In essence, you do clean cast iron pans, but you don’t scour them. It’s the same difference between wiping down your walls and stripping off the paint. You might want to strip off all the seasoning if you for some reason need to re-season the pan. You shouldn’t be able to taste old food when you cook with it, and while it’s common to leave some oil on the pan after cleaning it, bacteria don’t really thrive in that, and whatever bacteria might end up on the pan dies when you heat it.
Honestly people tend to overcomplicate the usage. It’s as simple as
Cook in it
Rinse under hot water and brush gently with a nylon brush if needed
Wipe off water with a paper towel
Coat in a very thin layer of oil with a paper towel
The last two parts is just to protect it from moisture, and subsequently rust.
I realise it’s a few days late, but Minute Food did an excellent video about this.
In essence, you do clean cast iron pans, but you don’t scour them. It’s the same difference between wiping down your walls and stripping off the paint. You might want to strip off all the seasoning if you for some reason need to re-season the pan. You shouldn’t be able to taste old food when you cook with it, and while it’s common to leave some oil on the pan after cleaning it, bacteria don’t really thrive in that, and whatever bacteria might end up on the pan dies when you heat it.
Honestly people tend to overcomplicate the usage. It’s as simple as
The last two parts is just to protect it from moisture, and subsequently rust.