How To Clean and Season Old, Rusty Cast Iron Skillets
Most of the times you’re dealing with rust on your
antique cast iron skillets, the natural instinct is to take them to a
specialist that will handle your problem. But there goes away some good money.
You don’t want to do that, especially if there’s a homemade natural solution at
your disposal. Here is what you’ll need:
- some raw potatoes;
- salt (kosher type will work great);
- towel;
- a bit of Crisco (the un-buttered flavor);
First, put a couple of teaspoons of salt at the bottom
of your sink and place the cast iron skillet in it. Then, grab a top-sliced potato
and use its cut end to scour the skillet. Meanwhile grind the salt in those rust
covered spots and rinse off the skillet as well. If it’s necessary, add more
salt to the process. After the rust is all gone, take a towel to dry the iron skillet.
If you have achieved the desired result, take some Crisco and rub into the
surface of the object, making it ready for cooking once more.
Now, it’s important that you don’t wash the skillet
with soap, because it will wear off the coating of oil. When you’re done with
cooking with the iron skillet, make sure you rinse it. Don’t put it in the
dishwasher, and don’t let it soak for a long time, as you would with your
ordinary pan. If it need scrubbing, leave it to cool down and put some salt on
it.
