How do I restore old cast iron cookware?

Unknown Chef is close, but bronze medal, not gold. To season, cure, or proove a pan. Don't just oil it, wet it, with water, not oil, the oil will turn to varnish.

Wet it, tip the water out, and assault it, fill it with salt and then heat it up, make sure it's very hot.

When that salt is baked on, let it cool a little. then scrape the salt out, it should form a crust. then spray, or wipe with a paper towel with cooking oil. Be careful and use tongs, if it's still hot it may smoke and it will be hot.

If the outside of your pan is rusty, heat it in a hot oven, or even better, throw it in the fire!

Let it cool, then give it a good bang with a hammer. It wool loosen any rust scales or ingrained dirt.

Once you have proved your pan you will only need to wipe it out, if you wash with detergent you will need to repeat this! Scientifically the slt draws moisture and impurities from the grain of the metal, and the oil replaces it!

Use coarse steel wool or even emery cloth, along with plain ol' elbow grease, to get the bad rust and build-up off. Sand blasting, as mentioned in other answers, should work as well though I've not tried it. If a little rust is left, that's fine. The oil from seasoning will take care of it. I don't use salt when seasoning cast iron, just oil. Try using peanut oil when seasoning them in the oven, as it has a higher smoke point. Put a cookie sheet or some foil under the skillet to catch oil that drips off while in the oven. What you end up with eventually is a black shiny surface that is almost as non-stick as teflon and a heckuva lot more durable. Just be patient with it. Almost any cast iron cookware is salvageable, providing it isn't cracked or too badly warped.

I have a pan given to me by a relative, it is over 50 yrs old, the best way to restore or cure it is wipe it clean with a damp cloth, do not wash, rub some oil on it, and cover the bottom with a layer of salt, baked in a 350 d F oven for 1 hour or more, then let it cool, once it is cool enough to touch remove the salt, and brush all the remaining out and then get it a good rub with veg oil all on the inside, the exterior is fine, just keep using it and wiping clean and a oiling after each use, it will get more non stick with every use. We use to do this for steel and cast iron pan as chef when I worked, I had one just for omelets, I kept it in my staff locker.

How do you mean, "restore"? A cast iron skillet should just be washed (gently) with hot, soapy water then patted dry after each use so as not to lose the natural non-stick seasoning layer that builds up on it over time....if your pan has lost that coat, then just oil it well and "cook it" in the oven at whatever temperature it goes up to for an hour or two, let it cool, and put it back into regular use to recover the coating...

It depends on what shape the pan is in. with just a little touch up and seasoning, it can be great. If there's rust, you'll need to get a wire brush and scrape all of the rust off. I put a brush on my drill to get the hard rust off the pan. For baked on food you can use a mixture of heavily salted water, a wire brush, and a scraper.

Another technique is to use 2 parts vinegar and 1 part water. Allow to soak for about 5 - 6 hours. Don't use straight vinegar because it may dissolve the metal.

Cola has been known to remove rust as well but I've never tired it.

Hope this helps and good luck with your cast iron cookware.

IF you BBQ with charcoal, take the skillet and coat generously with vegetable oil. Heat the coals till ashy, and place the pan into the coals. Not on top, but on them. You may or may not want to cook other foods while this is happening, but let the pan sit on the coals till you can remove it carefully. Don't let it sit overnight, it might start rusting with evening moisture.

Why not take the advice of the people who make cast iron cookware for a living? Lodge Cookware...

http://www.lodgemfg.com/use-care-seasoned-cast-iro...

bake in a 350 degree oven I season mine with apple peels and a little water back for about 3 hours take out of oven let cool awhile then rub oil into the pan

Make sure it is clean and rust free; steel wool scrubbies work well for this.

http://www.wikihow.com/Season-a-Cast-Iron-Skillet

Then follow directions in the link.

http://whatscookingamerica.net/Information/CastIro...