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How To Clean Cast IronIf you ever use a cast-iron pan (those plain dark metal ones) or if you ever use a wok: 1. WASH it when you're done with it using WATER and steel wool only -- NO SOAP. 2. DO NOT leave it to dry on the rack. 3. IMMEDIATELY shake the excess water off, and put it on the STOVE at high heat. 4. WATCH the cool patterns as the water evaporates, DON'T walk away. 5. TURN OFF the stove. 5. OIL the pan with a small amount and COAT the surface with a rag or paper towel. 6. HANG it up if it's not too hot, otherwise leave on the stove. 7. SMILE and take pride in caring for cast iron! ADDENDUM: I would recommend following the instructions above for the cast iron you find in Synergy; however, having become a bit of a cast iron fanatic post-Synergy, I just want to add a bit more richness to the instructions. The steps above are what you do if your cast iron pan is not properly seasoned. A properly seasoned cast iron pan does not need to be coated in oil after each use to prevent rusting, as it has it's own special semi-permanent oil/iron non-stick complex covering its surface that looks a little shiny and black. A well seasoned pan is easier to clean and can be used to produce beautifully browned foods that don't stick, even eggs (I know, sounds impossible if you've used a Synergy cast iron pan). It may be too much to hope for, but if you live in Syn now, you might look up how to season cast iron pans (and woks - slightly different process, same effect) and then try to educate people on caring for the pan, which if you want to keep that nice non-stick layer, would require the house to stop scrubbing them so vigorously with steel wool - as in step 1... Really, if you're going to use steel wool, you might as well use soap as well, but it's a viscous cycle because after doing that everything sticks, requiring thorough cleaning again...and removing any hope of well seasoned pan, which is what makes cast iron so wonderful in the first place. --Orion |