How to Cure an Iron Skillet

 by Tom King

(c) 2009 - Some Rights Reserved

Cast iron skillets are wonderful for cooking in.  My wife makes cornbread in hers and it’s always perfect.  Even I can make great cornbread if I cook it in a cast iron skillet.

“So, how do you keep it from sticking?” you ask.  Anybody who’s ever used cast iron skillets in the past has probably had problems with sticking.  Well, don’t worry, there’s a solution.  Before teflon, silverstone and other nonstick cookware, our grandmother’s knew how to prevent food from sticking to cast iron cookware.  Here’s how.

Wash the skillet thoroughly, towel dry and let it sit until thoroughly air dryed.

Coat the skillet inside and out with vegetable shortening and set it on a baking sheet

Turn on your oven to 180 degrees F.

Leave the skillet in the oven for 15 or 20 minutes till all the shortening is melted.

Remove the skillet from the oven, wipe off excess oil on the outside and set the skillet somewhere to cool.

Once cool, wipe down the skillet with a paper towel
When you store the skillet, place a paper towel in it, especially if you stack it with other pans.

Never put away an uncured iron skillet.  It will rust and stick no matter how much you oil it. It takes time for the oils to bond with the cast iron surface.

*For more in depth information about the care and feeding of cast iron cookware, check out this post on "Art of Manliness".