"phaeton" > wrote in message
...
>I have a Calphalon hard-anodized non-stick that seems to becoming
> sticky. Instead of buying another pan, I decided to drag out the cast
> iron pans and try to revive them.
>
> The problem I had with them some time ago was that even though I
> followed the instructions for seasoning them to the letter, they never
> got that hard, slick, black coating. The oil sort of turned into a
> yellowish lacquer. They're sealed, they don't rust, but the problem
> is that 1) food would stick to them and 2) the cooking surface would
> build up a layer of charcoal-like carbon that would particulate into
> the food.
>
> So using oil, salt and tons of elbow grease, I started rubbing them
> down to bare metal. What a chore. I stopped at the 2 I would use,
> and I'm leaving the third one for another day. Using the stove to dry
> them off, I knew they got down to bare metal because of the smell.
> Cast Iron has a certain comforting smell to it when it gets hot. It
> reminded me of the old radiators in the gradeschool I went to in the
> 1980s. All the 'dunce' kids had to sit in the back of the room and
> get baked by those radiators. My friend Kreg and I got stuck there,
> but we spent a good portion of the time drawing WWII planes, cartoons
> of our classmates, and farting on each other.
>
> They're now taking a ride in the oven @ 350F for an hour plus. New
> internet research suggests that I need to do multiple sessions of
> baking and cooling to get them to season properly.
>
> Now, if only they weren't so fuggin heavy...

I heat up the barbecue for about half an hour. Rub oil on the pots. Put
upside down in the barbecue. Turn heat off in one hour. Let cool. Do it
again if needed. A good glazing takes a long time. Why would you want to
scrub it down to bare metal and then put it back again?

Steve