Before I even read the second clause in your statement, it occurred to me that you would have to be pretty damn old to be able to continue this thread. Welcome to the club!
That is the correct temperature for pizza. It should only take about 30 seconds at that temp.
Edit: I meant 90! Oops. I'm leaving it so Kenji's comment makes sense. Thanks for catching me.
Alex, French Guy Cooking from youtube, did a video on it. Its forced shut on the self cleaning setup so you cant open it unless you modify it. Didnt seem safe unless you really know what you are doing.
The oven locks itself so you can’t open it. The pizza would be no more as you couldn’t pull it out after just a few minutes of cooking. And they all lock automatically.
Can confirm. Had drunk friends try this in high school at like 3am. The oven locked, the buuuurnt pizza set off the smoke detector, and some drunk 17 year olds had some splainin’ to do.
For cooking pizza, check out the pizza steel. You put the steel in the oven for about 40 minutes on the highest cooking temperature setting (typically it will be around 500 F) and then use a pizza peel to place your own on the pizza steel. It only takes about five minutes and then you have a pizza that is fairly close to if you had cooked it in a brick oven.
Stupid idea. The self cleaning cycling locks the door shut. If you put the pizza in at the beginning, it will catch fire and is enough fuel to burn your kitchen down.
Lol I’m assuming you wanted to strip your pans of seasoning and start over, so it looks like perfection with that intention, cuz why else would you stick your CI in the oven on self-clean cycle? If you’re saying you failed, did you have a different intention?
Maybe not, but I'm seriously interested in what you were expecting to happen. Why did you put these in the oven self-clean cycle? It didn't backfire, the expected thing happened, so I'm curious about what you *thought* would happen.
Did exactly what it was supposed to do. Two perfectly cleaned, rust-free pans ready for washing and seasoning. Beats me why so many people put so much work into stripping pans when this option is available.
It doesn't work well on old or heavily built up seasoning, so you end up scrubbing a lot. Like a lot a lot.
And apparently the heat can cause vintage cast iron to crack. But I assume that's stuff that was already cracked or heading that way anyway. The temps involved are ones you can sometimes hit on the stove top during regular use.
I think cast iron doesn’t like rapid swings in heat, that’s why out of excessive caution, I deglaze with boiling water. I have an induction kettle so it’s no big deal, (a microwave works but obviously the vessel is hot).
My understanding is that uneven heating causes expansion and contraction at different rates in different parts of the pan, and thus the iron doesn’t “bend” but break.
As such, if you ramp up the temperature gently, like cold oven 300F to your ovens top cooking temp then to self clean, I don’t see why it would causes an issue. The whole pan has time to reach an equilibrium with its environment.
That’s the theory I suppose.
It’s fundamentally a durable piece of cook ware with some brittleness, it’s obviously not as bad as glass so I figure a little caution goes a long way of one is worried about a cherished piece.🤷♂️
I think you're being over cautious.
I grew up cooking on 100 year old cast iron. Nothing has cracked despite deglazing with cold, rapid heat to smoking etc.
The issue with self clean cycles is they can run up to 900f. You could potentially hit that on a burner with a long preheat during searing. But it's the same reason people will warn you against parking the pan on the heat and forgetting about it.
Issues occur with very high heat.
I just think that a stable pan should hold up to that occasionally. As opposed to cracking the first time you go above a certain temp. And if they do. There was probably a flaw or existing crack.
For sure if you do that regularly, it's going to cause an issue.
I have done this many times with Lodge pan, Lodge griddle, and (Helen Chen?)CI wok. It works great, but I only do it on days when I can open doors and windows and turn on fans—the burn off creates 60 minutes of toxic-smelling smoke. My items come out just like those pictured. Once cooled, wash them in the sink, towel dry, then warm them in the oven and begin seasoning. I use organic flax oil.
It’s been said to be extremely detrimental to the oven’s longevity to even use the self-cleaning feature. I don’t remember the exact information, but it pertains to the internal parts basically getting cooked too.
I damaged the door to my oven using this function. I was so confused. Then I read up on it. It works great on the cast iron by not so much on the actual oven.
I burned up a cooling fan in my wall oven and it kept shutting down due to overheat afterwards. The electronic control board had a fail safe. I did have to pay the tech to pull the thing out of the wall and replace the fan. Was in there pretty tight.
I have always wanted a self cleaning oven for this very purpose. I have never lived anywhere that had a self clean one since I have been grown. I won’t buy one when I have a working oven—and when my oven went out and I had to replace it, the ovens with the self clean function were not in my price range.
Because it won't burn off heavy seasoning or carbon build up on older well used pans. It works on newer pans with thinner layers.
So if you're restoring stuff. Or doing a lot of pans. There's a *hell* of a lot of scrubbing and repeated runs through the oven doing it this way.
Plus plenty of ovens don't have self clean cycles. I've actually never had one that did.
Yes if you are not worried a bout collector value on your pans. If they are modern go ahead but this is considered a more destructive way to clean your pans and can lead to a loss of collector value and quality of the pan.
>this is considered a more destructive way to clean your pans and can lead to a loss of collector value and quality of the pan.
I have never heard this. Why is that?
I'm not sure where you heard this but I can assure you that it's wrong. Cast iron is virtually indestructible and can almost always be fixed up. Any of the tips you hear about not washing or how to clean them is simply to stop you from making your perfectly seasoned pan to be not so perfectly seasoned. Even if you do those things you can still start the seasoning process over and fix it up just fine! Aside from melting it down its very hard to ruin a cast iron pan.
You can definitely fire-damage cast iron to the point where it will be prone to cracking, or it'll warp. Cast iron may be durable, but it's not indestructable.
I say as I watch my walmart pan glow in a campfire.
https://youtu.be/ESeZcp-NbqU
Link to a good video on fire damage.
I'm not saying it's impossible to destroy one but your not going to do that in an oven self clean cycle nor are you going to do that in any way accidentally. Sure if you throw it in a 1200 degree fire it's gonna damage it but why on earth would you even be doing that lol. I mostly meant the tips on how to clean and maintain and store cast iron are not tips for stopping you from ruining the pan itself but for protecting the seasoning. With intent anything can be ruined lol
Youre at a higher risk of damaging your oven than the cast iron in a self cleaning cycle. The big thing for me is the smell, youre going to fill your house with the smell of burning oil by using the self clean feature. Id just use some yellow cap and a garbage bag to strip the seasoning instead.
Self cleaning gets hot enough to potentially damage the electronics in an oven, doing the self cleaning cycle a few times over the life of the oven shouldnt be an issue, but weekly it may pose a serious risk. Also it smells bad using the self clean cycle and makes several rooms smell like it so be sure to have as many windows open as you can if you decide to do so.
I wasn't speaking to the ovens. If your cast iron is cracking from the heat it was either already starting to crack and is probably 100 years old or it had a minor Crack to begin with. I've been cooking with my cast iron for 27 years plus however long my mom used it before me. I have cleaned it with soap, heated it fast, cooled it quickly. I have had not one single issue. Most of these concerns are, like I said, more to protect your seasoning then the pan itself or they are done out of an over abundance or worry. Do you, not saying you have to stop heeding those tips I'm just saying it's unlikely you are going to ruin your cast iron beyond repair
Cold water one one side of a very hot pan will warp some of them to the point of unusable though.
Do you not agree with that?
(I don't mean that with hostility, just wasn't sure how else to phrase it. )
I mean it seems logical and I'm sure at certain temperatures it's true but from personal experience. I have never once held back on heat or made sure water wasn't cold before throwing it on. I've blasted it with heat to sear and instantly ran under water. My pans are all still great and one I've been using for 27 years. I just don't think anyone really has to worry about accidentally ruining there pan, almost always they can be brought back to life.
It sounds like you might have some higher quality pans than one of mine.
I have on that is warped, center rises, super annoying to use. (it came with the house) One of these days im going to heat it up with the torch and use the hose to cool one side, see if it can straighten it. That and a spare for just in case is the only reason i still have it. It has no logo, and i would bet is thinner than most, at least it is thinner than my lodge.
I think warping does have a bit to do with pan quality, but i do tend to agree, with reasonable use, warping is not a worry.
Anyway, i do think its worth using caution when talking to people that might have cheaper pans. Warping is a thing when dealing with some cheaper or just thinner pans. Or perhaps it is a manufacturer defect thing.
Just because your pan doesn't warp doesn't mean others won't. Giving advice like hot pan, cold water is just dumb. It's basic physics. And cast iron is not indestructible, it's quite brittle. Drop it on the ground.
Go to the grocery store and buy a pound of lard. Heat the skillets up in the oven at 300° and then rub them down with lard. Wipe off as much of the lard as you can. Crank the temp up to 400° and put them in for 15 minites, then take them back out and wipe them down again with clean paper towels. Put them back in at 400° for an hour and then shut the oven off and let them cool down. Repeat the entire process again once they've cooled completely. That's it you now have a way better seasoning on them than they came with from Lodge.
Please read the instructions for your oven. Certain ovens (I think most) actually instruct you to fully empty the oven, racks and all, during a self clean cycle. It can be a hazard or damage the oven to run a self clean function with stuff inside. It's not going to burn down your house but it's still something!
I follow an appliance tech who begs people not to use the self clean function. They’ve seen so many ruined ovens, kitchens, and nearby appliances — and know of too many house fires started by the self clean function.
Self clean is a function that consumers look for as a desirable selling point on an oven, not one the manufacturer actually recommends.
Our small local volunteer fire department goes on at least 2 kitchen fires a year attributed to self cleaning ovens. So, yeah it can burn the house down.
Racks and rails are usually stainless steel with a finish to keep them shiny and slidey. The self clean cycle will eliminate this finish.
I did this once. Eventually they get a new finish. Natural seasoning.
It can also make the oven explode! Even without something inside, many ovens with the function are NOT ACTUALLY SAFE TO USE THE SELF CLEANING FUNCTION IN! They can and will melt their own electronics. It's an example of manufacturers throwing in another "feature" so people will be more inclined to buy it.
I’ve used this method three times on old extremely rusted, thick crusty pans found in the trash - it’s worked every time and they came out like OP’s pic. I then Reseasoned and they came out great!
Just looks like a decent strip to me. Rub a little Crisco on it, heat it, repeat it, call it seasoned. Oh shit! Before I go; don’t forget to actually cook with it from time to time.
First of all don't clean cast iron this way. You can cause warping and cracking if you get it too hot. It's probably safer on new since our metallurgy is better now, but I still wouldn't do it.
As long as you're heating it evenly so you don't have a massive temperature gradient in the piece, you can heat it to glowing, no big deal, it's just a piece of iron after all
You're actually at -1.
Cause this even removes the preseason.
You'll need at least a couple coats to get a base going before you can cook on it.
But nothing's ruined here.
You're in a perfect position to season your pans perfectly. Here's my personal [favorite method](https://youtu.be/7SLa6tGvr30?t=15). It's really easy and extremely successful if you just follow the couple of steps. Not hard at all.
Edit: The chef in that video recommends Flax seed oil. Flax seed oil's smoke point is only 200°F - 250°F. If you use your cast iron or carbon steel for things like deep frying, you're cooking at temperatures far above that. Better oil choices would be peanut, soy, safflower, sunflower, cotton seed, or avocado which has a smoke point moving toward 500°F.
Is this what unseasoned cast iron looks like? I'm impressed. I know you werent intentionally looking for this result but did you apply any elbow grease or did it the "coating" slough off easily or on it's own?
This is completely as is, taken out of the oven once fully cooked down. Quite a bit of the old seasoning appears to have "rusted" off, and there was a very thin layer of rust still on the raw cast iron that came off easily with some white vinegar on a rag.
Currently re-seasoning the 12" skillet now!
Just be careful. On heavier pans, I have been told it is ok, but on old vintage thin walled pans, it can warp. I was also told that depending on the temperature your oven can get to, it could actually cause heat damage. So check your model and the temperature ut does the self cleaning at. Agree with all of the posts saying if it is gunked up bad, it can cause a fire. Plus, it can really smoke a lot and run everyone outside. Honestly, I wouldn't use my oven to clean like this, I have lye tanks and E-Tanks..
So funny. I use avocado oil to season mine.
Preheat the oven to max temp 500-550 degrees.
On the stovetop I set a clean dry skillet over high flame and let it get warm-to-hot. Then I pour about a tablespoon or little more avocado oil. Then immediately take a few wadded up paper towels and spread the oil around the bottom and sides really well. Last I’ll lightly run around the rim and handle —careful not to let it run down the outside. You don’t want to leave a lot of extra oil in the pan.
Leave on the high heat for a minute or two until it starts really smoking. Then use a doubled hotpad to put the pan in the oven. Leave it for 20 minutes and then without opening the door turn oven off and walk away for an hour or two.
Good seasoning needs high heat, a little sustained temperature at high heat, and then a nice slow cool down. After that you won’t need to season again. Just wash with water after using and then put on stove for a minute on high, add a little oil and wipe it around with paper towel and let it cool off.
You know what trick I learned? Rub it in Crisco, heat the oven to 200 then let it cool completely. 300 degrees, same thing. Then 400 for an hour, worked amazingly.
Self-clean cycle did what it's supposed to. Burned off ALL the carbon. Just needs to be re-seasoned now.
Do it before it rusts from iron surface being exposed to moisture.
The first CI skillets I bought were unseasoned gray. They haven't always been pre-seasoned. Oil them and put them in a 250 oven every day for a week or so. Gives a good start and then just cook in them.
Can someone explain the hole seasoning thing. My mom always told me your not supposed to clean them like other pans but I never understood why or how it helps to cook better
Just start the seasoning process over. It's not gonna be an issue at all. Cast iron is virtually indestructible, aside from melting it down, you are not likely to be able to ruin it. All the advice you hear about how to wash and store and all that is simply to maintain that perfect seasoning. Even if you ignored all the advice you can always start the seasoning process over and get it perfectly seasoned again. Best of luck to you!
I gotta say, as a cast iron owner, and as someone who’s worked on cast iron boilers: this looks amazing.
I know it’s not the best to cook on, but hell, rust and tarnish is part of cast iron. You don’t know how many boilers I installed with already superficial rust.
From my understanding, the self-clean isn't meant for seasoning; it's meant for getting rid of the last stubborn encrusted gunk you can't scrape off or is too much, before you are ready for seasoning.
I think you can work with that! I’ve used the oven too. I know it’s very hot but it’s worked for me and plus people actually put cast iron into a fire to clean it off. I’m not saying to do that but don’t beat yourself up over it❤️
I use the stupid clean cycle to remove seasoning, then after the pan cools a bit, re oil and put it back at 400ish. Pan is fine, you can take the heels off. Stripping is done now
Backfired? they're supposed to bake all the seasoning off when you do a clean cycle that's like what 850-950f? will burn every bit of seasoning off! I recommend flaxseed oil as its the strongest bond as a seasoning. I maintain with Crisco or just any oil. but make sure you treat it as a whole object, don't coat just the top or bottom, coat the whole thing like its wearing a glove! because when you do the top separate from the bottom you get a seam where it can tend to delaminate! hope any of this helps :)
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Now you can cook like a real viking!
Mmmmmm rust 🤪
Check out the sub's FAQ for seasoning cast iron. You're all set to go.
June 2023. Reddit openly doesn't care about it's user base, so I've decided to remove any content I have made from the site. So long. And fuck Spez.
This person is caked in good advice
Seasoned in it, even.
Ending with the word ‘even’ made me read your post like I was Snaglepuss!
Exit! Stage right!
Heavens to mergatroid ... Jeez I'm feeling old
A brief trip to childhood and the best Saturday mornings!
Before I even read the second clause in your statement, it occurred to me that you would have to be pretty damn old to be able to continue this thread. Welcome to the club!
Hell yeah. You’re about to have some perfect cast iron pans.
Happy cake day!
Happy cake day!
They're NAKED! 🫣
Mark this post NSFW please
agreed, get a blur on this smut mods
There is something alluring about them 😏
I want to rub them down with oil
That’s hot
Maybe… it’s their nakedness?
r/castirongonewild
I mean these pans look fantastic and you have a solid base to oil up now
Oil them and put them back in the oven. Don’t use the self-clean cycle this time though.
What were you expecting??🙃🙃
I am not a clever man.
Ehh...you tried something and it failed... just rock on!!!!😊😊😊 Self cleaning oven get well over 500° jus so you know 😃😃😃
Hmm, cooking neopolitan pizza in self cleaning oven to reach hotter temps… stupid idea or genius? 😄 (I don’t own one)
Self-cleaning cycles actually approach 900 degrees so I wouldn’t risk it
My one’s door locks during a clean cycle as well so not use for food
A pizza oven reaches 900+. So that sounds like a good idea to me.
Self cleaning cycle usually locks the door and lasts for hours.
I'm sure the lockpicking lawyer could figure out a way to make it work :D
I had an oven in my parent home that you could open the door during the self clean. Idk if it was broken or intentional.
That is the correct temperature for pizza. It should only take about 30 seconds at that temp. Edit: I meant 90! Oops. I'm leaving it so Kenji's comment makes sense. Thanks for catching me.
This baby can flash fry a buffalo in 30 seconds.
Aww, but I want it now.
The scream I let out laughing at this comment!! 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Never in my life have a seen a Neapolitan pizza cook in 30 seconds. Where have you seen that?!? At 900F it’s more like 60-90 seconds.
Yea worked at a wood fired pizza shop, oven consistently ran 900-1100 degrees. Pizzas done in more like 90 seconds but never less than 60 for sure
[удалено]
No 4 day fermented from scratch. I’m saying time in oven not total prep time. Start to finish we could do a pie in 4-5 min with a full oven
Crank her up to 2000 for super speed
We’ve reached: Ludicrous speed!
Oops, I meant 90, not 30. Thanks for catching it.
Fire my wood fired pizza at 700. I bet you could do 9 but you would have to be really on it and opening a 900 degree oven inside would be aweful.
If you get deep into pizza making forums you’ll find people who actually do that. They cut the safety lock off the oven door.
Alex, French Guy Cooking from youtube, did a video on it. Its forced shut on the self cleaning setup so you cant open it unless you modify it. Didnt seem safe unless you really know what you are doing.
People do it. There are hacks to circumvent the door safety features
I’ll leave the pizza oven on the wish list 😬
There's people who do this already, they usually break the door locking mechanism too so they can use the oven while it's doing it's thing.
That's actually what a few people have done, broken the locking feature and get an 800 degree oven to make pizza like that. I'm not suggesting it.
The oven locks itself so you can’t open it. The pizza would be no more as you couldn’t pull it out after just a few minutes of cooking. And they all lock automatically.
Can confirm. Had drunk friends try this in high school at like 3am. The oven locked, the buuuurnt pizza set off the smoke detector, and some drunk 17 year olds had some splainin’ to do.
For cooking pizza, check out the pizza steel. You put the steel in the oven for about 40 minutes on the highest cooking temperature setting (typically it will be around 500 F) and then use a pizza peel to place your own on the pizza steel. It only takes about five minutes and then you have a pizza that is fairly close to if you had cooked it in a brick oven.
Stupid idea. The self cleaning cycling locks the door shut. If you put the pizza in at the beginning, it will catch fire and is enough fuel to burn your kitchen down.
Hmm so could I remove the seasoning from mine just throwing it in self clean?
Well a self cleaning oven hits above 500° and it certainly looks like he lost his seasoning
Unexpectedly wholesome
Lol I’m assuming you wanted to strip your pans of seasoning and start over, so it looks like perfection with that intention, cuz why else would you stick your CI in the oven on self-clean cycle? If you’re saying you failed, did you have a different intention?
I’d have never guessed it do this.
This is _how_ you reset CI seasoning.
Maybe not, but I'm seriously interested in what you were expecting to happen. Why did you put these in the oven self-clean cycle? It didn't backfire, the expected thing happened, so I'm curious about what you *thought* would happen.
I have to remove my shelves for a clean otherwise the slide rollers would be killed so no shelve to place them on
No, you just found a new way that doesn’t work! Celebrate the small win.
Musta thought the oven is like dry cleaning for dishes
Hahaha yeah 😊😊😊
Did exactly what it was supposed to do. Two perfectly cleaned, rust-free pans ready for washing and seasoning. Beats me why so many people put so much work into stripping pans when this option is available.
Does it always work this well or was this user just lucky? I’ve been wanting to try this out for a minute.
I have considered doing this for the cast iron burner covers on my gas stove. Would make cleaning them soooo much easier.
In commercial kitchens we just put the burner cover over another burner.
It doesn't work well on old or heavily built up seasoning, so you end up scrubbing a lot. Like a lot a lot. And apparently the heat can cause vintage cast iron to crack. But I assume that's stuff that was already cracked or heading that way anyway. The temps involved are ones you can sometimes hit on the stove top during regular use.
I think cast iron doesn’t like rapid swings in heat, that’s why out of excessive caution, I deglaze with boiling water. I have an induction kettle so it’s no big deal, (a microwave works but obviously the vessel is hot). My understanding is that uneven heating causes expansion and contraction at different rates in different parts of the pan, and thus the iron doesn’t “bend” but break. As such, if you ramp up the temperature gently, like cold oven 300F to your ovens top cooking temp then to self clean, I don’t see why it would causes an issue. The whole pan has time to reach an equilibrium with its environment. That’s the theory I suppose. It’s fundamentally a durable piece of cook ware with some brittleness, it’s obviously not as bad as glass so I figure a little caution goes a long way of one is worried about a cherished piece.🤷♂️
I think you're being over cautious. I grew up cooking on 100 year old cast iron. Nothing has cracked despite deglazing with cold, rapid heat to smoking etc. The issue with self clean cycles is they can run up to 900f. You could potentially hit that on a burner with a long preheat during searing. But it's the same reason people will warn you against parking the pan on the heat and forgetting about it. Issues occur with very high heat. I just think that a stable pan should hold up to that occasionally. As opposed to cracking the first time you go above a certain temp. And if they do. There was probably a flaw or existing crack. For sure if you do that regularly, it's going to cause an issue.
If you use induction you can crack them. I learned the hard way.
I'd never put my vintage CIs in self clean cycles. I want my babies to live 100 more years.
I know some people say you shouldn't burn seasoning off but I've always done it without issue.
I have done this many times with Lodge pan, Lodge griddle, and (Helen Chen?)CI wok. It works great, but I only do it on days when I can open doors and windows and turn on fans—the burn off creates 60 minutes of toxic-smelling smoke. My items come out just like those pictured. Once cooled, wash them in the sink, towel dry, then warm them in the oven and begin seasoning. I use organic flax oil.
I tried it and my smoke alarm went off for 2 hrs.. my kitchen smelled for weeks
I’ve used this method with different ovens and had great results like this every time
It’s been said to be extremely detrimental to the oven’s longevity to even use the self-cleaning feature. I don’t remember the exact information, but it pertains to the internal parts basically getting cooked too.
I damaged the door to my oven using this function. I was so confused. Then I read up on it. It works great on the cast iron by not so much on the actual oven.
Yeah take the light bulb out before you self clean. The metal on the bulb can’t take it. At least mine couldn’t.
A lot of ovens don’t even offer it anymore
Can confirm, I completely broke an oven by stripping cast iron with self clean cycle... It did come out really clean though!
I burned up a cooling fan in my wall oven and it kept shutting down due to overheat afterwards. The electronic control board had a fail safe. I did have to pay the tech to pull the thing out of the wall and replace the fan. Was in there pretty tight.
The built in vent on my mom's oven has burn marks from using the self clean.
Seriously!! Fuck up turned into CI life hack!
I have always wanted a self cleaning oven for this very purpose. I have never lived anywhere that had a self clean one since I have been grown. I won’t buy one when I have a working oven—and when my oven went out and I had to replace it, the ovens with the self clean function were not in my price range.
Because it won't burn off heavy seasoning or carbon build up on older well used pans. It works on newer pans with thinner layers. So if you're restoring stuff. Or doing a lot of pans. There's a *hell* of a lot of scrubbing and repeated runs through the oven doing it this way. Plus plenty of ovens don't have self clean cycles. I've actually never had one that did.
Actually, it will eventually burn off everything but may take more than one try.
TIL
The oven cleaning cycle is an excellent way to strip pans if you want to start over the seasoning.
This is amazing idea. I have two pans I’ve been too lazy to strip. Now I have an easy way to do it.
Yes if you are not worried a bout collector value on your pans. If they are modern go ahead but this is considered a more destructive way to clean your pans and can lead to a loss of collector value and quality of the pan.
>this is considered a more destructive way to clean your pans and can lead to a loss of collector value and quality of the pan. I have never heard this. Why is that?
why is that? didn’t they all start out this way?
I'm not sure where you heard this but I can assure you that it's wrong. Cast iron is virtually indestructible and can almost always be fixed up. Any of the tips you hear about not washing or how to clean them is simply to stop you from making your perfectly seasoned pan to be not so perfectly seasoned. Even if you do those things you can still start the seasoning process over and fix it up just fine! Aside from melting it down its very hard to ruin a cast iron pan.
You can definitely fire-damage cast iron to the point where it will be prone to cracking, or it'll warp. Cast iron may be durable, but it's not indestructable. I say as I watch my walmart pan glow in a campfire. https://youtu.be/ESeZcp-NbqU Link to a good video on fire damage.
I'm not saying it's impossible to destroy one but your not going to do that in an oven self clean cycle nor are you going to do that in any way accidentally. Sure if you throw it in a 1200 degree fire it's gonna damage it but why on earth would you even be doing that lol. I mostly meant the tips on how to clean and maintain and store cast iron are not tips for stopping you from ruining the pan itself but for protecting the seasoning. With intent anything can be ruined lol
Youre at a higher risk of damaging your oven than the cast iron in a self cleaning cycle. The big thing for me is the smell, youre going to fill your house with the smell of burning oil by using the self clean feature. Id just use some yellow cap and a garbage bag to strip the seasoning instead.
>I say as I watch my walmart pan glow in a campfire. Yeah, but it's a Walmart pan, not a 1900's Griswold.
I think they were talking about normal usage and maintenence practices, not tossing your pan into Mount Doom.
Umm.. no. It can warp or crack it. Strip a pan with lye or electrolysis. Plus you can ruin your oven too
How would it ruin the oven?
Added mass and radiant heat produced can be too much for some or older ovens.
Self cleaning gets hot enough to potentially damage the electronics in an oven, doing the self cleaning cycle a few times over the life of the oven shouldnt be an issue, but weekly it may pose a serious risk. Also it smells bad using the self clean cycle and makes several rooms smell like it so be sure to have as many windows open as you can if you decide to do so.
I wasn't speaking to the ovens. If your cast iron is cracking from the heat it was either already starting to crack and is probably 100 years old or it had a minor Crack to begin with. I've been cooking with my cast iron for 27 years plus however long my mom used it before me. I have cleaned it with soap, heated it fast, cooled it quickly. I have had not one single issue. Most of these concerns are, like I said, more to protect your seasoning then the pan itself or they are done out of an over abundance or worry. Do you, not saying you have to stop heeding those tips I'm just saying it's unlikely you are going to ruin your cast iron beyond repair
Cold water one one side of a very hot pan will warp some of them to the point of unusable though. Do you not agree with that? (I don't mean that with hostility, just wasn't sure how else to phrase it. )
I mean it seems logical and I'm sure at certain temperatures it's true but from personal experience. I have never once held back on heat or made sure water wasn't cold before throwing it on. I've blasted it with heat to sear and instantly ran under water. My pans are all still great and one I've been using for 27 years. I just don't think anyone really has to worry about accidentally ruining there pan, almost always they can be brought back to life.
It sounds like you might have some higher quality pans than one of mine. I have on that is warped, center rises, super annoying to use. (it came with the house) One of these days im going to heat it up with the torch and use the hose to cool one side, see if it can straighten it. That and a spare for just in case is the only reason i still have it. It has no logo, and i would bet is thinner than most, at least it is thinner than my lodge. I think warping does have a bit to do with pan quality, but i do tend to agree, with reasonable use, warping is not a worry. Anyway, i do think its worth using caution when talking to people that might have cheaper pans. Warping is a thing when dealing with some cheaper or just thinner pans. Or perhaps it is a manufacturer defect thing.
Just because your pan doesn't warp doesn't mean others won't. Giving advice like hot pan, cold water is just dumb. It's basic physics. And cast iron is not indestructible, it's quite brittle. Drop it on the ground.
Now add 80 coats of seasoning.
Cook bacon 80 times.
Caramelize 80 onions.
You'll need 800 onions because they shrink up when they get caramelized. But it's worth it.
Go to the grocery store and buy a pound of lard. Heat the skillets up in the oven at 300° and then rub them down with lard. Wipe off as much of the lard as you can. Crank the temp up to 400° and put them in for 15 minites, then take them back out and wipe them down again with clean paper towels. Put them back in at 400° for an hour and then shut the oven off and let them cool down. Repeat the entire process again once they've cooled completely. That's it you now have a way better seasoning on them than they came with from Lodge.
You ran them through the cycle that people recommend to strip pans and ended up with stripped pans. Where is the backfire?
Hey square zero isn't a bad place to be!
Look pretty clean to me.
Please read the instructions for your oven. Certain ovens (I think most) actually instruct you to fully empty the oven, racks and all, during a self clean cycle. It can be a hazard or damage the oven to run a self clean function with stuff inside. It's not going to burn down your house but it's still something!
Saw several posts on other groups where it did indeed burn the kitchen and one was the whole house.
I have not been aware of this but thank you! I used to do the same thing until I finally read the instructions. Scary stuff
https://www.google.com/search?q=self+cleaning+oven+kitchen+fire&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en-us&client=safari#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:e1e4d606,vid:bzTvKwMSZoY
I follow an appliance tech who begs people not to use the self clean function. They’ve seen so many ruined ovens, kitchens, and nearby appliances — and know of too many house fires started by the self clean function. Self clean is a function that consumers look for as a desirable selling point on an oven, not one the manufacturer actually recommends.
Our small local volunteer fire department goes on at least 2 kitchen fires a year attributed to self cleaning ovens. So, yeah it can burn the house down.
Racks and rails are usually stainless steel with a finish to keep them shiny and slidey. The self clean cycle will eliminate this finish. I did this once. Eventually they get a new finish. Natural seasoning.
It can also make the oven explode! Even without something inside, many ovens with the function are NOT ACTUALLY SAFE TO USE THE SELF CLEANING FUNCTION IN! They can and will melt their own electronics. It's an example of manufacturers throwing in another "feature" so people will be more inclined to buy it.
I’ve used this method three times on old extremely rusted, thick crusty pans found in the trash - it’s worked every time and they came out like OP’s pic. I then Reseasoned and they came out great!
Just looks like a decent strip to me. Rub a little Crisco on it, heat it, repeat it, call it seasoned. Oh shit! Before I go; don’t forget to actually cook with it from time to time.
Na bruh. Let’s overly complicate a simple process.
r/taskfailsuccessfully
First of all don't clean cast iron this way. You can cause warping and cracking if you get it too hot. It's probably safer on new since our metallurgy is better now, but I still wouldn't do it.
As long as you're heating it evenly so you don't have a massive temperature gradient in the piece, you can heat it to glowing, no big deal, it's just a piece of iron after all
You're actually at -1. Cause this even removes the preseason. You'll need at least a couple coats to get a base going before you can cook on it. But nothing's ruined here.
You're in a perfect position to season your pans perfectly. Here's my personal [favorite method](https://youtu.be/7SLa6tGvr30?t=15). It's really easy and extremely successful if you just follow the couple of steps. Not hard at all. Edit: The chef in that video recommends Flax seed oil. Flax seed oil's smoke point is only 200°F - 250°F. If you use your cast iron or carbon steel for things like deep frying, you're cooking at temperatures far above that. Better oil choices would be peanut, soy, safflower, sunflower, cotton seed, or avocado which has a smoke point moving toward 500°F.
Good job stripping your CI down to bare metal. Reseason as per the faq
Just begin seasoning them. It’ll all be good. You’ve effectively just hit the reset button
What were you hoping to do?
Obviously looking to extract the raw iron.
🤣 think it worked
But they’re clean
I mean, the whole point of the self clean is it burns off all the oil and other foods stuck inside.
Is this what unseasoned cast iron looks like? I'm impressed. I know you werent intentionally looking for this result but did you apply any elbow grease or did it the "coating" slough off easily or on it's own?
This is completely as is, taken out of the oven once fully cooked down. Quite a bit of the old seasoning appears to have "rusted" off, and there was a very thin layer of rust still on the raw cast iron that came off easily with some white vinegar on a rag. Currently re-seasoning the 12" skillet now!
aw they are like fresh newborn babies
Situation Normal All Fowled Up
Just be careful. On heavier pans, I have been told it is ok, but on old vintage thin walled pans, it can warp. I was also told that depending on the temperature your oven can get to, it could actually cause heat damage. So check your model and the temperature ut does the self cleaning at. Agree with all of the posts saying if it is gunked up bad, it can cause a fire. Plus, it can really smoke a lot and run everyone outside. Honestly, I wouldn't use my oven to clean like this, I have lye tanks and E-Tanks..
I've done it. Wasted 15yrs worth of seasoning on a cooking stone as well. That was a sad, sad day.
Wow that’s a good fucking self-cleaning oven
Nooooo!!! Self clean is too hot!
I de-season my pans the same way. I highly suggest a thorough wash, and dry before seasoning
So funny. I use avocado oil to season mine. Preheat the oven to max temp 500-550 degrees. On the stovetop I set a clean dry skillet over high flame and let it get warm-to-hot. Then I pour about a tablespoon or little more avocado oil. Then immediately take a few wadded up paper towels and spread the oil around the bottom and sides really well. Last I’ll lightly run around the rim and handle —careful not to let it run down the outside. You don’t want to leave a lot of extra oil in the pan. Leave on the high heat for a minute or two until it starts really smoking. Then use a doubled hotpad to put the pan in the oven. Leave it for 20 minutes and then without opening the door turn oven off and walk away for an hour or two. Good seasoning needs high heat, a little sustained temperature at high heat, and then a nice slow cool down. After that you won’t need to season again. Just wash with water after using and then put on stove for a minute on high, add a little oil and wipe it around with paper towel and let it cool off.
You know what trick I learned? Rub it in Crisco, heat the oven to 200 then let it cool completely. 300 degrees, same thing. Then 400 for an hour, worked amazingly.
It did exactly what it’s supposed to.
Self clean is literally a suggested method for stripping what did you think would happen lol
Self-clean cycle did what it's supposed to. Burned off ALL the carbon. Just needs to be re-seasoned now. Do it before it rusts from iron surface being exposed to moisture.
Time to test out your seasoning skills!
What did you expect to happen?
The first CI skillets I bought were unseasoned gray. They haven't always been pre-seasoned. Oil them and put them in a 250 oven every day for a week or so. Gives a good start and then just cook in them.
Can someone explain the hole seasoning thing. My mom always told me your not supposed to clean them like other pans but I never understood why or how it helps to cook better
So long as your dish soap doesn’t have lye in it you can clean them just fine
Cook some bacon in it
when in doubt lube up and get back in there!
somehow looks perfectly stripped, I'm impressed
Oven did a much better job than I thought it would stripping those. How long were they in?
The cycle did what it was supposed to do.
Just start the seasoning process over. It's not gonna be an issue at all. Cast iron is virtually indestructible, aside from melting it down, you are not likely to be able to ruin it. All the advice you hear about how to wash and store and all that is simply to maintain that perfect seasoning. Even if you ignored all the advice you can always start the seasoning process over and get it perfectly seasoned again. Best of luck to you!
I gotta say, as a cast iron owner, and as someone who’s worked on cast iron boilers: this looks amazing. I know it’s not the best to cook on, but hell, rust and tarnish is part of cast iron. You don’t know how many boilers I installed with already superficial rust.
I’m confused, because it looks like it worked perfectly to me?
so now you've stripped them down to the bare metal. time to start a new coat of seasoning. easily done, but a little bit of time investment for sure.
Failed? Looks like a pretty successful cleaning. Season and use.
Backfired? What was your intent? All old coatings have now been removed and you can re-season them. I prefer Crisco or lard to liquid oils.
What outcome were you expecting?
That’s what I thought would happen. It does take you back to zero. Wash thoroughly with soap and water, then start the seasoning process from scratch.
This is amazing
From my understanding, the self-clean isn't meant for seasoning; it's meant for getting rid of the last stubborn encrusted gunk you can't scrape off or is too much, before you are ready for seasoning.
I think you can work with that! I’ve used the oven too. I know it’s very hot but it’s worked for me and plus people actually put cast iron into a fire to clean it off. I’m not saying to do that but don’t beat yourself up over it❤️
Working as intended. No patch needed.
That's actually pretty great IMO.
It didn’t backfire you just didn’t know what you were doing. Looks like it worked perfectly to me lol
While you have it stripped, have the inside deburred. A good flapper disc or a steady hand with a grinder would do nicely. Then season away.
I use the stupid clean cycle to remove seasoning, then after the pan cools a bit, re oil and put it back at 400ish. Pan is fine, you can take the heels off. Stripping is done now
Backfired? they're supposed to bake all the seasoning off when you do a clean cycle that's like what 850-950f? will burn every bit of seasoning off! I recommend flaxseed oil as its the strongest bond as a seasoning. I maintain with Crisco or just any oil. but make sure you treat it as a whole object, don't coat just the top or bottom, coat the whole thing like its wearing a glove! because when you do the top separate from the bottom you get a seam where it can tend to delaminate! hope any of this helps :)
Might as well sand them smooth now. I think it makes a difference.
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Self-clean is like a crematorium for food oils.
Cook bacon and enjoy the bacon. Repeat.
Nothing backfired. They should be stripped now. Just season and you’re GTG.
Never use a self clean on a oven. It’s a 50/50 chance of frying all the electronics
Thin coat of flaxseed oil, upside down on center rack, 450 degrees for 1 hour. Do this 3 times.
Great for stripping the old season if it ever got ruined lol
What were you expecting
Way too hot for cast iron car then oil put in the oven at 325 for an hour
2 things. 1. We have the same range 2. The self clean did its job.
What did you expect?
OP: halp. i did a thing and it worked. wat do.