Issues (Real or Not) About Stoneware?

[RMDave]

Today I was greeted at my front door by a customer with a frown on her face and a small bar pan in her right hand.

She'd baked a single pork chop on it last night and a place where the chop became "well caramelized" and dripped is now a deep brown.

Boiling water wouldn't remove it.

The mark laughed at the paste of baking soda and hot water that I applied.

The grease is gone. The stain remains. The customer was not amused.

I was told by the most gracious Bobbi that its a beauty mark. A teeny-tiny area that is now considered well seasoned. Its a great line that I intend to use frequently ... but is it the truth?

The client was concerned that the pork fat would become rancid and spoil anything (and everything) it came in contact with. I assured her there was no grease/fat to be concerned about.

But its ugly for sure.

Comments? Suggestions? Rude thoughts? I'm open to them all.

Thanks!

 

[ShelbyMichalek]

Dave!! It is truly a beauty mark!!

I reheated a pork loin on my large bar pan and it seasoned my pan soo beautifully. Now it's mostly dark, except the one spot in the middle where the loin sat and didn't allow juices to reach. It was pretty cool afterwards.

 

[Jolie_Paradoxe]

It's the seasoning process. Drove me crazy in the beginning because I thought the seasoning would be uniformed...it is ugly, and it looks dirty. With time it kind of starts becoming more uniformed, but the areas that come in ctc with the fattiest parts of meats tends to get those "beauty marks" (That is a great line).

It will not get rancid and it will not transfer to any of the meals she makes. I found that the beauty mark fades a bit more when you rub it with your thumb pad while under hot water.

 

[esavvymom]

Just to link this up with this topic- should another new person be questioning, this is a link that Paulette shared in the chatbox when we were talking about this. It's a great continuation of the discussion of stones being "clean".http://www.chefsuccess.com/f8/stoneware-cleanliness-23384/

 

[etteluap70PC]

here are some helpful files

 

[NooraK]

The cool thing is that as you use your stone, it will get seasoned, and you can address this issue at your shows before anyone questions it.

 

[RMDave]

Absolutely NooraK .. "Beauty Marks" are to be proud of. LOL

 

[pampered1224]

Liken the stones to the ever famous cast iron skillets. The same thing that made them so wonderful - lots of use and a great patina, is exactly what makes stones so wonderful. They too build up that patina and the more there is the better the stone works. Stones will NEVER look new. And they should not. They need those beauty marks to make them perfect! I have my very first round stone. I bought it in 1997. It is a dark mahogany almost black color. Absolutely nothing sticks to it, nothing tastes weird and no it does not smell! It is absolutely perfect!

 

[PCJenni]

bacon is the best to start to season a new stone. Have her put as much bacon as will fit on the stone flat side by side no overlapping of the pieces. Bake at 400 for 15 minutes. perfect bacon everytime. the stone gets a more uniform color. no smell transfer to the stone and it wows them every time!

 

[wadesgirl]

I cooked asparagus on my bar pan and they left their own little beauty mark under each one!

 

[sklay723]

One of the first times I ever used my large round stone with handles, it was at a show and we did a chicken braid/twist. The cheese melted out of the twist and onto the stone, and you can see, to this day two years later, the outline of the twist. I always tell everyone that it's a "souvenir" of one of my first shows.

It's finally seasoning to the point where it's a true conversation point at shows. I always tell people that it's developing its own non-stick coating, and that "The worse it looks, the better it cooks!!!"

 

[JAE]

Baking sweet potato fries (or any kind of greasy fries) is a great way to season the stones, too.

 

[jwpamp]

Bacteria is killed at 180 degrees. End of story. Oh, and I don't think that in 30 years we have lost anyone to a "stoneware" death.

My previous occupation -- Respiratory Therapist (hey, this job beats sucking snot!)