Cast iron is “seasoned” to make it nonstick. That means many layers of oil build up as a sort of polymer. The point is to keep it “dirty” in this way. Cleaning it down to bare metal means she’d be forced to re-season it, which can take considerable time/effort depending on frequency of use. A true disservice.
Yes, but missing the nuance that seasoned cast iron that has been cleaned by dish soap has the black polymerized layer while a bunch of morons are opposed to actually cleaning and think burnt on food other than the polymerized oils is ‘seasoning’ and recommend just wiping it out with a towel.
My cast iron isn’t anything special but it sheds more water than my non-stick ceramic when turned sideways while cleaning and wiping doesn’t leave any black stains on a paper towel.
Cast iron is non stick without the shenanigans if you follow the hot pan, cold oil protocol. Most people don’t get the pan up to temp before using it and the put in the oil or butter too soon.
Yup. All of my early issues with flaking or a rough surface was due to putting oil on cold and putting too much after to trying to repair it with too much seasoning.
Eventually saw directions that explained the right way to season as adding lots of thin layers like spray paint, not a coating like house paint. Also explained adding oil after heating kept it from humming ip and causing the same issues. Doesn’t even have to be at a high temp either, just wait till it is radiating some heat before adding the oil.
you’re supposed to wash cast iron with water, then soap then water again. then you dry, put it on a hot stove, and once all the water evaporates away, you rub it down with some oil on a cloth/paper towel, and get that real hot. then you can turn off the heat, and wipe off excess oil before putting it away. It’s not as straightforward as just tossing it into the dishwasher, but it’s not as complicated as some would have you believe. also, you can wash cast iron. soap doesn’t hurt it.
When it is new or if it was necessary to strip and start over, sure.
Once it has been cooked on a half dozen times it can just be washed with dish soap, dried, and put away. No more work than any other handwashing of a pan.
No, and nor is the teflon in the pans you’re thinking if. PFAS is a chemical used in the manufacture of Teflon (or was, I thought they’d stopped now) not teflon itself.
The problem with PFAS is accidental release and dumping.
PFAS is the term for the whole group of the stuffs called “forever chemicals” (for a reason). There’s not just a single one, but multiple, and as the specific ones and groups get banned, the industries move to use different ones, basically. It’s important to buy “PFAS free” stuff, any other labels like “PFOA free” can still mean there’s PFASs there, there’s just not ones from the specific variation
How is it an overreaction if it can be done without losing anything in life? I retired all my pans with non-stick coating years ago and haven’t missed them a single time and appreciate that it makes it easier to minimize the number of plastic cooking utensils my kitchen has, too.
I think in the case of PFAS it’s very reasonable. There’s no real harm done in avoiding them except possibly making less money and having to figure out other ways to do certain things - which cannot even be compared to the the potential danger they pose to the whole ecosphere
But we do have evidence that a lot of chemicals in the PFAS family stick around for a long time, and we have evidence that they’re harmful. That’s enough for me to be wary of anything in that group, especially when there are easy alternatives.
Seasoning is just oil baked onto cast iron through a process called polymerization. It gives your cookware that classic black patina. Seasoning forms a natural, easy-release cooking surface and helps prevent your pan from rusting.
- Lodge (as I understand it, they’re the gold standard for cast iron cookware)
In the case of non-stick stuff, it’s less that they’re seasoned with PFAS and more that they don’t need seasoning because they have PFAS (at least in theory).
You can season nearly anything with oil. Except aluminum, which needs a Teflon coating or it gets nasty very fast. Except Teflon is non reactive to nearly everything
Except pfas. You can dissolve Teflon in pfas and spray it onto aluminum
Teflon doesn’t react with basically anything. It won’t stick to anything but itself, which makes manufacturing difficult, initially we could only make pure Teflon pieces
Every other kind of PFAS is super toxic. Some part of the molecule is reactive, usually very reactive so it sticks to things, and the rest won’t react to anything. That causes nasty problems in biology
Teflon itself isn’t that much of a problem because even if it’s around forever, it doesn’t react with anything… The byproducts of working with it are what are poisoning people and causing all the problems
Anything coated in Teflon are going to have the nasty shit under the Teflon so I’d generally avoid it, but the real take away is that chemical companies are just dumping this shit into water sources knowing it causes super cancer
Cast iron is “seasoned” to make it nonstick. That means many layers of oil build up as a sort of polymer. The point is to keep it “dirty” in this way. Cleaning it down to bare metal means she’d be forced to re-season it, which can take considerable time/effort depending on frequency of use. A true disservice.
Yes, but missing the nuance that seasoned cast iron that has been cleaned by dish soap has the black polymerized layer while a bunch of morons are opposed to actually cleaning and think burnt on food other than the polymerized oils is ‘seasoning’ and recommend just wiping it out with a towel.
My cast iron isn’t anything special but it sheds more water than my non-stick ceramic when turned sideways while cleaning and wiping doesn’t leave any black stains on a paper towel.
Cast iron is non stick without the shenanigans if you follow the hot pan, cold oil protocol. Most people don’t get the pan up to temp before using it and the put in the oil or butter too soon.
Huh, mine always sticks unless the oil is hot too.
Yup. All of my early issues with flaking or a rough surface was due to putting oil on cold and putting too much after to trying to repair it with too much seasoning.
Eventually saw directions that explained the right way to season as adding lots of thin layers like spray paint, not a coating like house paint. Also explained adding oil after heating kept it from humming ip and causing the same issues. Doesn’t even have to be at a high temp either, just wait till it is radiating some heat before adding the oil.
I never figured out how this is reconciled - it just sounds dirty AF (and I’m no clean freak at all!)
you’re supposed to wash cast iron with water, then soap then water again. then you dry, put it on a hot stove, and once all the water evaporates away, you rub it down with some oil on a cloth/paper towel, and get that real hot. then you can turn off the heat, and wipe off excess oil before putting it away. It’s not as straightforward as just tossing it into the dishwasher, but it’s not as complicated as some would have you believe. also, you can wash cast iron. soap doesn’t hurt it.
When it is new or if it was necessary to strip and start over, sure.
Once it has been cooked on a half dozen times it can just be washed with dish soap, dried, and put away. No more work than any other handwashing of a pan.
Isn’t the “seasoning” PFAS?
No, and nor is the teflon in the pans you’re thinking if. PFAS is a chemical used in the manufacture of Teflon (or was, I thought they’d stopped now) not teflon itself. The problem with PFAS is accidental release and dumping.
PFAS is the term for the whole group of the stuffs called “forever chemicals” (for a reason). There’s not just a single one, but multiple, and as the specific ones and groups get banned, the industries move to use different ones, basically. It’s important to buy “PFAS free” stuff, any other labels like “PFOA free” can still mean there’s PFASs there, there’s just not ones from the specific variation
Damn, you’re right, I was thinking of PFOA not PFAS.
However, I think blanket avoiding an entire class of chemicals without evidence is an overreaction.
How is it an overreaction if it can be done without losing anything in life? I retired all my pans with non-stick coating years ago and haven’t missed them a single time and appreciate that it makes it easier to minimize the number of plastic cooking utensils my kitchen has, too.
I think in the case of PFAS it’s very reasonable. There’s no real harm done in avoiding them except possibly making less money and having to figure out other ways to do certain things - which cannot even be compared to the the potential danger they pose to the whole ecosphere
There is evidence, and there’s been conspiracies around it.
But we do have evidence that a lot of chemicals in the PFAS family stick around for a long time, and we have evidence that they’re harmful. That’s enough for me to be wary of anything in that group, especially when there are easy alternatives.
That’s the stuff on standard non-stick pans (teflon). You don’t make PFAS by burning in some oil at home.
- Lodge (as I understand it, they’re the gold standard for cast iron cookware)
In the case of non-stick stuff, it’s less that they’re seasoned with PFAS and more that they don’t need seasoning because they have PFAS (at least in theory).
The seasoning is plastic. That’s what polymerized means. The F in PFAS stands for flourine which I don’t think you’ll have in your seasoning
Plastics made from petroleum aren’t the same thing as heated up vegetable oil.
Did they sayil it was?
No, that’s the opposite
You can season nearly anything with oil. Except aluminum, which needs a Teflon coating or it gets nasty very fast. Except Teflon is non reactive to nearly everything
Except pfas. You can dissolve Teflon in pfas and spray it onto aluminum
? Teflon is a PFAS
Yes, but not spiritually
Teflon doesn’t react with basically anything. It won’t stick to anything but itself, which makes manufacturing difficult, initially we could only make pure Teflon pieces
Every other kind of PFAS is super toxic. Some part of the molecule is reactive, usually very reactive so it sticks to things, and the rest won’t react to anything. That causes nasty problems in biology
Teflon itself isn’t that much of a problem because even if it’s around forever, it doesn’t react with anything… The byproducts of working with it are what are poisoning people and causing all the problems
Anything coated in Teflon are going to have the nasty shit under the Teflon so I’d generally avoid it, but the real take away is that chemical companies are just dumping this shit into water sources knowing it causes super cancer
PFAS vs PFOS