The idea that you need to preheat a cast iron pan slowly is wrong

I keep seeing people say you have to warm a cast iron pan up over low heat for 10 minutes or it will warp or crack. That might be true for thin antique pans or some cheap new ones, but my 12 inch Lodge from Target gets cranked to medium-high right out of the gate. Been doing it for 5 years now, no warping, no cracking. If you're cooking a steak or searing anything, you want that pan screaming hot fast, not babysitting it for a quarter hour. Anyone else just ignore that rule and have their pans hold up fine?

2 comments

2 Comments

skylercooper1mo ago

Wait, have you ever tried cooking eggs in a cast iron pan that's been seasoned with flaxseed oil? I went down that rabbit hole a few years ago after reading some blog, and man, what a mess. The seasoning flaked off after like two weeks into my scrambled eggs. I ended up just scrubbing the whole thing down with salt and starting over with plain old Crisco. Never had an issue since, but now I'm wondering if my preheating habits are just as overthought. Your results might totally depend on the pan's thickness and how it was made, not the ritual you've been told to follow.

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kim_nelson1mo ago

Flaxseed oil is a scam for cast iron.