It comes as a surprise to many campers that their camp cooking equipment requires seasoning, in the modern age of stainless steel kitchen cookware its easy for people to forget the simple process of seasoning your camp cookware. the process isn’t difficult at all, and can be done in just an hour or 2, with a few simple steps, so pay attention as we outline clearly the how’s and the whys of seasoning your camp cookware.

WHAT IS SEASONING AND WHAT IS IT’S PURPOSE?

Seasoning is the process of coating your camp cookware in oil and heating it up in a process with the goal of creating a thin layer of polymerized cooking oil/fat on the surface. As many of the camp cooking tools such as your brand new Bedourie camp oven, Adventure Kings campfire BBQ Plate and Adventure Kings cast iron skillet require a coating to prevent rust build up and to create a non-stick barrier when cooking, even though these are made from a combination of materials, and not only the traditional cast iron.

Seasoning is effectively the process of heating up cooking oil, or fat nice and hot, creates a chemical reaction that turns the oils present into a polymer coating that is nonstick and durable, whilst also protecting the surface of the metal from oxidizing by creating an impenetrable barrier, as well as being edible, and environmentally friendly.

By seasoning your cookware, you not only ensure it stays like new, but performs well, and lasts you many years on the tracks with no questions asked!

HOW DO I SEASON MY CAMP COOKWARE?

Seasoning is easy to do, and if your camp cookware is brand new, you will be required to season it before first use, as time goes on and you may need to re-season the surface to ensure maximum corrosion resistance and excellent non-stick properties.

To season your cookware, firstly start with a thorough clean, this will remove any manufacturers residue, including oxidation inhibiting wax, machining oils, and any previous seasoning on the metals surface.

This usually requires a good scrub down with soapy water, and a green scouring pad to expose the metals surface.

Once your pan is nice and clean, it is fairly important to get the process done quickly, once you have cleaned your cookware, the simple process of gently preheating it will allow your cookware to fully dry out.

Once your camp cookware is dry, it is time to prepare it for seasoning, there are a number of different oils you can use for the process, but the oil you typically use for cooking will be perfect, simply take a paper towel and thoroughly coat the whole inside and outside of the cookware with your chosen oil, leaving a thin even film of oil all over.

It is now time to take things up a few degrees, the ideal temperature for season is within a few degrees of the smoke point of your chosen oil. This can be hard to determine, so we’ve got a short list that you can refer to, to help figure out the best temperature for your cookware!

Simply set your oven to the listed temperature of your chosen oil and bake your cookware for approximately 45mins. To 1hr for the best results.

When the process is done your cookware will obtain a dark patina, that gradually gets darker with use, this should last for a long period of time, and with regular usage, the base coat will be added to, with subsequent layers of oil, resulting in perfectly non stick camp cookware that is durable and practical.

You can easily perform the seasoning process if the patina is damaged, the process can also be done over the fire place using the same procedure, just make sure to keep an eye on your setup to get the best results.

It’s as easy as that, in just an afternoon, and an icy cold beer or two, you can have your brand new cookware seasoned and ready to get out camping, with a high-tech, chemistry proven, protective rust proof and nonstick oil based polymer coating, and all with whatever oil you have lying around the kitchen.

All that is left to do is get out camping and enjoy the great outdoors with tasty trackside meals, thanks to Adventure Kings Gear and 4WD Supacentre!