Something I see frequently......and people should take note of....statements like after the pan is seasoned....continued use will build up additional seasoning on the pan over its life...... That isnt true (unless that person continually burns oily foods in that pan......which I would not advocate). When a pan is seasoned.....it is oiled, and baked/heated to a point above the smoke point of the oil used for seasoning (typically the higher smoke point the harder/more durable the resulting polymer). That seasoning process is cooking down that oil into a material that is now a hard polymer (it is no longer an oil..it is chemically(and physically) changed by heat). Do it 3 or 4 times and you build a layer upon layer ...it fills the irregularities of the surfaces of the pans and gradually gets smoother and smoother (same concept as waxing the paint on a car....that wax also fills the micro irregular/scratches of the paint...making it smoother). Once the pan is seasoned.....the metal is now protected from the environment by a layer that we made from baked oil........it is a natural method, and can be added to by additional seasoning layers, and can be removed if needed/desired for whatever reason (lye is an excellent natural method)......PTFE/(Teflon by Dupont) is a non-natural way of doing the same thing.....when a pan (typically aluminum) is tefloned.....it is a one time process...you cannot add Teflon on top of Teflon. just frying things in a seasoned pan......does not add any further seasoning ......it just makes the existing seasoning....oily. Just oiling a seasoned pan.......does NOT add seasoning. Oil is good, dont get me wrong......when we fry stuff....we need oil (and please understand- margarine is NOT oil, butter-technically is not oil either...mainly fatty acids and some saturated fats)....we oil the pan, we cook stuff, we enjoy dinner or breakfast.........and sometime 50 or so years down the road we give our well used, and well loved pans......to our loved ones, or our friends.....they last generations. My aunt visited me a few weeks ago.......havent seen her in years (sad that families do go in different directions and different parts of the country)....anyway....I showed her all my pans..many of which were her grandmothers- and then handed down to HER mother, and were since given to me........she was almost in tears.....she told me.......Randy !..these pans look exactly like they did when I was a kid and learning to cook on them!...I told her I knew that.......I learned to cook on them too, and I was blessed to have them now........and she could rest assured I was taking care of them.......and someone after me......would be taught the same respect and maintenance..............We talk about how these pans are worth a few dollars here and there.....some more than others obviously.......but I would like to add a detail........Personally...........these pans to me represent the generations before us......and I have so much respect for them....My family pans are all very old Lodge (mom had a Krane chicken fryer...not so sure where it came from)......but my point is..........let us remember some of our history.....take some pride in knowing what we talk about.......these old things.......they are much older than us.....they deserve some respect........I challenge people to take some time to understand how and why we should learn some things that some people would blow off as being of no consequence. Maybe it is just me.....but I am just consumed with the history of the things I now use daily....and can easily laugh at me.........for being just a kid...
Posted on: Tue, 14 Oct 2014 23:26:59 +0000
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