Food That's Still Stuck Option One: Deglaze your cast-iron cookware with red wine. It's as simple as it sounds. Get some red wine (an inexpensive bottle, save the good stuff for drinking) and pour a thin layer of it into the skillet until the stubborn, stuck food is covered.
You just pour the wine (or broth or water or other liquid) in the pan. Let it come to a boil then simmer to reduce. As to the heat changing the flavor of the wine, it's not anything noticeable since you have the flavor of whatever is being deglazed from and they have a little flavor party.
Deglazing Liquid -- Any dry red or white wine, or brandy have acid, so they will work best. Orange juice and vinegar also work for the same reason.
When you season your cast iron, the oil on the skillet undergoes a process called polymerization. Applying too much oil prevents proper polymerization, leaving your cast iron streaky, sticky, bubbly, and tacky. Always wipe off the excess oil(leaving a very thin layer) before putting it in the oven.
Food That's Still Stuck
If that happens, don't worry. There's a couple easy ways to clean it without scratching up the whole surface of the skillet. Option One: Deglaze your cast-iron cookware with red wine. It's as simple as it sounds.
“What liquids can I use to deglaze a pan?” is the next question. You can use any cold liquid other than dairy because dairy will curdle on high heat. Any type of stock/broth (chicken, beef, vegetable, etc.) Vinegar (apple cider vinegar, balsamic, white vinegar, etc.)
White grape juice: Use white grape juice as a substitute when you want to add sweetness, or deglaze the pan. For a punchier substitute, try mixing a tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice per cup of grape juice. Chicken or vegetable stock: Substitute stock for white wine when you want to add depth of flavor to a dish.
Contrary to popular belief, you can use a small amount of soap to clean cast iron cookware! Large amounts of soap can strip the seasoning off your pan, but you can easily re-season your pan as needed. Can I use steel wool or a metal scrubber to clean my cast iron pan? No!
Common cooking oils like olive oil will gradually produce seasoning, but won't be as effective as grapeseed oil. Canola, other vegetable oils, and shortening are a little better.
Add 1 cup water or a mixture of ½ water and ½ white vinegar to the hot pan and allow to boil. Use more if you have a large pot or pan. As the liquid simmers, use the spatula or scraper to deglaze the bottom of the pan, loosening bits of burnt food. Pour the liquid into the sink and do not dry or wipe the pan.
Deglazing 101
To do this, you'll need some liquid. You can use any liquid that isn't fat-based (meaning, don't use oil or melted butter) to deglaze a pan. Wine, stock, broth, some canned tomatoes with their liquid, coconut milk, or even plain water are fine to use in the process.
By definition, deglaze means to pour a cold liquid into a boiling pan in order to get any brown pieces of ingredients stuck to the bottom and sides. The chunks of food glued to the pan are called the “fond” and usually store most of the flavor for the dish.
Pour in liquids: With the pan set over medium-high heat, pour in the liquid (wine, vinegar, beer, stock, juice or sauce). As the liquid simmers, scrape up any crispy bits from the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon or spatula. Reduce any alcohol by half, then pour stock to make a sauce.
Alcohol: Wine is the most commonly used liquid for deglazing. It usually has a good mixture of acidity and sweetness without being overpowering. Since the wine cooks off completely when used to deglaze, it leaves behind a fairly mild flavor.
Wine, vinegar and broth are all great deglazing liquids. Use a stiff-edged spatula to scrape up the bits at the bottom of the pan.
While it is important to clean off cooked-on food and unwanted strong flavors, overcleaning cast iron can result in drying your skillet out or stripping the seasoning. Seasoning is the coating that protects your iron and makes it nonstick.
The vinegar solution will dissolve the rust, but once that's gone, it can penetrate further and start eating away at the original cast surface of the pan, the ultimate death sentence for your skillet.
Decades ago, soaps were made with lye and vinegar, and they were too harsh for use on cast iron pans. They would indeed strip away oil and could remove seasoning. But today's soaps, especially ones that are made with eco-friendly solutions, are often too mild to remove seasoning.