Hi all:

My wife and I are arguing... again.. ;)

Tell us, please... how often do you need to season a cast iron skillet?

When washing cast iron skillet does it lose its "season" by virtue of the soap... or does loss of "seasoning" occur over time?

Help! As I like my steaks Charred!

You really aren't suppose to use soap just rinse with hot water... at least that is the way the Texans do it.
I go years without seasoning mine. Some I have had for 20 some years and still never seasoned them.
You can tell when they need seasoned by if the water beads up it doesn't need seasoned
If it has lost its sheen and the water doesn't bead up then it needs seasoned.

I would say it can lose the seasoning either way because you aren't suppose to use soap...


****edit
Actually Texans say don't even rinse them with water (I do)
They leave the grease in them and when they feel it is needed they wipe it out with paper towels and
Scrap whatever out with a metal spatula.

At least the Texans I knew and my cajun chef did it that way.

Mass plumber2000 - I guess ill try to get you out of hot water and out of the dog house the dog might want to use it tonight , In answer to your question, Yes when you wash cast iron in hot soapy water several times it does lose it's seasoning and you will need to re season it ,also it does wear off after awhile,and have to be redone. Here's A LITTLE HINT About keeping it seasoned longer. ( when you use it ,wipe it out with a dry dish towellgood then just wash it with dish rag easy ,wipe dry right then and with paper towell ,put greese or cooking oil on towell and then rub into cast iron real good , that's what Ive always done and seasoning has always lasted longer, washlike you do normally ,yes heavy washing in soap does take it out quickly. GOOD LUCK AND GOD BLESS ::: flying blue eagle::

How to Love Your Cast-Iron Skillet

Article - How to Love Your Cast-Iron Skillet

You guys are great! Thank you.

I knew there was something I remembered about wiping down skillet with oil after each use. Take care.

I use soap,but a mild one like Ivory,but I always grease it with oil after the towel dry.It prevents rust,and keeps it's perfect finish.We fry fish and chicken in our 20 year old fryer,and have a smaller version for cornbread!We also blacken in one,which is why you need a little soap to loosen the spices.

My son is a cast iron afficianado. He seasons his cast ironware by putting either vegetable oil or olive oil and puts the pan in the oven at 300 degrees for an hour or an hour and a half. Let the pan cool off. Wipe out any excess oil. Either use it or put it away. After he cooks in it he uses a bit of dish soap and a scouring pad. He rinses it thoroughly and towel dries it and then puts the pan on a hot burner to get any water out of the pits. He does recommend cleaning out any grease in the pan due to rancid grease build up. He has a collection of pans ranging from 6" to 22" and everything in between. Almost 12 pans in all. The trick of putting the pan on the hot burner was taught to him by my mother who had an itty bitty fry pan for her eggs that she had for probably 50 years. It looked like it was worn but never had any rust in it. I am surprised that no one mentioned the hot burner trick. If you do this trick your pans will never rust between uses. He reseasons his pans about twice a year on an average.

Nothing special. Wash. Rinse. Dry with paper towel. Place on burner to evaporate water.

If finish is dull. Add a drop of olive oil and wipe.