What am i doing wrong with seasoning this pan?!?

[Tac45]

I can't for the life of me get this lodge pan to season properly. I've looked up different ways to season and watched many videos on seasoning and can't seem to get it to stick to the cooking surface. However, it does stick to the side of the pan. They have a nice glassy look but the cooking surface is still rough/dry to the touch with a dull look to it. It does have small specs of seasoning on the bottom that look like maybe I burt the seasoning off or as if I used to much oil but I have tried this many times and have wiped this pan more than enough to get the excess oil out. i have also tried not wiping it off as much and again. the only seasoning that looks glassy is around the sides.

*Things I have tried*
Cleaning the pan and heating it to dry it out.
covering the whole pan in Avocado oil and wiping it down so there isn't any excess oil.
placed the pan upside down and left it for 1 hour and I've tried 40 minutes.
The temperatures I have tried are 350 degrees, 450 degrees, and 500 degrees.

am I doing something wrong here?

 

[Hockeydudde]

What are you cooking on it?
Are you oiling after every use/clean?

I like grape seed oil. Doesn't smoke when you season and fiend a pretty strong bond. I typically do 400 for 30 minutes, turn the oven off and leave till cool.

 

[Tac45]

What are you cooking on it?
Are you oiling after every use/clean?

I like grape seed oil. Doesn't smoke when you season and fiend a pretty strong bond. I typically do 400 for 30 minutes, turn the oven off and leave till cool.

Since i stripped it down I haven't tried cooking on it yet. I've just been trying to build at least a base layer of seasoning and I just can't get it to stick to the cooking surface of the pan like it does to the sides. I do know the basics though. Always wipe the pan while still hot for easy cleaning. I've used a soft brush or a rag to clean the pan. Nothing abrasive. no soap and never cooked anything acidic. I feel like I'm doing what everyone else does and for the oil.. Everyone has their preferred oils but as far as I'm aware it should really matter as long as it has a relatively high smoke point and has some fatty oils in it.

 

[Torch&Tone]

- Lodge often comes with a rather pebbly texture from their "pre-seasoning" (to me, a pan is seasoned or it isn't). I find this very counterproductive and take it off with sandpaper of a couple different grits. It's possible to do it by hand, but faster & easier with a small circular sander. Getting it smooth and bare before seasoning it properly goes a *long* way to helping it perform the way it should. Just be sure to clean it thoroughly and season promptly, as the bare iron is much more prone to corrosion, and wear a decent mask & eye protection while sanding.

- Also, don't use paper towels to wipe down your cast iron; it leaves fibers behind. A proper lint-free rag is much better for spreading the oil around and picking up any excess.

Other than that, the pan needs to be warmed up to absorb the oil, and take your time. I agree that many people get overly picky about their oils. I was amused to see a recommendation from Kent Rollins: buy a big bottle of flaxseed supplements from the pharmacy and squeeze a couple capsules out into the pan! Above all, use the dang thing - repeated cooking, with the appropriate amount of oil, will improve both the pan and your skills as a cook.

 

[chopsaw]

I can't for the life of me get this lodge pan to season properly.

Old or new (er) ?
Have you owned it from new or been in your family ?
Bought second hand ?
Reason for stripping ?

 

[BigW.]

The rough bottom on a Lodge will not get filled with seasoning to become glassy smooth like the sides. Lodge come preseasoned but I'll add a couple coats of Avocado oil or Blackstone has a paste that seems to work. I'd season a few times then start cooking. Avoiding paper towel lint above was a good idea. A coffee filter works pretty well if you don't have a lint free towel handy.

 

[chopsaw]

A coffee filter works pretty well if you don't have a lint free towel handy.

That's what I use . Then toss it .
My newer pre seasoned Lodge is just fine . Matter of choice and opinion , but I've never seen it as a negative . Just use it . Mine is actually gettin pretty smooth .

 

[chef k-dude]

Deep fry a few meals with it. Fried chicken comes to mind. That'll get-er going.

I have both a stainless chain mail type of scrubber as well as a stainless steel wool wad I use for cleaning. Never had a problem with that. Never heard of a need to treat cast iron skillets with kid gloves, but I dont consider myself an expert. My skillets get scrubbed with those scrubbers, then plopped on a gas eye burner (I have a cook-top in the garage, the one in the house is smooth glass) to heat them dry. If they look like they need it, they get a spray of cooking oil from a can before storage.

 

[Tac45]

Old or new (er) ?
Have you owned it from new or been in your family ?
Bought second hand ?
Reason for stripping ?

It was a new pan I purchased a while ago but I didn't take care of it like I should have. That's why I stripped it. I wanted to get a nice even finish the proper way. I'm trying 1 more thing at the moment because I have a feeling that the oil I was using may not have been 100% avocado oil. I purchased some chosen 100% avocado oil and the smell and taste are completely different from what I was using before.

 

[Hijack73]

I have a newer Lodge and I'm not anywhere near in love with it. I just don't like the rough surface cookware when I grew up on smooth surface (yes, I'm oldish and set in my ways) though it cooks a steak and burgers up just fine. Also makes fine gravy. But I'll never love it, not until I get bored one day and sand it down a bit. I went on a mission to see how many coats/sessions it would take before it got smooth. I saw a post on some site where someone had applied 100 coats and it was as slick as ice. I got to about 7 and wasn't seeing it get any smoother, so I quit wasting electricity....

As far as what temp to use, you would need to find the smoke point of the oil/grease/lard/etc... and run it about 25 degrees higher than that smoke point.

 

[chopsaw]

You just have to use the newer stuff . My 12 " above is the dedicated bacon fryer . That helps a lot with the seasoning . I also have 3 newer 6 " that I use for cornbread .

Pops right out . No stick .

My older stuff , 40's and 50's gets used for whatever .
Like glass . Smaller 10 " is the dedicated egg pan .

 

[whistlepig]

Cooking will season it. I have tried using Crisbee to season but found cooking over time seasoned it just as well. No mine doesn't look like a finely polished race car but does the job and is easy to clean. I found that cleaning it wrong made it very difficult to clean the next time I used it.

 

[nlife]

A few thoughts.

• Avocado oil has a smoke point of around 500f so you need to exceed that in order to get it to fully polymerize. It doesn't sound like you've exceeded that. I'd suggest plain ol' Crisco oil like the factory uses and save the avocado oil for dressings etc. Then again, I don't know if I particularly care for Avocado Oil for anything if the article to be believed.
• I wash my pans with a stiff brush, soap and hot water after each use. Frankly, if your "seasoning" washes off with today's non-lye based soaps, it was never seasoning in the first place.
• If I have stuck on bits after cooking I add a half cup or so of warm water to a warm - NOT hot - pan and bring it to a simmer before scraping it with a metal spatula before washing. That said, I've never been shy in using a stiff metal scraper (putty knife) to break the really stuck on bits free.
• Oven seasoning is an 'ok' way to start the seasoning base, but I've not found anything that works as well as simply cooking with it.

This is my cheapo 10" grocery store pan that I picked up for around $15CAD a few years ago. When I bought it I sorted through the stock on the shelf to find the smoothest of the lot. It's not smooth as glass, but it's better than the rest at the time. If I want smooth, I reach for my carbon steel pan (in the background).

I use mine to sear roasts before we put them in the Instapot, cook steaks, pork chops, homemade bacon, eggs, hash-browns, pizza, spatchcock chicken etc. I have cooked tomato based dishes without ill effect, though it is very well seasoned.

Ultimately, I wouldn't be concerned over the looks of the pan, rather how it performs. Mine is a flat black, almost grey bottomed after I wash it. It 'shines' after I give it a light coat of oil after washing and drying it.

 

[kelbro]

Don't worry right now about making it smooth. Season it. Cook on it. Scrape it with a metal spatula each time you use it. Use it a lot. It will eventually smooth out.

Non-stick in a cast iron (or stainless) skillet is all about temp control and proper use of cooking fats/oils. It is not about the glossy surface.

Never turn the burner up past medium (unless deep frying) and wait until the pan gets hot before adding your fat/oil. Wait until your fat/oil is shimmering before you add the food.

 

[Newglide]

Lodge often comes with a rather pebbly texture from their "pre-seasoning" (to me, a pan is seasoned or it isn't). I find this very counterproductive and take it off with sandpaper of a couple different grits. It's possible to do it by hand, but faster & easier with a small circular sander. Getting it smooth and bare before seasoning

Haven't thought about sanding and smoothing it out.

 

[nlife]

Haven't thought about sanding and smoothing it out.

There was a guy on one of the social media platforms that was doing this. He went to the extreme end and fully polished a pan to a chrome like finish. He tried cooking with it and although it would cook, the seasoning simply wouldn't stick to it.

I've sanded rough pans in the past and they work. I've used them as is from the factory. They work too. I went too far down the rabbit hole on this a few years back. I'm at the point now where I find a pan on the shelf with acceptable finish and go with it. I've tried multiple different oils including the one popular Flaxseed oil. I'm back to simply using Crisco oil to season with.

If you have a few bucks and are so inclined, you can also buy really expensive pans that have been machined smooth like the Stargazer 10.5" Skillet or a 10" Finex Cast Iron, but I can't justify $150-200USD on a cast iron skillet when my cheap J.A. Pan Co. Levcoware cast iron has a better finish overall.

 

[whistlepig]

An off the shelf Lodge works without smoothing. It's the seasoning and care of cleaning in order not to remove the seasoning that makes them non-stick.

 

[chopsaw]

An off the shelf Lodge works without smoothing. It's the seasoning and care of cleaning in order not to remove the seasoning that makes them non-stick.

Right . You just need to use them .
Also , don't confuse " sticking " with not ready to flip .

 

[mike243]

I have a older Lodge that wont build a base, it has a very slick surface and I have threatened to sand it off rough, I finally regulated it to be the gravy pan, cook the bacon or sausage in it and the stuck bits season the gravy lol. I don't make it much anymore as it's tough to keep the weight off these days

 

[TeeZee]

Lots of good advice here--we scrub under very hot tap water with a long handed brush then let dry on a warm burner; slick with oil, wipe down, let cool, and put it away. Never use soap, I say.

Or you could always try going next door to trade your new pan for somebody else's dinosaur--hey, it could work!