I just got this new forged carbon steel pan from a small private blacksmith’s shop in Germany. The pans made there are of GREAT quality and are very reasonably priced. A cast-iron or carbon steel pan is one of the best things to have, when it comes to searing or frying stuff in the kitchen. Try making fried potatoes with a non-stick pan. Believe me, compared to a proper seasoned carbon steel pan, it just sucks.
The good thing is, those pans develop a kind of “non-stick” layer of magnetite, the black oxide of iron, called seasoning, from just using it. They actually get better, the more you use them. And they will almost definitely outlast you.
But you have to keep some things in mind:
“season” the pans, before you use them the first time never use soap to clean them or put them in the dishwasher after normal use, just clean with a paper towel when storing the pan always keep it oiled with a little grapeseed (or other neutral) oil
So, the seasoning process is very important. First, open your windows, there will be a good amount of smoke, if you do it right. You start with putting some fat or oil in your pan and heating it over very high heat.
Add some thick potato slices.
Add a lot of salt. Done? Okay, add even more salt.
Continue to fry the potatoes for about 8 to 10 minutes until there is a decent amount of smoke. Flip the potatoes and redistribute to provide an even seasoning. After another 10 minutes you can take the pan off the heat, discard the potatoes.
Clean out the pan with a paper towel and oil it with some grapeseed oil. See? There already is the beginning of a nice patina, your so called seasoning. Beautiful.
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