Food Q&A: Save that yucky skillet by burying it in a fireplace
Published 1:30 am Wednesday, February 5, 2020
The Washington Post
The Washington Post Food staff recently answered questions about all things edible. Here are edited excerpts from that chat.
Q: I have an ancient cast iron skillet. Baked-on crud is on the outside. My option is hammer and chisel to get it off. I truly am ready to toss it. I only use it for cornbread which turns out great. Using on a glass-top electric stove, the crud starts smoking. So I only use it in the oven. Help please!
A: I wouldn’t go hammer and chisel, but you can completely strip off everything that’s there and start from scratch. I had one reader email me (echoing other things I’ve heard) that they have had great success burying the skillet in their fireplace or campfire to let all the crud burn off. You could also use the self-cleaning cycle of your oven. Cook’s Illustrated offers a method using oven cleaner. — Becky Krystal
Q: Have you used the fabric strips you put around the pan to keep the edges from cooking quickly and causing the middle to rise more? I was looking for a recipe last week, and saw they recommended using these.
A: I’ve used them before and they’re pretty great. And now that you mention them, I realized I’ve not see them in my kitchen for quite some time, and wonder if they got lost in the many moves of 2018. You can definitely give them a go — they’re not a costly investment and I recall finding them quite handy. — Olga Massov
Q: What’s your take on this supposed-to-be-healthy idea of putting coconut oil in coffee? Seems some people also add oils with names like MCT and brain octane oil and Bulletproof (the last may be a brand name). I am not completely turned off by the coconut oil idea as I use almond-coconut milk in my coffee and like the taste but I don’t think of coffee the way I think of bread or hard-boiled eggs, which taste better with something additional, or, say, Twinkies, which would benefit from a nutrition boost.
A: I’m not going to yuck anyone’s yum, and if adding those things to their coffee makes them happy, more power. I, however, am super picky about my coffee (less so since having a kid due to being pressed for time) and don’t want those things in my morning java (or afternoon). I want to truly enjoy my coffee, and not make a nutritional powerhouse of it. — O.M.
Q: I’m embarking on the keto train at my doctor’s recommendation. I’ve always been a carbaholic (I’m Italian) but I’m starting to struggle. I have the dinners just about down, but what do I do about lunches? Please do not suggest leftovers because I won’t eat it. I have a weird thing in that I hate leftovers. Literally, the only leftovers I’ll ever eat are spaghetti and chili. I can’t do anything with nuts due to an allergy. During lunches I find I crave the sandwiches, chips, soda but I need to learn to give that up.
A: I had a brief flirtation with keto — “keto-tarian,” actually a veg version of it — right when I turned in my bean book, cause, well, I needed a bean break! Tons of eggs, avocados, sour cream, butter. Honestly, I couldn’t manage to eat enough of the fat, which is amazing cause I love fat. Anyhow, how about egg salad with low-carb vegetables? — Joe Yonan
Q: I need to make and freeze a lot of chocolate chip cookies. Can I just put them in a plastic bag or is there a better way?
A: Sure, but it can help to wrap in plastic as an additional layer of protection against freezer burn. Another less-plasticy option is an airtight container, between layers of parchment or wax paper. — B.K.
Q: I have several bags of beans at bottom of my pantry that are years old. Should I just toss them?
A: No, don’t toss them, cook them! It’s true that if beans are particularly old they’ll take longer to cook, but they’ll get there. You can add a pinch of baking soda to the cooking water to speed things along. This is also where soaking can help — I don’t do it anymore for beans that I know are relatively fresh, but for ones I know are older, or ones I’m not sure about, it can help them hydrate more evenly. Also: Use salt in the soaking water, as a brine, and use kombu (along with a little more salt) when you cook them. I swear. — J.Y.
Q: I have a years-old jar of uncooked chickpeas that was forgotten in the rear of a cupboard. Do you have a use-by suggestion or should I just soak them for a few days and see what happens?
A: The latter — although soak them at room temp just overnight, 8-12 hours. Any longer than that, put them in the fridge. If you have an Instant Pot or other pressure cooker, here’s where you will want to pull it out. — J.Y.
