Burnt crud in Cast Iron Skillet *****


 

Erik G

TVWBB Pro
A few nights back I pan seared some steaks on our brand new 12 inch cast iron skillet (with grooves for grill marks) and threw it in a 500 degree oven to cook for a few minutes. Last night I made some hamburgers on the same skillet. Well, needless to say, I have a bunch of burnt crud between the grooves that I am not certain how to remove. Some of it is flaking off, while most of it is very difficult to remove. Should I be using water and soap to clean the pan? Need help with the best method of removing the burnt in crud. Thanks in advance.

Erik
 
I'm no expert, but I think you should be able to do just about anything needed to remove the crud (including scraping it off with a chisel, if it comes to that), without doing any physical damage to the pan. It's cast iron, after all. You might need to reseason it after you finish, though.
 
First just try loading with water and letting it boil/simmer for a good while and then see if it will scrape loose with a small brass brush. Otherwise I'd try spraying good with oven cleaner and leaving it in a sealed bag for about 24 hours, then apply the brass brush.

Probably will have to re-season after that.
 
Ray, I have always been told not to use water to clean cast iron pots or maybe it was not to use cast iron to boil water, it might cause it to rust. Have I been misinformed?

Erik
 
Erik,

You can use water but most will say not to use soap. I've been known to use a little mild soap from time to time with a double hot rince. Key is to throughly dry your cast iron afterward. I either put it on a burner for a few minutes on low or put in a warm oven to dry it.

HTH

Bill
 
The key to cleaning a cast iron pan or skillet is to use hot water and pad or brush while the pan is still warm .Not soap The problem with grooved cast iron is the surface area is not as easy to clean. I have several grill pans that i use for home and grilling .Alot of the burnt crud has to do with rubs or pastes .Cast iron is the perfect cooking tool as far as holding heat.But it does create a major pain to clean . Remember hot pan cold oil food never sticks. Season
 
Erik - It's quite ok to use water, don't add any soap. After the water simmers for a little while, back off the heat and use that brass brush The one I like for this is the one that looks like a toothbrush sold in auto stores for cleaning parts.

Make sure you rinse then wipe down throughly to dry when done.
 
Steve, I do but I was told to avoid a cleaning oven since the intense heat might cause the pan to crack. Does this have any validity to it?

I am thinking about using coarse sea salt with very little water to form a paste and then use some elbow grease to remove the crud. Hopefully this will help.

Erik
 
I know people that have used the self cleaning oven technique. First of all I think it's overkill for what you are describing. Second - although I think you could be ok with smaller sized items, I would be hesitant with something this size. I would be more concerned about warping than cracking, since the heat in the oven is probably relatively even in distribution. If it was my 12" pan, I wouldn't, definitely not for the problem you are describing. Not worth the risk.
 
We always use a stainless steel scrub pad to clean the skillet after each use. Copper and all the other pads are too soft. No soap and dry over the heat for a minute.
 
Small wire brushes like these

might be handy for grill pans with the grooves. I think this set is on sale at Harbor Freight Tools this week for 49 cents.
 
Originally posted by Larry D.:
Small wire brushes like these

might be handy for grill pans with the grooves. I think this set is on sale at Harbor Freight Tools this week for 49 cents.

EXACTLY what I was talking about. Can get them at the local Pep Boys in my area.
 
The self cleaning cycle of your oven is not a problem as long as you put the item in before the oven lights and leave it there until it cools, along with the oven. Cast iron needs relatively slow temperature changes. I've read that you can also use the pot-scrubber setting on a dishwasher to strip a cast iron pan but I haven't had the need to try that yet.
 
This has been a great review of cast iron care. My position overall is that this case doesn't really require stripping and starting over. I would want to find the simplest way to remove the crud, doesn't appear to be a lot of it, just in an inconvenient place.
 
the only problem you will have with cast iron pans is leaving water in or on them for extended periods of time. running htem throught he dishwasher on the drying cycle seems to promote surface rust in some cases.

i have a cast iron large and medium fry pan that is over 100 years of use. i use soap and water to clean it and then rub the cooking surface with a light vegetable oil. a light patena of surface rust after a dishwaser cycle even through a dry cycle is no big deal it wipes out easily.
 
IF there is crud on your pan try cleaning it with salt and a paper towel. Just put some salt in the dry pan and scrub it with a paper towel. You might have to repeat the process a few times but it works good for me. Or put water in it and put it on the stove top and bring the water to a boil. Then let it boil for a little while. As it's boiling scrape the crud with a spatula. I use both these methods with great results.
 
Originally posted by Larry D.:
Small wire brushes like these

might be handy for grill pans with the grooves. I think this set is on sale at Harbor Freight Tools this week for 49 cents.

I bought a bunch of these at Harbor Fright and they work great.
 
Erik, get that pan cleaned?

I just cleaned two cast iron skillets. Used a little soap and water. The best thing I have found is dry them well after cleaning and put them on the stove at medium heat-they dry in a hurry. Then apply a very thin coat of crisco. Leave 'em on for 5 or 10 minutes or more. It is much better than oil in my experiece.

I cannot imagine an oven getting hot enough to dammage cast iron in normal use or in a cleaning cycle.
 
I know this is way late after the first post, but since I just noticed this, I thought I'd respond.

I have used a cast iron grill pan for years, and had the same problem. They are hard as hell to clean. I would add as much water as I could to the pan and poil it for a few minutes, then rinse and scrub. You have to get in between the grooves. It's not easy and not fun.

It was such a hassle, we replaced the cast iron grill pan with a non-stick aluminum one that cleans up easily.

I love cast iron, but that grill pan with the grill ridges was just too much hassle and I'm much happier with the non stick one.
 

 

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