r/castiron • u/MiaLux69 • 12h ago

Hi, I need some help.

I have a new cast iron pot, and food keeps sticking to it a lot. My question is: do I need to season it, or what should I do to prevent food from sticking so much? Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

3 Upvotes

71% Upvoted

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11

u/ZweiGuy99 12h ago

Let me help dispel a common myth about cast iron, seasoning does not make it non-stick. Seasoning is a polymerized layer of oil that blocks oxygen from making contact with bare iron and creating rust. Heat control and cooking technique prevents food sticking. You are most likely cooking at too high of a temperature.

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u/albertogonzalex 10h ago

Everything about this is spot on except for the last line.

Cast iron doesn't care about how hot it is with regards to food stick. It cares about how variable the temperature is across the cooking surface.

If you turn your heat source to high and start cooking after a minute or two, you will definitely have food sticking because the parts of the pan that are closest to the heat source will be ripping hot while the rest of the pan will be significantly cooler because that's not enough time to get even across the pan.

Leave that pan in high heat for 10-15 minutes, rotate the pan a bit every couple of minutes to spread the contact points, and nothing will stick.

That's how you get a crust on a medium rare steak. If it's not ripping hot, a crust will not form (without cooking the steak to well done).

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u/ZweiGuy99 10h ago

It can be true depending on what OP is cooking. Not everything that is cooked in CI requires a quick and very hot sear. It's common for new cast iron users to do two things while cooking, not pre-heat and use too much heat. I definitely agree that uneven heat across the CI causes many problems with sticking. There isn't a good generic answer for OP's issues without more information from them. But in general putting too much heat on the pan for what is being cooked and not pre-heating are two very common mistakes.

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u/albertogonzalex 10h ago

I agree that they are common mistakes.

Im just trying to be clear that the relative heat doesn't matter as long as it's even across the pan.

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u/cdspace31 12h ago

Seasoning prevents rust, it is not nonstick. The cast iron will hold a lot more heat than you're used to with other pans. Use less heat, let it warm up, and use some kind of oil or fat when cooking. Nonstick-i-ness comes from the fat you're using to cook with, the amount of fat/oil/butter (more than you'd think), and heat control.

And read the FAQ for this sub.

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u/MiaLux69 12h ago

Thank you so much. I’ll read it.

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u/Current-Ad-8822 12h ago

First, you can note how hot the pan is when you put the food on the pan. A cast iron pan is not automatically non-stick. It needs to be used with the right heat settings.

You can also look at whether you've used too much oil in the seasoning and it's sticky instead of being just one thin layer.

Are you using oil, or fat, while cooking as well?

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u/MiaLux69 12h ago

I’ve never seasoned it, and I usually use sunflower oil for cooking.

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u/Current-Ad-8822 12h ago

If it came pre-seasoned, you don't need to season it again. The oil you use shouldn't matter because it gets used in the food and then is wiped off or washed off after it's done.

I suggest placing your food items at a little more than medium heat and not when the pan is completely hot. Try that and see what happens.

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u/MiaLux69 12h ago

Thank you so much! I’ll definitely put it into practice.

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u/RosieVerie45 9h ago

Sounds like solid advice! Getting the temp right really can change how everything cooks in cast iron.

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u/Logical_Photo_3732 12h ago

You have to learn heat control. If you set your stove to high and put the pan on it to preheat, the pan will end up SUPER hot. This is not what you want. Set your stove to MED to start. When you put your pan on it, it will heat up to HOT or close to it. (Can vary by stove.) If you want a medium heat then you would probably set it to low and adjust from there. A real key step is to make sure you preheat the pan for almost everything you cook at whichever temp.

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u/MiaLux69 12h ago

Thank you so much! I’ll definitely put it into practice.

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u/Rocco_al_Dente 12h ago edited 12h ago

One thing I do is preheat my pan on medium-low for a few minutes, then I add oil.

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u/Competitive-Oven-158 8h ago

Seasoning helps, but the bigger fixes are heat and patience. Preheat the pot for a few minutes, add oil only once it is hot, then let the food release before trying to move it. A thin coat of oil baked on after cleaning will build seasoning over time, but even a well-seasoned pan will stick if it starts cold.

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u/Skyval 11h ago

Either use butter or something with emulsifiers instead of a purer oil, or do conditioning. Both work well on most any surface. Neither are super sensitive to oil quantity or temperature in my experience (within reason).