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Dutch oven cooking safety?

So we have a cast iron dutch oven that we use indoors, but not very often. It's been seasoned and we usually take pretty good care of it. (I know the basics, no soap, etc., but I'm no boy scout.)
Tonight I pulled it out of the cabinet to make dinner and the lid was kind of stuck. It was a little sticky on the inside, but looked okay. It also had kind of a...musty..smell. Not rancid (like I know d.u. can get), but more like something that has been in the back a cabinet for a month or so. I assume because the lid was on it.
Anyway, I rinsed it out and wiped it was a clean sponge, and then cooked dinner in it. Everything tasted fine, but the internet research I was doing for a cleaning lesson has me worried about the smell. Did I poison us?

K Lo asked in House & Home about 1 year ago | Report

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2 Answers

  • N1141704326_11_small
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    No, it's fine. I have a cast iron dutch oven that's ben in my family for a zillion years. When you use it, wash it out with dish soap and water, don't ever, ever use steel wool, and towel-dry it soon after washing. I spray olive oil cooking spray (vegetable, canola, etc. work too) on the bottom and sides and rub a paper towel around to set it in and get rid of the excess. This creates a rust barrier. What you smell is probably rancid oil, but a wash will take care of that. I have gone long periods without using it, and the cooking spray never gets rancid. A good dutch oven is a wonderful thing to own.

    Lindsay Hendrix answered in House & Home about 1 year ago | Report
    2 comments by K Lo and keshmeshi…
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  • 2008_0522stuff0016_small
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    Do you normally coat your pan in cooking oil to keep the seasoning? That can go rancid and sticky if you don't use the pan a lot. Cast iron seasoning is the one place in the kitchen that I use Crisco, because it just doesn't go bad.

    If the smell/stickiness persists, re-season the pan. If it's been more than a year since the last time you seasoned it, you're due anyway.

    Also, try scrubbing with coarse salt--it's remove the top layer of funk without damaging the pan.

    Griffin answered in House & Home about 1 year ago | Report
    3 comments by K Lo, Griffin, and keshmeshi…
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