Cast Iron

One of the things sitting on our eventual list of things to buy was a cast iron skillet. We found one at a local antique store recently for $14 dollars. It was in need of a little love, but having read about revitalizing skillets in a cookbook a while back and seeing this great guide we decided to give it a shot.


Here's our new (to us) skillet, in need of a little love.


After a good scrub-down with steel wool, I filled it with salt and threw it on the stove. It was fascinating to watch the salt leach the rust out, turning a brownish grey color, and to find the skillet much improved when I finally dumped the salt out and scrubbed it down again.


After that, I put it back on the stove, over low heat and periodically oiled it, allowing the oil to bake into the pores of the iron to give it a nice, naturally non-stick finish. (Sorry, failed to take a "done" picture yet...)

I haven't had a chance to use it yet, and it may need a little more oil, but I'm very pleased with how well it has turned out so far and the knowledge that we have one more thing off our "be prepared" list!