• Jesus@lemmy.world
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    2 days ago

    Used cast iron is usually better than a lot of new stuff. Back in the day, it was common for the pitted surfaces to be ground smooth.

    Now you can only get that with some “premium brands” that are willing to take a grinder to a pan before throwing it in the box.

    • megopie@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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      4 hours ago

      Got a few inherited from my grand and great grand parents, they’re amazing and perfect. Even got a cast iron muffin tin which is great for making Yorkshire puddings.

    • stoy@lemmy.zip
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      2 days ago

      SO THAT IS WHY MY FRYING PAN IS ANNOYING!

      I just thought it was going to be naturally ground down over time…

      Damn it, now I gotta find a thrift store.

      • Yondoza@sh.itjust.works
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        2 days ago

        Or you can season the shit out of it. That will also smooth out the surface. Seasoning basically makes non-stick layers on your pan using burned oil.

        Preferably outdoors wipe a thin film of cooking oil on the pan and heat it up till it smokes, leaves smokey for a bit, cool down and repeat.

        It’d probably be smart to read real instructions somewhere else, but that’s the jist of it.

      • Jesus@lemmy.world
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        2 days ago

        You can still get vintage Wagner cast iron for a decent price on eBay or FB marketplace, but over the past 15 years people have started to catch on to what I just mentioned. So it’s not as dirt cheap as it once was.

        These days I generally know how to cook on a pitted lodge without it sticking, but smooth cast iron is more forgiving.

        • AA5B@lemmy.world
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          1 day ago

          The difference is what part is more forgiving

          • a smooth well seasoned surface is most forgiving for your food not sticking
          • a rough sandcast surface is most forgiving of poor cleaning habits. The seasoning is usually good enough and it is more likely to remain adhered
        • archemist@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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          1 day ago

          My experience with flaxseed oil was less than stellar. It works real nice at first, you get a good strong non stick seasoning, but after a few uses it starts flaking off. My guess is that it forms too hard of a coating, so when the pan expands and contracts through use, it starts to separate from the seasoning. Avocado oil works pretty well, and so does normal vegetable or canola oil. The surface isn’t as nice as a fresh flaxseed oil coating, but it’s a lot more forgiving through use.

      • Geometrinen_Gepardi
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        2 days ago

        It starts getting better after 10 or so years when the seaaoning has built up to fill the surface roughness.