My brother told me to 'just eyeball the seasoning' on my cast iron and now I have a sticky mess

Last Tuesday, I was at my brother's place in Austin and he saw me measuring out flaxseed oil for my skillet. He laughed and said 'dude just dump some oil on and wipe it around, it'll be fine'. I figured he'd been cooking for 20 years so I gave it a shot. Now my pan has this gross sticky film that won't come off with scrubbing. I tried baking it off at 400 degrees for an hour and it still feels tacky. Has anyone else ruined their seasoning by skipping the thin layers?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_fiona19d ago

...and that's the thing, it's not just cooking either. My dad does the same thing with fixing stuff around the house. He'll say 'just slap some duct tape on it' and then wonder why it falls apart in a month. People get so used to shortcuts working out for them that they can't see when their 'expert' advice is actually bad. For the sticky mess, try a hot water and salt scrub with a chainmail scrubber, then do a few thin layers of canola oil at 450. Flaxseed oil is notorious for flaking anyway, so maybe that's a sign to switch oils.

king.andrew19d agoMost Upvoted

Four bucks says your dad's the kind of guy who still uses the same tube of super glue he found in a 1997 toolbox.