How often do you need to season your cast iron pan? Man who completed the process 80 times in a row shares what he learned
"We all like shiny things, right?" says the redditor who went viral for his seasoning experiment.
Cast iron enthusiasts are no stranger to wanting to take care of their newest skillet or finding a well-loved pan at a thrift store that's in need of some TLC. But, when it comes to seasoning a cast iron pan, how often should it be done, and which method is best?
Reddit user Dewey, who posts to the platform as u/fatmummy222 and prefers to keep his last name anonymous for privacy reasons, decided to conduct an experiment with one of his cast iron pans, seasoning the skillet 80 times in a row "for science."
"This is just for internet clout," he wrote in a post on the r/castiron subreddit that's been commented on by more than 4,000 redditors. "Also to make random internet strangers unreasonably mad."
Dewey says he's spent about a decade learning about cast iron and adding pans to his collection. "At the beginning, I was so confused about all this seasoning stuff," he tells Yahoo Life. "I didn't know what cast iron seasoning was or how to do it, so I relied on Google and YouTube."
"There are so many methods and theories out there," he continues. "They're all different and contradicting at times ... it bothered me that I couldn't find any concrete information, so I made it my mission to get to the bottom of it and try to understand the process of oil polymerization and seasoning."
What does it mean to season a cast iron pan?
Greg Peters is executive chef at Georgia James, a Houston, Texas-based steakhouse known for its signature cast iron seared steak program. Peters' father was an avid cast iron pan collector when he was growing up, making him very familiar with the process of seasoning.
"At its core, seasoning is the baking of oil into a cast iron," Peters explains. "Every time you cook in a cast iron pan, you're seasoning it. Subsequently, you season it again during the continual maintenance process with warm, soapy water and a little bit of vegetable oil."
"By seasoning your cast iron pan, you're forming a natural cooking surface that does two things," Peters adds. "One, you're preventing the pan from rusting and two, you're creating a non-stick cooking surface."
Peters says while you don't need to season a cast iron pan 80 times, you certainly can.
"You could spend 80 consecutive days seasoning your pan or enjoy this whole process over the lifetime of the pan," he says. "Seasoning is part of the joy that comes with owning a cast iron."
What happens to a pan seasoned 80 times in a row?
"Sometimes you want to do something just to see what happens," Dewey says, "out of curiosity, I guess. And because it's fun. I seasoned it five times at first. It came out looking pretty nice. I enjoyed the process and the final product, then I thought, 'What if I just keep going? Will it look even better?' So I kept going."
Dewey says he wanted to show people that while a cast iron pan doesn't have to look nice, it can.
"Some people say, 'It's just a pan! It's for cooking!'" he says. "I think they kinda missed the point: A car's purpose is to take you from point A to point B, but it can also look nice and shiny while doing that. That's why some people obsessively wash and wax their car. We all like shiny things, right? They're so satisfying to look at."
Eighty seasonings later, Dewey says he can tell a difference in the non-stick surface of his pan. "I think a well-seasoned pan is important because it gives you a lot of room for error," he says. "Even if your technique is not perfect or your temperature is a little off, a well-seasoned pan might still save the day so you won't end up with a sticky mess."
Still, he admits nearly 100 coats is overkill. "I'm doing it for funsies," he says.
The best way to season cast iron
Dewey's tried-and-true method for seasoning a pan starts with stripping the old seasoning. "Wear gloves and goggles," he warns. "Spray Easy-Off Heavy Duty Oven Cleaner to cover the entire surface of the pan inside and outside. Put it in a trash bag and close it. Let it sit overnight — it can take a few days if the old seasoning is too thick — then take it out. The lye in the Easy-Off should dissolve most or all of the old seasoning. Rinse and scrub well. If there are any remaining stubborn spots, another round of Easy-Off should take care of it."
To clean the surface of the pan, Dewey recommends using a 50/50 solution of vinegar and water. "Soak the pan in this solution," he says. "You can fill up the inside of the pan if you don't have enough solution to soak the whole pan. The vinegar will dissolve rust and also help clean up materials that might get lodged into the cracks and crevices of the metal."
"This will improve adhesion to the coating," he adds. "Let it sit for 30 minutes, then rinse and scrub. Switch to cold water for the final rinse to minimize flash rust, towel dry then let it air dry."
The next step, known as bluing, is optional, says Dewey. "You don't really have to do this step, but if you do, bake the dry pan in the oven at 500°F for an hour and a half, or up to three hours if you want," he explains. "This will form iron black oxide on the surface of the pan. Black oxide can help prevent rust and acts as a catalyst for the polymerization reaction. This step also makes sure any leftover water in the pores and any volatile substances evaporate before the seasoning step. Take the pan out and let it cool down."
When it's time to season your pan, Dewey says it's OK to use any oil you prefer. His go-to is Crisco All Vegetable Shortening.
"Use a lint-free cloth to wipe the pan inside and outside with about one to two tablespoons of Crisco, or more if needed," says Dewey. "If it's too hard to spread the Crisco, warm the pan up a tiny bit: The heat should melt the Crisco. Make sure the Crisco reaches all the nooks and crannies: The pan should glisten."
"Now use a clean lint-free cloth to wipe off the excess oil," he says. "The pan should look damp but not glistening ... bake it in the oven at 460°F for one hour. Let it cool in the oven, and you're done."
Peters also recommends Crisco as the perfect oil for seasoning cast iron. Once you've completed the initial seasoning or seasonings, he says vegetable oil is best to maintain your pan's coating.
"For continual maintenance," says Peters, "rinse your cast iron pan with warm water and very light soap using a regular sponge — nothing abrasive. Dry the pan and put it on your stovetop over low heat. Pour a half-teaspoon of vegetable oil on your pan. Using a paper towel, coat the whole pan and you're done."
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