@tigerlily...hi Laurie...The non stick part comes after seasoning the pan and then no washing, just wiping clean or with mild soap then do just like the Eric says.  This is a very important part of a cast iron pan, much like a Chinese Wok, which you won't need a wok anymore with these pans! Double duty! . The seasoning is an important part of flavour as much as a golden bottom on your foods. 

If you wash with soap do exactly as Eric does. Also preheating the pan is an important part of non stick too.

Also in order to have your food not stick to the bottom of basically any pan, wait for it to preheat to help release from the bottom easily from  correct browning.  Like pancakes or   when bread is baked & has that nice crust, &  slips out of the pan no problem. 

Eric...same for frying spuds in the pan. That golden brown bottom & some extra oil or butter helps it become golden then it releases easy enough.

I am not sure a plastic type flipper is good in cast iron but if you all can find a metal one,  they work great & no worries of scratching them either.   Plastic ones, even tho temp. can be tolerated, are thicker then a good metal one & will not go under a food as  nicely...  such as potatoes.  I use what I know is called a  Metal Fish Spatula for spuds Eric, they are sort of triangular but longer then a regular square spatula. 

Liza...awesome looking pan! I'm sure you'll enjoy it for years to come!  I had never heard of them coming pre-seasoned. Thats news to me so just make sure you check before frying in it.  You'll save yourself some frustration on cleaning. Stick foods Soaked too long, any rust happening can be scrubbed with steel wool then well washed & preseasoned again.

Eric, what kind of flipper do you use? I'm curious now.

A little tip from the queen of burning ones hand gripping hot pan handles... keep a hot pad close by and lay it over the handle for after you remove it from the oven up until its cold! Its the best caution sign for most anyone. 

Need a craft...buy a thick as large as you can  square pot holder, preferably longer then the pans handles, fold it in half over lapping side edges & stitch it together. It makes a great tube to slide onto the handles of pots & pans. Ask me how I know?? lol! 

Liza...What instructions came for seasoning if its not preseasoned? Let's have a report from you in a week or so if your up to it okay. I'd love to know how its going for anyone hauling out the cast iron again too. Enjoy!! Now I want  golden fried potatoes & lots of onions.....................

@squeakyandliza

Woo Hoo that's a keeper! 

(@veganostomy)

In addition to your advice about keeping the pans seasoned, once in a great while they may have to have the build up on them ground off. My husband did this for mine recently as it must have had 20 years of build up. It meant seasoning the pan as if it were brand new. That means wiping on oil and putting the pan in the oven at 350 F. for an hour. 

Stella

Posted by: @dlkfiretruck

Eric, what kind of flipper do you use? I'm curious now.

For the round, smooth pans, I use a wooden spatula to push things around. They last forever and I love using them. 

For the grill pans, I bought a metal spatula, probably one you'd see in a restaurant! 

And I'll use silicone tongs or some other silicone utensil to move food from the pan to a plate .

Plastic utensils melt instantly 😬

Posted by: @sjlovestosing

In addition to your advice about keeping the pans seasoned, once in a great while they may have to have the build up on them ground off.

Yes, I think at some point I'll strip off the seasoning and start fresh. That's something I'd do automatically if I got one used.

@dlkfiretruck

They said my pan is pre-seasoned. Fortunately. 😀

Posted by: @veganostomy

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Truth be told, I've owned a lot of various cookware from ceramic coated to stainless steel, but I keep on coming back to cast iron. 

I've been using one for the last 10 years and have four in my "collection" including two grill-style pans.

Anyone else use or love them?  Show me your pans! 😂

Hi,

I use cast iron and have five, two are for camping and one is a Comal for making tortillas and pupusas. 

Also have a set of Le Creuset enamel cast iron set of pots that I have had for ever that I also love.

It is hard to hurt the cast iron and I can cook pretty much anything in them.

Have a good day.

cygo

I have always wanted to try a cast iron pan but was afraid things would stick. 

Posted by: @chelly

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I have always wanted to try a cast iron pan but was afraid things would stick. 

This can depend on what you're cooking, but since I use a metal spatula with my cast iron pans (doesn't hurt them at all), there's nothing I can't scrape. Potatoes are bad for sticking, but not so bad that I'd consider using something else :)

I do also use stainless steel, but have long stopped using non-stick unless we're making pancakes, then non-stick is just easier to work with.

@veganostomy yes that is basically what I was referring to is potatoes. Lol! Years ago I remember my friends mom cooking home fries and sticking. 
I use stainless steel also because I own a parrot and Teflon kills birds. Most recently I bought ceramic coated which don’t  have all that poisonous in them and yet are non stuck.

Posted by: @chelly

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I use stainless steel also because I own a parrot and Teflon kills birds.

We have a parrot, too :) He's got to be 50 in the next year or so.

Potatoes, specifically hash browns, can be cooked in cast iron, and I personally find that most anything cooked in cast iron just tastes better. Some food comes out tasting like it was barbecued!

@veganostomy I may have to pick one up and just give it a try. I’m always hearing good things about those pans. Everyone seems to love them. I see you have to oil them? 
this is my baby. His name is Niko and he’s 16 years old. He almost died in me a few years sgo. Found out he has avian bornavirus. They say they can be born with it.

@chelly Yes, there's some maintenance involved, but once you get used to it, it becomes very easy. My only word of caution is with really acidic food, like tomato sauce. It will strip the “seasoning” from the pan pretty quickly, and that will require more care afterwards.

A chain mail cast iron pan clean is recommended. One trick I use to get the pan clean is to run it under hot water, while the pan is still fairly hot... the water will rapid boil (WATCH OUT FOR HOT STEAM!) and lift off anything stuck to the pan. Then, it's a quick wipe to clean, I put it back on the burner to dry, and then wipe some vegetable oil on it afterwards.

Niko is such a sweety! Here's Coco 😀 

@veganostomy thanks so much for the info. That will make it easy to know what to do. Coco is adorable!! Is she/he an Amazon?

@veganostomy  ... Both the birds are so pretty! Over Covid there were a lot of  Videos surfacing with Parrots. I thoroughly enjoy seeing them! 

Anyone with good recipes will you please consider putting them in Foods & Recipes forum Eric has set up?  I'm always looking for tasty recipes I can  make ahead & also freeze.  

Posted by: @chelly

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Is she/he an Amazon?

Yes, he's a double yellow-headed Amazon 😀