Carbon Pan Seasoniong Question + Pictures

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I just did my first seasoning/cookies and I have a few questiong

First please check the picture
IMG_2296.jpg



Here are my questions:

1. The stuff on the sides and left side, that feels to me kinda like oil and it flakes easily if I try to scrape it. Does it need to be there or does it need to do?
2. The stuff the middle that seems to be like black, is that what looks like seasoning?

How I seasoned: I first boiled potatoe shavings for 15 min, drained/washed. Then, pointed 1/2 inch oil and rubbed on sides and then brought it to temp for 10-15 min on low heat. Then drained most oil out and stuck it in oven at 350 for 90 min.

When it came out, I wiped out all the oil. The pan looked like on the left side but a bit lighter. Tonight I fried some pork tenderloins in and then just washed with hot washed, soft sponge.

Did I do anything wrong? If so, what should I do now?

thanks as always:)
 
The stuff on the sides of the pan are closer in colour to what I would expect from a single seasoning, but it should be thinner than that and not flake at all. I think you're leaving too much oil in the pan. You really only want a very thin layer of oil in the pan for this. When I do my (cast iron, but I doubt it's that different) pans, I put them in the oven upside down so all the excess oil drips out. I know other people who wipe their pans with towels to get most of the oil out. I also normally give it a few coats to get a good seasoning. The result should be even, smooth and hard. Not sticky, that's a surefire sign of too much oil.

If I were handed a pan like that, I think I would scrub it shiny and start over.
 
I was going to season my de buyer pan tomorrow or Friday. It'll be interesting to see what happens with mine. I just have the instructions that were with the pan. I think on Chowhound there are tons of posts on how to season pans. I might check them out too.

k.
 
The stuff on the sides of the pan are closer in colour to what I would expect from a single seasoning, but it should be thinner than that and not flake at all. I think you're leaving too much oil in the pan. You really only want a very thin layer of oil in the pan for this. When I do my (cast iron, but I doubt it's that different) pans, I put them in the oven upside down so all the excess oil drips out. I know other people who wipe their pans with towels to get most of the oil out. I also normally give it a few coats to get a good seasoning. The result should be even, smooth and hard. Not sticky, that's a surefire sign of too much oil.

If I were handed a pan like that, I think I would scrub it shiny and start over.

I assumed the same. I will start from beginning. I seen that shouls season it at 500f but my crappy oven can't handle it and likely get smoked up. Would few hours at 350 suffice or not hot enough?

thanks:)
 
What type of oil did you use? If it is flakey, or sticky at all its no good.
 
I keep seeing these pans at the store and I always forget to grab one...
 
To avoid sticky oil film, it helps to heat the oil above its smoke point. I just heat the pan with a tablespoon, or more, of oil until it starts smoking. Then I use a wad of paper towels and tongs to wipe the oil around the inside of the pan. you'll start to see a nice black layer developing. here's a video from the wok shop http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hNPe5-swL-k she accomplishes the same effect but instead of a paper towel she stir fries chives. I've tried the chive method and it works quite well. if you cant find garlic chives, green onion works well too.
 
I assumed the same. I will start from beginning. I seen that shouls season it at 500f but my crappy oven can't handle it and likely get smoked up. Would few hours at 350 suffice or not hot enough?

thanks:)

I think I've seasoned at 400 for an hour and had no problems. If it makes you feel better, this is exactly the problem I had the first time I seasoned a pan and I learned from a family that had been seasoning their pans for generations! They would just pour a couple of inches of olive oil in a pan and toss it in the oven for an hour or two. I think they had to do it like once a year, and their pans were the furthest thing from non-stick. What's the boiling potato skins about? I'm not familiar with that technique.

Has anyone ever tried the wok-seasoning technique on a pan like this? I can't think of any reason why it wouldn't work, and it might be easier/better for people with weak ovens. I haven't done it or seen it done on anything other than a wok, so I can't advocate it.

edit: I should have read obtuse's post. That's exactly what I was talking about.
 
What is on the pan now might be machining oil applied to the pan in factory before shipment.

What you have to do is spread little oil with paper, dont need much, over whole pan.

Set it over medium-low flame and leave for around 15 minutes. Wipe dry with paper and repeat until paper after wiping is clean.

Then you pan is seasoned.

Worked with japanese omelett pan as well as with thai wok
 
i followed the instructions that came with the pan .. works great ,.. but it does not look like cast iron seasoning ,. i could barely see any grease residue and it works great as non stick as a non stick pan. i have tried every oil known to man [other than flax seed ] and my favorite by far,for seasoning, is Lard !!
 
i have only one Du Beyer ,but lots of cast iron.their seasoning process is not like cast iron , similar but not exactly . i followed the instructions that came with the Du Beyer . Potato shavings followed by oil [in my case lard] on the stove at a low temp i did not get the carbonized grease layer you could barely see any coating. i cooked an egg in it and is just slid around. i would scrub that clean and start over ... watch the company video . use less grease and a lower temp i will get a picof mine at lunch time and post later today
 
I seasoned mine a few times and kept failing for various reasons. One time some spinach just stripped all the seasoning off. I finally decided to sand the surface clean and just cook with it like that. It's been super nonstick since. Weird...but that's my experience.
 
I think the deBuyer patato skin thing is an inside joke at deBuyer. Only the English language instructions talk about them. All others omit the potato skins.

The way I treat my steel and carbon pans is the same. Strip with oven cleaner (if bought used) or heat up some salt (when new) until it turns brown. Dump salt/remove oven cleaner. Rinse hot. Put on stove. Dry over heat. Rub some oil over the inside. Heat some more on stove top. Use it. Rinse after use with hot water as needed. (I also take soap and a brillo pad to mine if needed.) Reapply seasoning if needed. All in all they get better with use. The seasoning thing is over-emphasized in my opinion. The less you worry about it the better is gets.
 
I do think seasoning matters for cast iron, even though it hasn't made a difference with my carbon pan. As soon as I stripped the rust off a Wagner cast iron pan (using the vinegar soak method), it started rusting. The initial thin seasoning really helps prevent that rust from forming.
 
Yes, it does matter. What I was trying to say is that some of the seasoning instructions border on voodoo. As a result people end up obsessing over it unnecessarily.
 
I think the deBuyer patato skin thing is an inside joke at deBuyer. Only the English language instructions talk about them. All others omit the potato skins.

Nah, my carbone plus came with French and English instructions and both mention the potato skins....
 
Mine came with a whole bunch of languages and German and Italian made no mention of potato skins. Will look for it tonight, but may already be in recycling.
 
Mine had a plastic cover for the inside of the pan that had the seasoning instructions printed on the backside.
 
I think the deBuyer patato skin thing is an inside joke at deBuyer. Only the English language instructions talk about them. All others omit the potato skins.

The way I treat my steel and carbon pans is the same. Strip with oven cleaner (if bought used) or heat up some salt (when new) until it turns brown. Dump salt/remove oven cleaner. Rinse hot. Put on stove. Dry over heat. Rub some oil over the inside. Heat some more on stove top. Use it. Rinse after use with hot water as needed. (I also take soap and a brillo pad to mine if needed.) Reapply seasoning if needed. All in all they get better with use. The seasoning thing is over-emphasized in my opinion. The less you worry about it the better is gets.

The potato skin thing has nothing to do with seasoning the pan,but rather to clean the pan of any industrial wax or coating(to protect the surface) applied before shipping the pan.
The more you use your pan,the more non stick it will become,just don't plan on deglazing with it.
 
I have six Mineral De Buyer pans. 14", 10" and 8" skillets, 9" country pan. I've had them for a few years. The potato peels are not the way to season this pan. Old wives-tale.

1.) Scrub pan prior to seasoning with a harsh abrasive. I used bartenders friend. this is the only and last time you should use any sort of detergent. Get that baby shinny clean with lots of hot water, be quick and dry it immediately then put on stove 1/2 filled with high-heat oil (NOT Canola) I used grapeseed. Heat the pan up it up until the oil shimmers. Then shut off heat and let sit until cool. Discard oil.

Think of the pan's like carbon knives. Just like a knife, you want to build patina evenly and over several cookings. If not it will just build up and the flake off, leaving clean unsealed carbon that will absolutely rust.

Also, when cleaning, designate one brush to these pans. You should never use soap to clean these babies. I just wash the grease and cooked food off with hot water and designated nylon brush then, light paper towel dry, then put on a hot burner for about one minute. I have a pot rack to I just hang them up while still warm. If you guys are interested I'll take some photos of my pans.

I'm afraid that ptolemy has over seasoned his pan. thats why the bottom seasoning flaked off and is clean now and the side has an enameled oil on them. the pan is not ruined but you will have to cook with them until it until the enameled oil flakes off.
 
What do you think of it so far?

it's a better version of cast iron pan. love the long handle and how easy it cleans up. also it heats much faster than cast iron. the ultimate test would be making eggs and home fries that I make, by cubing potatoes and frying with onions and garlic.
they would really stick on cast iron.
 
it's a better version of cast iron pan. love the long handle and how easy it cleans up. also it heats much faster than cast iron. the ultimate test would be making eggs and home fries that I make, by cubing potatoes and frying with onions and garlic.
they would really stick on cast iron.

Ptolemy,

I make eggs and potatoes and onions all the time in my cast iron with no issues whatsoever. I think a lot of it comes down to the smoothness of the seasoning / pan.
 
I'm gonna have to break down and get one of these some day. Might mean the end of one of my 5 cast iron pans.
 
I will add that I really do want to pick up a carbon pan at some point in the future though.
 
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