Best ways to clean cast iron after cooking

[Alan]

Some say you should never use soap, like completely avoid it, but modern dish soap is actually safe for your seasoning. At least that's what I think. I find that warm water and a good brush work for most daily meals but for stuck bits of food I use a chainmail scrubber or some coarse salt to get the surface smooth again.

Do you guys use soap on your iron or do you stick to the old ways of just water and oil?

 

[black clover]

Yes! I finally stopped being afraid of a little Dawn soap and my pans have never looked better. It gets the old grease out so it does not go rancid but leaves the hard black seasoning alone. I always dry it on a warm burner right away so no water sits in the bottom.

 

[tiptiptoe]

But don't you worry about the soap smell or do you find it just makes the pan cleaner for the next meal? I mean I would.

 

[BigBob75]

I don't use soap. I season my skillets (cast iron and carbon steel) 3 times with Crisco before I even start using them and then just wash them with hot water. I use a Lodge plastic scraper to remove any bits of food and then a Lodge brush, both using hot tap water. I rinse the pan with hot tap water and dry it on the gas stove. After it's dry I add a few drops of Greek EVOO and wipe it with a small paper towel. I just purchased some REFINED avocado oil, not REGULAR avocado oil and will use it after drying the skillet on the stove. I like the taste of the Greek EVOO, but refined avocado oil has a higher smoke point, just what I need for 475 F pizza making. I only use soapy dish water on my stainless steel stock pots. God Bless. Bob

 

[Alan]

I think the problem is some people are overcleaning it. But yes, soapy water works as long as you oil it properly, which a lot fail to do.

 

[BigBob75]

Alan,
You're correct. I'm always trying to keep my cast iron skillets seasoned, they're NOT like the modern skillets. They develop character and food tastes better when prepared in them. .....AND THEY LAST FOREVER!

 

[Squint]

Some say you should never use soap, like completely avoid it, but modern dish soap is actually safe for your seasoning. At least that's what I think. I find that warm water and a good brush work for most daily meals but for stuck bits of food I use a chainmail scrubber or some coarse salt to get the surface smooth again.

Do you guys use soap on your iron or do you stick to the old ways of just water and oil?

Pretty much used just hot water and then a light coating of oil afterwards. If you scrub too hard with soap you're gonna have to re temper which isn't that hard, I do it my barbecue grill but you still have to take time to do it. If you'll just fill it about half full O water and then bring it up to a boil and then dump it out it probably will take anything off, let it dry and then lightly oil it with any kind of cooking oil you want to use.

 

[BigBob75]

I guess I'm too lazy to even do as Squint does. I put plain hot tap water in a warm skillet, scrape with a Lodge plastic scraper, dump the water, add more hot tap water, run the Lodge brush around and dump the water out, put skillet on the stove and turn gas on low, skillet dries, I put a little EVOO in the skillet and wipe in around with a paper towel. Done! I'm going to try using Refined Avocado Oil in the skillet instead of EVOO to prep skillet for pizza.