I Almost Ruined My Decades-Old Cast Iron Pan With a 'Natural' Cleaning Method – This $19 Kit and a Chef's Tip Restored It Fast

A black cast iron skillet on a gas stove, filled with green leafy vegetables and red onion. Surrounded by cooking ingredients, out of focus. .

I cannot remember a time before I relied on natural cleaning methods to scour each inch of my home. It seemed affordable, healthier, and foolproof. That is, of course, until leaving my dad's decades-old cast-iron pan to soak in lemon juice nearly ruined it for good.

Over the last few years, I have found a few applications where 'non-toxic cleaning' does not work, but having left citric acid in the base of my best cast iron cookware for a few hours (by accident, I might add) proved to me that 'natural' cleaning is not as ironclad as I thought.