How can I get my cast-iron wok to stop sticking?

I have seasoned it again and again following every set of instructions I can find on the internet and it sticks more than anything else I have ever cooked with... still!



I have wiped it with lard and baked it at 250 for a couple hours, repeated... still sticks. I've coated it with lard and baked it all night... still sticks. I've used other oils too. It keeps sticking! What really works?How can I get my cast-iron wok to stop sticking?
You need to coat it with oil, then heat it up on the stove on very high heat until it turns black. You are not using high enough heat. It has to smoke to carbonize and that's what seasons it.



Hope this helps.How can I get my cast-iron wok to stop sticking?
You can use the same method I hyper linked for a cast iron wok, although I would recommend letting it cool until you can touch it and re oiling it and repeating the hour in the oven heat at least 2 to 3 times. I season mine at 375 degrees and that seems to work the best for me. The key points are to scrub it very well with soap and hot water, rinse it thoroughly and do really thin coats of oil. Too much and you'll get runs down the side that will be sticky and then you'll have to scrub them off and start over.

Before seasoning is also the ONLY time you want to use soap! After it is seasoned properly use only hot water and a stiff brush to clean it. If you use soap after its seasoned it will take the seasoning right off and you'll be back to square one..
I place my cast iron into the fireplace when burning a hot fire. That burns off most any residue left in the pan. Then rub it with rock salt mixed with oil. That will help to hone the surface. Good luck
I season mine in the oven at 500 degrees or on my charcoal grill. If using the oven, I line a rack with foil, lightly grease the cookware, place it on the foil upside down, turn the oven to 500, cut on the vent and open the window. I leave it there for a 1 1/2 - 2 hours. Then cut the oven off and let the pan cool off inside. If using the grill, I get the coals hot and set the cookware on the rack upside down, cover the grill and leave it there until the grill and pan cool off. I only use shortening. I tried vegetable oil once but it made the surface sticky.



250 definitely is not hot enough.



Hopefully you are not washing the wok out with soap.
I think most people are right in that you're not heating the coated pan high enough.



In addition, be aware that it takes a while to build up a really non-stick surface so don't expect something like Teflon from the beginning.



How and when the pan is prepared and the food cooked is also important though.

So (when cooking) be sure to heat the pan *before* adding oil (when dots of water start jumping in the pan, it's hot enough), add some oil (less and less as the pan becomes seasoned, if you want) and wait for the oil to begin to ripple a bit on the surfact (which happens just before it starts smoking) before placing the food in.



For meats you want to brown, dry well and/or flour coat, then let sit some minutes while browning before trying to move them (which will make them release easily and also leave the good brown fond behind for making sauce,etc.). Keep the heat fairly high for the initial browning and don't crowd the pan or the temp will drop too much. Once browning is done, then turn heat down to finish cooking the insides (or put whole pan in oven awhile to finish the cooking).



HTH,



Diane B.