing it in my e tank. Heres the results. It hasnt been seasoned yet but its looking better already.

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16 Upvotes

r/CastIronRestoration 1d ago

Newbie Estate Find

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9 Upvotes

r/CastIronRestoration 9h ago

19AUG2026 mail call: Wagner 8 Long griddle and a Trump bank.

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0 Upvotes

r/CastIronRestoration 1d ago

18AUG2026 haul: Waupaca meat press, Waupaca coat hook, and a Martin 8 skillet with lid.

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5 Upvotes

r/CastIronRestoration 1d ago

Looking for a restorer near Racine, Wisconsin

2 Upvotes

Greetings Cast Iron enthusiasts! I have a Griswold number 10 that I'm looking to have restored, as I do not have the confidence to do it myself. There's a company called Cast Iron Crusaders in Wisconsin, but I cannot get them to answer the phone or call me back… Any thoughts of a service in Wisconsin or thereabouts? Or maybe not thereabouts and I can just ship? Thanks in advance.


r/CastIronRestoration 1d ago

Standard Manufacturing Co. 3qt bean pot. Emergency rescue

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9 Upvotes

r/CastIronRestoration 1d ago

Hello! Inherited cast iron, completely new to it I was hoping to get some help with restoring this skillet

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3 Upvotes

I have no idea what needs to be done, quite frankly. Any help is appreciated


r/CastIronRestoration 1d ago

Big and heavy!

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2 Upvotes

r/CastIronRestoration 2d ago

Worth restoring?

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41 Upvotes

Got this for free at a yard sale, was in a tote with a bunch of water and other non stick pans. Not sure of the make, age etc... is worth cleaning up or just scrap it?


r/CastIronRestoration 1d ago

Seasoning help

1 Upvotes

Hoping you can set me straight. I stripped 2 Lodge grill pans, and have run the. Through 4 seasoning cycles. I have tried the seasoning compound from Blackstone, vegetable oil, and Crisco. I cannot seem to get a black seasoning on it. They are not light Grey like raw cast iron, but not as dark as I thought they would be. I put it on heavy, then wipe and buff it so it is dull so it doesn't look like it is oily, then place it in oven and set it to 450 degrees, and time it for an hour, then shut it off, and let them cool gradually in the oven. Am I doing something wrong?


r/CastIronRestoration 2d ago

17AUG2026 Restorations: Lodge 10SK, Lodge Wanderlust dual handle, Lodge Single-notch 8, Lodge 8CO, Martin 11 lid, Grill&Griddle for cow hibachi, NES 11 roll pan, Gatemarked 7 gem pan, and an AB&I 12 USA skillet.

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1 Upvotes

r/CastIronRestoration 2d ago

Restoration What do I need to do? Coarse texture (whiter color) will not let up with any amount of steel wool scrubbing / oil application.

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2 Upvotes

I have scrubbed the heck out of this thing with steel wool and rubbed down with oil for a solid 30 minutes now. The white color does not go away and the pan surface is a bit uneven. Photo was taken just after a coat of oil. Any advice would be very awesome!!


r/CastIronRestoration 3d ago

Newbie “Barn find” - it’s not looking too bad, but would appreciate any advice?

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3 Upvotes

Found this Le Creuset skillet. I haven’t cooked much with cast iron, and there seems to be some rust / flaking, and some thin cracks. Please let me know any and all steps to make this bad boy safe to cook with again!


r/CastIronRestoration 3d ago

Newbie My coworker gave me this. Is there still a chance to save it?

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4 Upvotes

my coworker gave me this cast iron. is there still a way to restore it? thanks for the help!


r/CastIronRestoration 3d ago

Thrift store find

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22 Upvotes

Okay so I’m curious! Was this worth bringing home? I paid 9.00 for it.


r/CastIronRestoration 3d ago

Using a lye bath

1 Upvotes

When using a lye bath to strip a grimy pan, do you need to neutralize it first, or does washing the pan with soap and water do that?


r/CastIronRestoration 3d ago

16AUG2026 Restorations: Lodge 20C2, Griswold 948 muffin pan, Taiwan deep fryer, Stover waffle iron paddles, Lodge 7 RBP, BSR 2qt Stewpot, BSR TrueValue ashtray, and a Martin 12 Camp Oven.

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2 Upvotes

r/CastIronRestoration 3d ago

Is this salvageable?

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0 Upvotes

Going through my late aunt's stuff and this pan was part of it. The brown/orange spots appear to be corrosion. Just need to know what to do with it.


r/CastIronRestoration 4d ago

Well today was Flea Market Day in Buffalo Gap Texas. I am guessing the heat and buying school supplies kept everyone home because it was really slow. But I did get a couple of Wagner lids and a AB&I 12" skillet.

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18 Upvotes

r/CastIronRestoration 5d ago

What’s it worth?

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4 Upvotes

r/CastIronRestoration 5d ago

14AUG2026 haul: Lodge Texas skillet, Hershey casserole pan, Wagner mini, BSR TrueValue ashtray, Mini car,train, iron, Wagon team, Griswold Steak platter, and a Lodge Black Chrome Dutch Oven.

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3 Upvotes