At our home, we love to cook in our large cast iron skillet. I thought I would share how to easily clean a cast iron pan, although this applies to any type of cast iron pan.
I have heard that many people are afraid to use cast iron when cooking because they do not know how to clean it, for fear of damage or damage. Hopefully, I can shed some light on these concerns as it’s REALLY easy to clean cast iron.
And it’s pretty indestructible, so it’ll probably last longer than any other non-stick pan with just a few simple tips.
Do you have to clean the cast iron after each use?
No. This is personal preference, but we only clean our cast iron pans up to twice a month. And we cook with it at least a couple of times per week.
The small portions of cooked food that accumulate on the pan, as long as it’s not too much, actually add to the flavor and texture of the meals we make.
We mainly do fry in our pans, things like shrimp, chicken, vegetables, rice, and savory condiments and sauce that you might expect in a stir-fry.
If we cook something with a very different taste, we can continue to rinse the pan first and/or afterwards.
How to clean a cast iron pan:
- Scrub away dense dirt
- Rinse and dry
- Rub with oil
Other tips:
- Don’t put cast iron in the dishwasher
- Never use soap (unnecessary)
- If you (or your partner/roommate) forget and use soap or put it in the dishwasher, simply rinse, then re-season the cast iron as it was when you first bought it. Some come seasoned beforealso.
- If your cast iron is rusty, simply scrub/wash off the rust and rub with oil. It is not ruined!
Scrub clean dirt. This can be cooked food from previous meals, but it can also be dry sauces, gravy, etc. All you need is hot water and scrub brush (no soap) to do this.
If you find it difficult to remove, you can leave the water in the pan overnight to soften the debris. This may cause the pan to rust slightly, but all you need to do is scrub the dirt off.
Another thing you can try for super stubborn stains is to add boiling water to the pan to loosen it.
Rinse pan, then pat dry with a clean kitchen towel or paper towel. You don’t want to leave water droplets behind as it could rust the pan (this won’t damage it, but you’ll have to clean it again).
I have a kitchen towel to use for this job because it gets pretty dirty, even after washing the towel. So don’t use any fancy kitchen towels you like to decorate or serve. This task is only for your kitchen wipes that can yellow forever.
Rub the cast iron pan with oil when it dries. I usually use olive oil because it’s something we usually cook with, but any food-safe cooking oil will do. This will keep your cast iron pan looking like new.
Again, kitchen towels or paper towels that can get messy are also the best choices here.
Can you damage a cast iron skillet?
Yes, but only if you break them or scratch them badly. Otherwise, it’s only a matter of cleaning (and if necessary, re-seasoning) if they’ve been washed with soap.
So as long as you don’t break the pan (which is hard to do), it should last for years with heavy use. Cast iron pan is a very safe and economical pan in cooking. We love ours!
