Freestone Forge Carbon-Steel Pan - Care and Usage

Your carbon-steel pan has a light pre-seasoning of canola oil. It is ready for use; however, the seasoning usually needs to builds up to impart those nonstick qualities. 

Normal Care:

Using:

  • Heating the pan up too quickly (directly to medium-high or high heat) or cooling it too quickly rapidly (putting hot pan under cold water) can warp the pan. To avoid warping your pan, do not change temperatures fast. Bring the pan to higher cooking heats slowly. Heat over lower heat and then bring up to desired cooking temperature. This is more important for the lighter gauge (thinner) pans to prevent warping.

  • Cook with an oil. Dry frying will encourage food to stick.

Cleaning After Use:

  • Wipe out any food.

  • Remove any stuck-on food with hot water and a cloth, sponge, plastic brush, or coarse salt. Then, rinse and dry immediately. Once dry, use a paper towel to wipe on a very thin coat of food grade oil. (To ensure my pan is dry I heat it on the stovetop briefly over low to medium heat to drive out any moisture. Then I apply a few drops of canola or olive oil, as they conveniently sit on my counter,  to a paper towel and rub on to pan.)

  • If you need to wash it, use mild dish soap, never detergent.

  • Store in a dry place.

Seasoning:

Seasoning a carbon-steel pan refers to carbonizing oil onto the surface of the pan. This process builds up a protective layer on the carbon-steel that retards rust and provides nonstick qualities.

When to Re-season:

Re-season if…

  • You see any bare metal (May be due to scrubbing it off or cooking acidic foods.)

  • Food is sticking all the time

  • You want to build up the seasoning to have stronger nonstick qualities

  • You see any rust

How to Re-season:

1)      Pre-heat the oven to a few degrees over 400.

2)      Ensure pan is clean and dry. Refer to “Cleaning After Use” section above.

3)      Use a paper towel to apply a very thin layer of food grade oil. Oil that burns at a higher temperature, such as canola, soybean or safflower oil, is best. To get that very thin layer of oil on the pan apply a small amount of oil with a towel/paper towel and then wipe most off with a second paper towel. You may think there is no oil on the pan, but it is there. Apply oil to the both the inside and outside of the pan particularly if using on a grill.

4)      Place the skillet upside down in the pre-heated oven. Bake for 1 hour. You may want to put foil or a baking sheet under the pan to catch any oil that drips from the pan. (this is rare if you have wiped out most the oil). As the oil is carbonizing you may see or smell some smoke.

5)      At the end of an hour, turn off oven and let it cool before removing the pan. The pan will be very hot when you turn off the oven. NOTE: Gripping the pan with an oven mitt when the pan is 400+ degrees may scorch your mitt and/or leave marks on pan. You may also receive a burn. 

6)      Once the pan has cooled, remove from oven and wipe off any residual oil.

7)      Repeat steps 3-6 if you would like a thicker, more non-stick coating on the pan.

Tips/Questions:

  • To prevent rusting:

    o   Never put in a dishwasher.

o   Never let pan sit in water or on a wet surface.

o   Do not store food in the pan. I.e., leave food on pan and put in the refrigerator or freezer.

o   Always dry pan immediately after use or cleaning. Do not leave to air-dry after rinsing.

  • To prevent warping:

o   Bring pan to temp slowly, i.e., heating to low before going to your cooking temperature.

o   Use heating rings the same size as the pan base.

o   Never run a hot pan under cold water. Let it cool down naturally.

  • The seasoning on the pan will change each time you cook. It may build up, getting darker, or lighten if you are cooking an acidic food that eat away the seasoning.

  • Cooking acidic foods like onions, vinegar, tomatoes and citrus can eat away the seasoning on the pan. (Extreme alkaline dishes can also eat away the seasoning.) Have a nice thick seasoning on your pan before cooking these dishes and re-season after.

  • Cook with an oil. Dry frying can cause food to stick.

  • Very cold food is more likely to stick.

 

  • How do I remove stuck on food?  Add some hot water to the pan and let sit a few minutes. This will loosen up a lot of the food particles. You can then scrub with a towel, sponge, or plastic brush. Kosher salt can be used as a scrubbing agent; add salt to the wet pan and rub. If now clean rinse, dry, apply a very light coat of oil and store.  If there is still stubborn stuck on food scrub with a scouring pad. If you scour through the seasoning, if you see bare steel, you will want to re-season.

  • My pan has a spot of rust. What do I do? Lightly sand with steel wool or fine grit sand paper to remove the rust, rinse, dry and then re-season.

  • I tried to re-season my pan and it got sticky/gummy. What do I do now? This can happen if you applied too much oil  or you did not heat long enough or hot enough. To fix, wipe off any standing oil. Ensure your oven is a bit over 400 degrees. Put the pan back in the oven for another hour.

  • I love my pan; but I abused and/or neglected it. It is rusted over. What can I do? You can contact Freestone Forge for special instruction on how to restore it yourself or to make arrangements to send in for a refurbish. Freestone Forge will refurbish for a fee.