How to Refurbish a Really Bad Pan
Good news. Even the worst looking cast-iron skillets can be brought back to life.
Unless that rusty pan has a large crack or hole running straight through it, it can be salvaged. You may think this means stripping and reseasoning it from scratch, but in fact, the vast majority of the time even a moderately rusty pan can be fixed without stripping it.
No need to risk your oven (many manufacturers will void your oven’s warranty if you use the self-cleaning cycle to strip a cast-iron pan) or resort to harsh chemicals—all you need is a little elbow grease.
First, give the pan a hearty scrub with steel wool to remove any crusty bits of old burnt-on food and scrape away the worst of the rust. It’s fine to use a little soap, but you really don’t have to.
Once the pan’s surface is fairly smooth again, give it a rinse and dry it thoroughly. From there, simply spread a superthin layer of oil all over the pan, heat it on the stove until the oil bakes on, and repeat a few times until the pan looks black and glossy once more. Voilà! Good as new.
