Camp Oven gone wrong!!!

Forget the Canola oil go to the local butcher and get some beef fat. To get the old burnt oil out you may need to burn it out

I do mine on top of the wood heater or gas ring. get it hot and then wipe the fat around inside and under the lid. re-heat and do it again. As long is the oven is only used for meat and stews etc all will be ok. But for damper and cakes you will have to clean it out or get a second oven.

When cleaning no need to wash with soapy water jush hot water and a brush, re-heat then you can wipeout with oil.

Hi
Try here, I think this was mentioned on here a while back

Camp oven cooking

Cheers

It probably isn't the oil burning - more likely the wax coating that the ovens come with to stop them rusting at the shop. You need to give it a good scrub with steel wool and extremely hot soapy water to get this wax off prior to seasoning it.

Then the best way is to heat it up in the oven and then when it is hot oil it - any oil will do. Only needs to be repeated if for some reason you need to wash the oven with detergent.

I would not oil it and then heat it. I'd wash it and start again if I was you.

PLEASE NOTE!!

Never use soap on cast iron!!

Soap (even soapy water) gets into the cast iron (same as oil does in the seasoning process) and then it shows up when you cook...

Season as per previous posts, to get rid of the coating they put at the factory by just getting it very hot on top of a stove or the campfire..

Never wash anything cast iron with soap or detergent...

Will

You are going to get some conflicting views here. So follow which ever advice you think is best. None of them will do any real harm.

In my experience (3 camp ovens, and several cast iron pans etc over the years, including my favorite omelet pan), there is no problem using soap on cast iron BEFORE it is seasoned. Scrub it as much as you like with hot soapy water to get any of the wax and other gunk off. Rinse it thoroughly in lots of hot water to remove the soap.

I repeat the seasoning 2 or 3 times on a new item. On the first coat, heat the item up before applying the oil. This lets it soak in better without burning. On the second, I find it is OK to put the oil on cold. Just not too much at a time.

If the oven ever gets rusty, (if well maintained it shouldn't, but you never know) scrub it clean and repeat the seasoning.

After each use, give it a good clean (with no, or very little soap) and apply a light coat of oil. While it is OK to season with beef fat (I always use vegetable oil) never use fat when you will store the oven. It can go rancid.

I store my ovens in a cloth bag. I fold up a bit of paper towel and put it between the lid and the oven top. This serves two purposes. If there is any moisture, it is likely to be absorbed by the paper, rather than possibly causing rust on the oven. It also lets just a small amount of air circulation inside. The cloth bag also prevents oil or dirt from the outside of the oven soiling the 4B when I store it for transport.

Finally, if seasoning in your oven inside the house. Don't apply too much oil at a time. Turn the oven camp oven upside down on the oven rack to stop oil pooling in the bottom and burning. To keep your oven floor clean, just lay a bit of foil.

Hope I haven't made this sound too complex. It is not. And it is certainly worth the effort.

Hmmm, so is there any quick-fix if one has already used their oven/pan un-seasoned, and got it rusty? Or should I just go buy another $10 pan?

Sorry HLC but probably your first mistake was getting a cast iron one as the spun steel jobs are heaps lighter, easier to pack, wont crack & can use the lid as a frypan or jacking base (amoung other things), but now that you have one......the best way to remove all that oily gunk is to place it upside down on the camp fire. Once it's burnt off wipe it with oil, reheat, then add another layer of oil. Seasoning camp ovens at home only creates heaps of smoke particually from the wife's ears as you stink out the house;-)
When you clean up, avoid over washing it as you always need a thin layer of oil to prevent rust. The only exception to this is when cooking bread, scones, nacho's etc as any residual oil will leave a smokey taste. In this case I give it a good scrub & reoil afterwards.
Cheers Craig..........

I have a slightly different way of seasoning the camp overn!

Give it a good clean with hot soapy water to remove the waxy coating, then coat with oil and cook it on the bbq, outside!!! I even cook with mine on the bbq!!!

I took keep mine in a pillow case, and the outside of mine is all rusty, but the inside is perfect. Rust outside is purely cosmetic, it's what's inside that counts!

Jo