For everyone who is fond of making delicious food, we are certain that you would love cast iron skillets. The cast iron skillets are usually seasoned, but some people have been complaining about cast iron skillet smoking. If your cast iron skillet is smoking as well, we are sharing everything you need to know about it!
What Is Cast Iron?
It might sound cliché, but cast iron is basically your regular iron that has been cast into the molded variant. It can be found in a variety of kitchens, and modern kitchens are no exception. It wouldn’t be wrong to say that it’s the cast iron with an enamel coating on the top. The cast iron skillets tend to rust if there is no enamel coating. The cast iron skillet will rust when it contacts water and oxygen.
For fixing the rust issue, you need to buy one with an enamel coating. Even if you don’t have enamel coated cast iron skillet, you can add seasoning. The seasoning is basically different layers of oils that are baked on the skillet. For the most part, the cast iron skillets are pre-seasoned (yes, even before you buy them from the store). However, not every cast iron skillet is pre-seasoned.
In case you opt for the cast iron skillets that aren’t seasoned or are raw, you will need to season them yourself before you start cooking with them. To illustrate, pre-seasoned cast iron skillets have a black appearance, while raw cast iron skillets have a gray color. That being said, when you season the raw cast iron skillet, it will turn black.
Cast Iron Skillet Smoking
The cast iron skillets are designed with different heating as compared to other types of cookware and pans. The cast iron skillets need proper maintenance and care for optimal performance. In addition, not everyone can use the cast iron skillets because it needs specific skills and techniques. If you are using the cast iron skillet properly, it will “not” smoke.
For the most part, cast iron skillet will smoke due to various reasons. For instance, smoking will occur due to incorrect cleaning, overheating, damages, and improper seasonings to the cast iron skillet.
Temperature
When the cast iron skillet is smoking, there are high chances that there is excessive heat and higher temperatures. To illustrate, if cast iron skillets are too hot, it will lead to smoking. In particular, it will smoke if the skillet has oil. The cast iron skillets tend to take a long time to heat up, but they will get hotter at a low-temperature range as compared to other metals. In that case, you have to keep an eye on the proper temperature to ensure there is no smoking.
Seasoning
We have already mentioned that the majority of cast iron skillets come with a pre-seasoning design. That being said, if you are using the pre-seasoned cast iron skillets, it is likely to smoke when you use them for the first time. This is because it will burn off the coating (that’s done by the factory or manufacturers). In addition, the old skillets with improper seasoning are likely to smoke as well.
In particular, old cast iron skillets will smoke if there is oil at the bottom of the cast iron skillet. Secondly, if the skillet has improper seasoning, it will lead to smoking. For fixing this issue, you have to remove leftover oil from the skillet and make sure the skillet is properly seasoned.
Damage
If the liquids or food chunks seep into the damaged parts of the cast iron skillet, it will lead to smoking. It can actually damage the skillets. For this purpose, you must not use the cast iron skillets if they are damaged because it results in smoking (we are talking about pinholes and cracks). Even more, dirty pans and improperly cleaned skillets will result in burning, hence the smoking. That being said, you have to ensure proper cleaning of the cast iron skillet to prevent smoking.
Preventing The Smoking
Whenever the cast iron skillet starts smoking, you must ensure proper cleaning and utilization. In addition, the users must ensure proper seasoning of the skillets. For instance, if you are using the pre-seasoned cast iron skillet for the first time, you must clean it with hot and soapy water before putting it on the stove. Also, if you have uncoated cast iron skillet, you shouldn’t wash it!