Here is how I maintain them after use: use a stiff scrub brush and HOT water to clean (no soap), place on stove burner at medium heat until dry, drop a bit of lard (from our pastured pork purchase last fall) into the skillet, use a paper towel to coat the skillet with lard and remove any excess. I KNOW… I need to get some lint free cloths to do this and get rid of the paper towels. I leave the skillets on my stove top until the lard cools and solidifies. Then I store them in my cabinet.

I make my toddler eggs almost every morning in cast iron, and they do not stick anymore. I tried other fats for seasoning before I thought of lard, and it works the best!

I also have my mother’s stainless steel 3 quart and 6 quart pans from my childhood (Rena Ware). The best part is that there is a handle you can attach and detach from them at will, in order to use them as sauce pans or stock pots.

With this collection in place, all my old, scratched T-Fal is now gone. YAY!