Poe's law in action! What could be more white than posting a selection of unopened and unused supermarket condiments as sardonic proof that white people do in fact season food? Read the rest

I prefer to do my cooking on cast iron cookware. Cast iron is an astonishingly effective non-stick surface. It heats evenly and is super simple to clean. I can think of only two negatives: it is heavy, and maintenance is very different from my other pots and pans.

I have a set of more-common-today stainless/copper cookware. After using a pot or pan, I scrub it out in the sink with hot soapy water, dry and put away. Sometimes, when I'm lazy or just so inclined, I even put it in the dishwasher. It is what most people are used to now.

Because cast iron is seasoned to create its non-stick properties, and to keep it from rusting away, it needs different cleaning and maintenance. The coating of seasoning on your pan is a layer of polymerized oil. It's tough, and keeps air, water and food from ever coming in contact with the highly reactive iron surface. Most of the time cleaning it is super simple: while the pot or pan is hot, throw in a large handful of kosher salt, and using a wadded up paper towel, you scrub the sucker out.

You toss away the salt, wipe out the dusty remains, and let the cookware cool. If you want, and I do every 3 or 4 uses of an item, you can wipe it down lightly with your cooking oil of choice. I recommend wiping it off as much as you can, so the layer is just super thin, and heat the pan until it smokes. Read the rest