October 27, 2018 - 6:24pm
Do you oil your cast-iron Dutch ovens?
I've been baking in Lodge cast-iron Dutch ovens. The last bake did not go well. The loaves stuck to the bottom of the pan and had to be levered out.
I think that this was partly because I was teaching a friend to bake and had taken the bannetons out of the fridge too early. Warmer dough, less steam, more sticking?
But later I looked at the pans and decided that they did not seem to have a good patina. I oiled them lightly. I'm wondering if I should do this after every baking.
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A thin coat of oil shouldn’t hurt, but I don’t think youll have a problem with sticking if you put a little corn meal in the pot before adding the dough. You could also use parchment paper.
I don’t have a sticking problem baking directly on the metal, but that may be because the bottom of the loaf is floured.
A very quick spray from a spray can of canola or avocado oil on the hot cast iron works for me. Some coarse cornmeal could help too. My brother suggested a pinch of kosher salt instead of cornmeal a few years back, and it works perfectly while imparting a salty bottom crust. If your cast iron isn’t quite nonstick, just grease or oil it and bake it for an hour or two... or just use it a lot until it’s more stickless. I’ve never had a bread stick to my cast iron and don’t think the temperature of your dough should make a difference.
Felila, there are many diff suggestions for working with cast iron. I normally season mine when I first get them by heating them on a stove top, then spreading a thin layer of oil, then put them in the oven for a hour at around 400F, then repeat a few times. If you ever wash it, when done, dry it, heat it on a stove top, apply a little oil, and use a paper towel to get most of the oil off, then keep heating it till you see a little smoke, then turn off the burner and let the pan cool.
This is really good advice - most cooking oils begin to polymerize below 500°F, but don't begin to carbonize until they get to between 500°F and 600°F which is when the coating gets really non-stick. But if you then braise in the pan, you will ruin the seasoning and have to start all over again. If you are having difficulty getting it completely clean, you can put it in your electric oven when you run a self cleaning cycle (which tops out around 700°F).
If you want to cure an iron pan towards being non-stick, clean thoroughly, brush with lard (rather than oil),wipe out excess and bake pan at 450-500F for about 15 minutes. The time is approximate and can be longer. Brush 1 or 2 more times during the bake to even things out. NOTE-OPEN THE WINDOWS! It WILL smoke so I often do this outdoors on my grill. Fats, like lard and oil, are structured differently and bond differently to the iron. Lard seems to provide a better non-stick surface.
As for preparing a pan prior to baking dough-that is a bit different. A well seasoned pan (as done above) helps but the steam trapped and dough acidity can remove that seasoning and it can really stick!. For easiest removal, always use something additional : Parchment paper, corn meal, salt, oil with lecithin (baking spray is easiest or make your own) .Wheat bran and oatmeal tend to burn.
....when I bake in either my cast iron combo cooker or stainless steel Dutch Oven.
cast iron too and you can reuse it many times!
Since I preheat my DO, I place the dough on parchment paper and use it to lower it into the oven. No sticking problems at all.
I also use my Dutch ovens for stews and casseroles, so they should have developed a good patina. They look seasoned. I think I'll try the cornmeal option next time :)
Thanks for all the advice.
It doesn’t take a lot of corn meal. I think the rough cut grain keeps it from heavy contact with the bottom of the pot.
Also, are you placing the pot near the middle height of the oven? If close to the bottom that could make a huge difference.
Nuff said.