How To: Seasoning Cast Iron

Looks great on the outside...

but the inside needs some help.

Gather supplies.

Scrub away rust using steel wool.

Allow to dry, ensuring there's no rust hiding anywhere.

Add a little vegetable oil...

and smooth it lightly over the cast iron.

Cover the surface but don't allow the oil to pool.

Cover the entire surface to be reseasoned.

Heat at 350F for one hour.

Turn upside down in the oven to avoid pooling.

Remove from oven and allow to cool.

Good as new!

It may sound like a Herculean task, but seasoning cast iron isn’t difficult, provided you’re willing to put in some elbow grease. For this example, I’m using a cauldron that will be appearing in one of our Beltane altar sets.

1. Check the cast iron piece for damage, rust, etc. If it’s starting to wear through in spots, it may not be salvageable, but a lot of what you’ll find in junk and antique shops is in recoverable condition. If rust is just on the surface, it’s easily removable. If it needs fully stripped and reseasoned, that’s a whole other project. For this, we’ll just be cleaning and seasoning a piece that’s in fairly good condition and does not need to be stripped.

2. Gather supplies. You’ll need your cast iron piece (firestarter cauldron, in this example), steel wool pads, vegetable oil (I use olive), and a couple cloths you don’t mind getting filthy.

3. Pre-heat the oven to 350F. Make sure your oven is big enough to accommodate the piece. In this case, the cauldron is tall, so I had to remove the middle rack for it to fit in.

4. Rinse off the cast iron and start scrubbing. Wash the whole thing, but specifically scour the rust with the steel wool until it’s all gone. You may just reveal more seasoned metal, but in some cases, you may scrub deep enough to see shiny metal. You may need to scrub, rinse, and dry a few times until you no longer see any rusty hue on the surface.

5. Once the rust is gone and the whole piece has been washed off, wipe down the surface with a light coat of vegetable oil. Go too heavy and your seasoning will be tacky, never fully curing. Too light and it won’t get that nice, black hue.

6. Turn the piece upside-down and place it in the oven. Why upside-down? This allows any excess oil to run off instead of collecting in the corner and around edges. If it collects during heating, you’ll wind up with tacky spots. BEWARE: This process often stinks, so turn on a vent fan or open some windows.

7. Heat at 350F for one hour. Remove carefully as it will be extremely hot and allow to cool.

That’s it. If there’s something you’d like to learn to do, drop us a line and if we know how, we’ll share our expertise.

CAUTION: Some cast iron vessels—like this one—have been previous used to hold flammable materials. Test them out before putting them in your oven and be sure to open your windows during reseaoning.