Coconut Oil and Cast Iron

Foxfire · Mar 18, 2013

My fiancee went paleo a couple months ago to help nail down a food allergy and liked it so much she's not only sticking with it but I jumped on board as well. (Want to drop about 30 more lbs to look good on all those wedding album photos!)

I have cast iron on two of my grills and use a lot of CI cookware, too. I've usually used peanut oil for seasoning but peanuts are a paleo no-no. Coconut oil is heavily pushed by paleo practitioners as a very healthy oil that has a lot of benefits, which got me wondering if anyone had tried it for cast iron seasoning and to what degree of success?

fantomlord · Mar 18, 2013

Is flaxseed oil allowed for paleo? If so, check out this link (was posted on this board previously):
http://sherylcanter.com/wordpress/2010/01/a-science-based-technique-for-seasoning-cast-iron/

I haven't used it for seasoning, but I do cook with coconut oil in my cast iron all the time--works great.

JazzyBadger · Mar 18, 2013

I've never had a problem with it. If I remember right coconut oil has a smoke point of 350º and I typically season my cast iron at about 250º or thereabouts.

ubp_sanity · Mar 18, 2013

I would say that flaxseed, being a grain would be a no as well, but I would have thought peanut would be ok. Peanuts are beans though..

Smoothsmoke · Mar 18, 2013

How much harm can it do to your diet if you're only seasoning it with peanut oil?

Offthehook · Mar 18, 2013

I use coconut oil in my cast iron and it seems fine

superlazy · Mar 18, 2013

I would think it would be fine. like jazzybadger said high smoke point

Foxfire · Mar 18, 2013

I'll give it a whirl. Been cooking with coconut oil a lot just not in CI. Looking for more ways of getting in in the diet.

Yeah, I'm not so strict that I'd worry about using peanut oil for seasoning grates or a pan or whatever, but trying to help the better half in eliminating food allergies so avoiding it, at least for the time being. Haven't read about flax either way, but I'm just a newbie. I'm practicing more of what you'd call "practical paleo". I stick by the rules as much as possible but when I'm out at a restaurant or etc. I tend to just stick with lean meats and veggies instead of quiz the server about how much X or Y there is in stuff. I think the benefits I've seen mostly come from far fewer carbs and increased veggies, plus avoiding processed stuff. Working well so far and feel great!

Next weekend I plan to do racks of beef ribs with paleo-friendly rub and sauce. I can post pron and recipe if any are interested.

jamus34 · Mar 18, 2013

Yeah, there's a HUGE difference between seasoning with an oil and cooking with it.

Long story short from what I've read when you season you WANT to go past the smoke point. When you are cooking you never want the oil to smoke.

Allergies are one thing and I wouldn't mess with it in that case however I would not be overly concerned if you are using an oil to season but do not want to cook with it. The seasoning process itself changes the chemical properties of the oil.

fantomlord · Mar 18, 2013

jamus34 said:
Yeah, there's a HUGE difference between seasoning with an oil and cooking with it.

Long story short from what I've read when you season you WANT to go past the smoke point. When you are cooking you never want the oil to smoke.

Allergies are one thing and I wouldn't mess with it in that case however I would not be overly concerned if you are using an oil to season but do not want to cook with it. The seasoning process itself changes the chemical properties of the oil.

that's actually what the page in the link I posted talks about--basically you heat the oil to the point where it polymerizes, which leaves the seasoning. at that point, it there really isn't anything left that's the original flaxseed oil, so it should be fine, even if it's not strictly paleo

landarc · Mar 18, 2013

Coconut oil for cast iron is fine, I use it all the time. So is lard.

popeye · Mar 18, 2013

jamus34 said:
Yeah, there's a HUGE difference between seasoning with an oil and cooking with it.

Long story short from what I've read when you season you WANT to go past the smoke point. When you are cooking you never want the oil to smoke.

Allergies are one thing and I wouldn't mess with it in that case however I would not be overly concerned if you are using an oil to season but do not want to cook with it. The seasoning process itself changes the chemical properties of the oil.

very well put . cast iron can be your friend if you use it right . If you don't you can use it for a paper weight .

RL Reeves Jr · Mar 19, 2013

lots of smoke point info here http://www.drgourmet.com/ingredients/smokepoints.shtml

bigabyte · Mar 19, 2013

As long as it's a saturated fat (which coconut oil is), then it is good for seasoning cast iron. Just avoid unsaturated fats.

yelonutz · Mar 19, 2013

Use lard, it makes everything better.

wmarkw · Mar 19, 2013

I'm doing the Primal version of the Paleo diet and its a good diet. I have a jar of coconut oil but havent used it yet. I primarily cook with olive oil which is allowed. If you are doing Paleo then I'm sure you have researched this website: http://www.marksdailyapple.com/#axzz2DCmlGvBl

Coconut Oil and Cast Iron

Foxfire

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ubp_sanity

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