Seasoning Your Cast Iron Dutch Oven

If properly cared for, a cast iron Dutch oven will last for generations. Proper care starts from the day of purchase and continues throughout the life of the oven. Seasoning the cast iron is essential to long lasting life as it protects the bare iron from rusting which it is prone to do.

All Dutch ovens come with a protective coating that must be removed before seasoning and use. With some hot water and soap use some elbow grease and steel wool. Note that this is the ONLY time soap should be used on the cast iron. After cleaning the oven needs to be hand dried with a towel and left to air dry afterward.

While a Dutch oven can be seasoned indoors, it is recommended to use an outdoor grill or barbecue as the seasoning process creates a good deal of smoke.

Preheat the grill or kitchen oven to 375° F prior to seasoning. After the oven is completely dry place it in the center of the grill or kitchen oven making sure to leave the lid ajar. Heat the Dutch oven slowly to allow for any residual moisture to evaporate. The oven should be just barely too hot to handle with your bare hands.

Remove the oven from your heat source and apply a thin layer of cooking oil, preferably vegetable oil as it has a lower burning temperature than olive or peanut oils. It should be applied with a paper towel or 100% cotton cloth. This enables the hardening of the oil at lower temperatures. Lard can also be used but tends to wear down over long periods of inactivity of the oven. The needs to cover absolutely every exposed square inch of the cast iron Dutch oven.

When completely covered place back into the grill or oven at 375° for about an hour. During this process the pot needs to be placed upside down in the center of the rack and the lid on top of the legs to prevent oil form collecting in the oven itself. The heat will turn the oil into a hardened protective layer covering the iron. Repeat this process once more when the oven has cooled enough for handling.

After this second coat apply a third and final coat after the oven has cooled again, but this time it will not be baked again. During this process do not let oil pool in any one area; it will cause the previous layer to turn rancid. The oven is now ready for use.

The seasoning process only needs to be done once unless misuse or rust forms. The reason you need to season the cast iron is that the metal is very porous and the pores are what causes the ovens to rust. The oil lends itself to fill these pores when heated and stops the corrosive effects of oxidation.

In addition the seasoning becomes a non-stick surface similar to commercially manufactured non stick pans and skillets. With age and use the coating will turn dark and black which is a sign of great care and use.

FYI: Avoid baking or cooking higher acidic foods like tomatoes and dishes with a lot of sugar in them for the first three or four uses. These compounds can damage the coating before it is fully hardened.

Of course, there are several alternatives to the traditional cast iron Dutch oven.

Close to the original are the enamel coated cast iron Dutch oven. These have many of the same qualities but do not require the seasoning and are easier to clean.

Also, there are metal Dutch oven which are quite different than the cast iron but are frequently used for similar tasks. Stainless steel clad Dutch oven can be used for those recipes that have more acidic ingredients as the stainless is inert. The aluminum of copper cladding makes heat distribution consistent for braising, stews and soups. Copper can be used for those recipes that have heat management constraints. Copper is the best conductor of heat in cookware and thus has the most flexibiity.