# specialy oil for cast iron



## phatch (Mar 29, 2002)

http://www.campchef.com/accessories/cast_iron/cic2.php

The conditioner is the topic here. The price they list is much higher than I have found retail. The oil is special because it won't go rancid if you have to store the cast iron for a length of time. I've just bought a bottle and will be using it on my cast iron. I'll let you know how things go.


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## chiffonade (Nov 29, 2001)

Isn't that why people use mineral oil on such things? Because it doesn't go rancid? I'd like to get a look at _that_ list of ingredients. Ever notice how mildew cleaners are usually made up of bleach? Wondering if their main ingredient is mineral oil...


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## phatch (Mar 29, 2002)

Their label says it's plant based. And would mineral oil be good for seasoning? This is supposed to be good for that. Seems that mineral oil can't take the heat, from what I remember.

No list of ingredients on the label.

Phil


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## miller (Nov 13, 2002)

Food grade mineral oil is also a great wood preserver and there are products out there for coating pastry boards, rolling pins, etc. It is applied to wood to help keep the natural moisture in the wood and will also help prevent the wood from absorbing bacteria from raw meat and other food (according to Ken Ballard Jr., safety and quality engineer for John Boos and Company, a butcher block manufacturer based in Effingham, Illinois). If you are applying it to iron, it is probably just an oil coating that helps prevent the metal from oxidizing (rust). 

I use coconut oil for these jobs since it won't go rancid. I also use it for cooking and it's always home-handy. No need to purchase an expensive bottle of food grade mineral oil. (I prefer coconut oil to fats that contain trans fatty acids.) 

Bleach (active ingredient - sodium hypochlorite) liquid household: is used because it kills bacteria, viruses, and fungi (mildew being one).


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## kokopuffs (Aug 4, 2000)

Although I'm a foodie I firmly believe that Crisco is the "preserver/conditioner" for cast iron products; mineral oil is used on wood products like baker's peels and cutting boards. Be it known that mineral oil is a petroleum distillate.


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## phatch (Mar 29, 2002)

I didn't know that about coconut oil. That might be what this is based on. It has no odor. 

I've used Crisco in the past. My problem is that my dutch ovens can go over a month between uses in the winter so I wanted something rancid-proof as it were.

Phil


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## suzanne (May 26, 2001)

I've never had a problem with Crisco on my cast iron going rancid; I don't think it CAN. Anyway, if Lodge says use it to season their stuff, that's good enough for me.


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## miller (Nov 13, 2002)

Suzanne - 
Crisco will work well to coat cast iron and prevent oxidation, however, it can and does go rancid whereas coconut oil, does not. 

Rancid fats are chock full of free-radicals that do all kinds of damage. The more free radicals you are exposed to the more damage occurs to our cells and tissues. 

Another down-side that you may not be aware of is that hydrogenated fats (shortening, in this case) are trans fatty acids. There are health concerns about consumption of trans fatty acids. If this quote is correct from Walter Willett, M.D., professor of epidemiology and nutrition at Harvard School of Public Health, "These are probably the most toxic fats ever known... It looks like trans fatty acids are two to three times as bad as saturated fats in terms of what they do to blood lipids." (Information from Harman, D., et al. 1976. Free radical theory of aging: effect of dietary fat on central nervous system functions. Journal of the American geriatrics Society 24(7): 301 and Raloff, J., 1996. Unusual fats lose heart-friendly image. Science News 150(6):87.)

If you eat margarine, shortening, hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils (common food additives), then you are consuming trans fatty acids. If you consume vegetable oils, they can be rancid without giving off an odor. In one book I read recently, it said, "all processed vegetable oils are rancid by the time they reach the store". To add to the problem, they are kept at room temperature and then cooking accelerates the oxidizing process making the oil even more rancid and unhealthy. Cooking creates toxic trans fatty acids as well.

As a choice I've made for my health, I avoid all "fats from techonology" (hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated fats and oils), prefering to use butter, organic coconut oil, olive oil, and an occasional dip into the lard bucket. The key being choice. Before I knew more about this subject, I chose what I now consider "bad" fats.


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