My cast iron skillet finally stopped smoking after I stopped using olive oil for searing

Had this 12 inch Lodge for about 4 years now and could never get a good sear on steak without setting off the smoke alarm. I kept using regular olive oil because that's what I had in the cupboard. Last week I picked up some avocado oil on a whim and tried it at medium high heat instead of high heat. Night and difference. No smoke, perfect crust on a ribeye. Been doing it every day since. Anyone else have a similar switch that fixed their smoke problem?

2 comments

2 Comments

jamiekim24d ago

Grabbed a bottle of grapeseed oil after reading about it on a cooking forum. Used it for searing chicken thighs and it barely smoked at all. Also found I could get the pan hotter without that burning smell. Been using it for most high heat stuff since then and it changed things a lot. What kind of steak have you been cooking?

logan_dixon1824d ago

Grapeseed oil is fine but it's actually got a smoke point around 420F which is lower than people think. Avocado oil is better for serious searing, that stuff barely smokes until like 520F. Still though, grapeseed is a solid upgrade from olive oil or butter for high heat. Just don't believe the hype about it being some kind of miracle oil, it's decent but not life changing. Been using it myself for a while now and it does the job without making the kitchen smell like a fire.