Saturday Seasoning: Cast Iron Skillets

I am currently studying a cooking guide written by Alton Brown. Now, I don't mean a cook book, which contains recipes for you to preform; but instead I mean a cooking guide, which teaches you how to cook well and with the correct techniques. I happen to love Alton Brown as a chef, and so this book is perfect for me. Currently, I am in the section for "searing." This gives the definition of searing, how to properly sear, and also some searing dishes to try out. One of the requirements for a good sear given in the book is to use a cast iron skillet.

     Some of you out there might own a cast iron skillet, and thus know what this entails with it. I have never seen a cast iron skillet, that I remember, and thus some of the upkeep requirements of one surprised me. This blog post will share with you the secrets of owning
a cast iron skillet, and then, the next post will give a great recipe to try using the same skillet.
     The first secret of the cast iron skillet: it is heavy! Seriously, if someone ever breaks into your house and you have this handy, just hit them on the head and they will fall over unconscious. This entirely metal pan weighs about ten pounds, I think, and has no grippy surface on its handle. In fact, the cast iron skillet's handle will heat up to the same temperature as the skillet itself, so be careful! In the book, Alton Brown suggests having some welding gloves handy just for this skillet, as the gloves can withstand very high temperatures.
     Back to the maintenance of the skillet. The iron is vulnerable to rust, and does not usually come with a protection on it already. Thus, as soon as you buy a cast iron skillet, you must season it, or seal it from rust. The process is very simple, although you might want to open a window or two to help with the smell. Required to season the skillet are these:

• One cast iron skillet
• One dollop of vegetable shortening
• One sheet pan large enough to catch dripping oil
• A few paper towels

The idea of this is to coat the pan with the shortening, then let it bake on for a while. To start this, place the skillet on the top shelf of your (cold) oven. Then, place the sheet pan directly beneath it. Turn the oven to 350º F. and let it start heating up (with the skillet inside). When the skillet is warm, but still holdable, take it out of the oven. Place a dollop of vegetable shortening in the skillet and start smearing the shortening over the skillet using a paper towel.

Coat everything with the shortening, inside, outside, including the handle. Now place the skillet back in the oven upside-down so that excess shortening will drip into the sheet pan you have. Let the skillet bake for 1 hour, then pull it out and let it cool for a few minutes.  Wipe the pan clean using a new paper towel (not the same one from earlier). And you're done!

    Do not clean the skillet until after the first use, and then you should usually only wipe it while warm with a little fat-salt mixture and a paper towel. If that does not clean it, use only mild detergent in water to wash it down.

    I hope you liked this little informational blog post, and come back Monday for a yummy recipe using this cast iron skillet!