Seasoning your cast-iron pan is the key to ensuring it's longevity, but if you select an oil for the job that has a low smoke point, you risk burnt food, flaking coatings, and uneven heating.
No matter how much you spend on the best cast iron cookware, if you don't use a high smoke-point oil, you'll find your food and pan ruined.
That is why professional chefs urge caution when selecting an oil for the task. Here's what you need to avoid, why it's detrimental to your cookware, and how to choose the right oil for an immaculate sear.
The Oils You Should Avoid for Seasoning Cast Iron
Seasoning cast iron is not a complicated process: Clean, apply oil, remove excess, and bake. Superior results come not from the technique (although this is still important for maintaining an iron cast pan), but the products you use.
In essence, you need to avoid oils with a low smoke point and opt for an oil with a high smoke point, or you risk your pan flaking and food burning.
According to Dylan Clay, founder and recipe developer at Barbecue FAQ, this means avoiding products such as butter, olive oil, and extra virgin olive oil and instead opting for oils such as grapeseed, vegetable, or refined avocado oil.
'I prefer grapeseed [available at Walmart], as it's affordable and neutral,' he adds, meaning it will not impart any flavor into your food. 'I use this for everything from prepping pans for pizza, to tortillas, to searing steak.'
'Smoke point' refers to the temperature at which the oil starts to smoke when heated. Every oil has a different smoke point, and heating it beyond that point will result in a burnt flavor, with some studies suggesting that overheating oil can produce carcinogens, risking your health and negatively impacting your efforts to create a non-toxic home by using non-toxic cookware.
Choosing an oil with a high smoke point for seasoning means you can safely bake the oil onto the surface of the cast iron, forming a protective low-stick barrier across the metal, without it burning.
A high smoke point oil is 400°F (200°C) or higher. Refined avocado oil, available at Amazon, for example, has a smoke point around 520°F (271°C), while extra virgin olive oil smokes at around 305°F (175°C), meaning it will burn onto the pan and serve no purpose in cooking.
It is a simple replacement that has no impact on your existing routine when cleaning and caring for cookware, but it does have an instantaneous effect on your cooking experience and your health.
What to Shop
Selecting the correct oil for seasoning is only one part of the care puzzle when cooking with a natural material like cast iron. To help you maintain your cookware for decades to come, I’ve selected six oils and tools to add to your arsenal.
Recommended time and again by experts, grapeseed oil has a high smoke point (so it won't burn onto your pan), a neutral flavor that does not affect food, and is affordable.
Vegetable oil is one of the most diverse cooking oils, perfect for seasoning pans and low-stick cooking. It imparts little to no flavor to your food and is affordable for large-scale use.
Refining an oil gives it an even higher smoke point, meaning that it is a very safe choice for maintaining your cookware without the risk of burning the coating or releasing carcinogens. Avocado oil is among the suggestions often offered by chefs.
If you are new to cooking with cast iron, this handy Lodge care kit is a great beginner's tool for seasoning and maintaining your cast iron pan. The set includes a scraper and scrubber to remove food deposits, a handle cover, and a 100% canola oil seasoning spray.
Stainless steel tools are ideal for cast iron and won't damage the seasoning layer when used carefully. They can move beneath food seamlessly without risking food breaking in the pan, for perfect presentation.
Cast iron handles can get exceptionally hot, especially after being in the oven. These silicone-lined cotton oven mitts are perfect for moving pans from oven to table seamlessly.
Meet the Expert
With summer approaching, you're unlikely to want to be standing over a searing hot pan for hours. Luckily, there are some cool cast iron cookware uses you can try this summer for hosting guests that don't involve cooking, helping you make the most of your cookware.
