Help with re-seasoning carbon steel pan Spycar? Anyone?

[Lady Florida.]

I have a Mafter Bourgeat carbon steel pan that was beautifully seasoned. Ds cooked something that stripped it, then he made it worse trying to clean it. I've tried unsuccessfully to re-season it, including the salt and potato peel trick I used to originally season it. Nothing works.

Any ideas what I should do? Should I just cook on it as is and will that bring it back? 

@Spy Car can you help me? Anyone else?

Here's what it looks like now. You can see how beautiful the sides are. The bottom looked like that once. 😢

 

 

[Spy Car]

Hate to tell you Kathy, but--if the bottom looked like the sides--you actually didn't have a good seasoning.

See all those "dots" in the seasoned areas (and the sheen)? Makes me think whatever you applied originally was put on too thickly. The skin looks almost like it would feel "tacky."

With a good seasoning the pan should be almost black (not tea-colored) and have no sheen. And a good seasoning would not come off (even with a boy cooking). What was he making?

I'd clean it up, then try to burn off the pan. Get it hot then let "cook" at a low medium heat for a while.

When you re-season go much lighter on the amount of fat. Better you build up light layers that to do it too thickly.

If you have flax seed oil or grape oil they polymerize best. If not, fry up some bacon in the pan and save the fat to apply thin layers.

The pan will recover. Thin. Thin. Thin on the seasoning oil/fat.

Bill

 

[Lady Florida.]

10 hours ago, Spy Car said:

Hate to tell you Kathy, but--if the bottom looked like the sides--you actually didn't have a good seasoning.

See all those "dots" in the seasoned areas (and the sheen)? Makes me think whatever you applied originally was put on too thickly. The skin looks almost like it would feel "tacky."

With a good seasoning the pan should be almost black (not tea-colored) and have no sheen. And a good seasoning would not come off (even with a boy cooking). What was he making?

I'd clean it up, then try to burn off the pan. Get it hot then let "cook" at a low medium heat for a while.

When you re-season go much lighter on the amount of fat. Better you build up light layers that to do it too thickly.

If you have flax seed oil or grape oil they polymerize best. If not, fry up some bacon in the pan and save the fat to apply thin layers.

The pan will recover. Thin. Thin. Thin on the seasoning oil/fat.

Bill

 

I seasoned it with potato peels, oil (not sure I remember what kind of oil) and salt. It did feel kind of sticky but having never had a carbon steel pan I didn't know if that was normal. He made something with canned tomatoes. 

Thanks for the info. I knew you'd have the answer. I'll try to strip it and do it again. What's the best way to do that?

So here's another question. We have a glass top electric stove. Electric stoves are the most common type in Florida but gas is becoming popular, and our new house will have a gas stove. Should I wait and do it after we move?  Would I be correct in thinking gas will do a better job? Or if not better, will be easier?

[Spy Car]

9 minutes ago, Lady Florida. said:

I seasoned it with potato peels, oil (not sure I remember what kind of oil) and salt. It did feel kind of sticky but having never had a carbon steel pan I didn't know if that was normal. He made something with canned tomatoes. 

Thanks for the info. I knew you'd have the answer. I'll try to strip it and do it again. What's the best way to do that?

So here's another question. We have a glass top electric stove. Electric stoves are the most common type in Florida but gas is becoming popular, and our new house will have a gas stove. Should I wait and do it after we move?  Would I be correct in thinking gas will do a better job? Or if not better, will be easier?

I would guess that gas would make the job easier, but that's pure speculation on my part as I've near zero experience with glass top electrics.

That said, don't fret. The pan is totally salvageable. 

I figured it might be tomatoes. The acid will soften (bad) seasoning. In a way, he did you a favor getting the work started. A hard (proper) seasoning is rarely bother by tomatoes

Abandon previous method. Get pan as cleaned up as possible. Use it. Apply grease/oil as thinly as possible. Use (and reuse) a small cotton cloth to apply (not paper towel if possible, as you don't want any paper fibers baked in).

Flax seed oil, grapeseed oil, or animal fat would be the seasoning fats of choice for seasoning. Once seasoned the oil used to maintain the pan is less consequential. 

I love cooking with carbon steel skillets. They are the unsung heroes of cookware IMO. I don't know why they are not much more popular.

Good move using one. Thank son for getting that gunk off for you. 

The seasoning fat was way (way) to thick initially.

Bill