How to Cure a Cast Iron Pot

Cast iron pots cook beautifully, and when properly cured (or seasoned), are very easy to care for and cook with. Curing your cast iron pot will take a little time and effort the first time. However, with careful care afterward, your cast iron pot should last a lifetime--which is why so much cast iron cookware can be found passed down through generations and sold in resale shops. Well-cured cast iron provides a unique flavor to your food. Over time, it may provide you with stories to hand down to the next generation as well.

Things You'll Need

• Dish soap
• Scrubbing pad
• Dish gloves (optional)
• Vegetable shortening
• Paper towels
• Oven

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Scrub your cast iron pot with dish soap, a dish scrubbing pad and the hottest water you can stand. Use dish gloves to help you stand hotter water than you could with bare hands.

3. Rub a coating of vegetable shortening all over the inside surface of your cast iron pot. Make sure to coat the entire interior. Use a paper towel to rub it thoroughly into the entire surface.

4. Bake your greased cast iron pot in the 400 degree oven for one hour. Turn the oven off and let both oven and cast iron pot cool to room temperature; you can leave it overnight, if you'd like.

5. Remove the cast iron pot from the oven and preheat to 400 degrees again. Coat with vegetable shortening one more time and bake for another hour. Allow to cool to room temperature and wipe away any excess oil.

6. Cook in your cured cast iron pot. Do not ever use soap on your cast iron pot once it has been fully cured. Clean it only with hot water and a paper towel.

Tips & Warnings

• Scrubbing a newly acquired cast iron pot is important whether or not the pot is new or used. New cast iron is often coated with wax or another coating meant to protect it. Used cast iron may have any number of things coating it, depending on how the previous owners used it. Both situations require thorough scrubbing prior to the curing process.

• Some cast iron cookware manufacturers recommend that you fry in their cookware only the first few times you use it. If your cookware manufacturer suggests this, follow their suggestion. It will complete the curing process and give your cast iron pot the rich black patina that well cured cast iron cookware has.

• Do not be alarmed if your cast iron pot feels sticky after it has been baked in the oven, prior to your first cooking experience with it. This simply means it has not yet fully cured. After cooking a few times, the stickiness will go away.

• Avoid using lard, butter or other animal-based shortenings to cure your cast iron. These fats can go rancid and are not suitable for the curing process. Lard was used historically, prior to the science of food safety.

• If buying used cast iron, examine it carefully before purchase. Avoid buying any cast iron that looks as though paint has been applied. It may be masking flaws that have been filled with non-foodsafe quick fixes, such as epoxy.

References

• Mother Earth News: The Care and Feeding of Cast Iron Cookware