Cleaning a Dutch Oven after use

As far as the ashes on the lid I just rinse them off with the garden hose and nylon brush.

Soot only happens with a smokey burn. Should not be a issue with charcoal or coals. What I have build up on top of oven is ash. Best thing is a dry stiff brush. Once wet, it is hard to clean.
A friend that likes to keep his oven looking new will coat the top of lid for when it is stored, but washes it off before he puts coals on.

Using liquid soap on the outside of cast iron when cooking over wood is what our Scout troops have done forever. Makes cleanup real easy.

I've read about the trick of coating the outside of the pot with dish soap prior to the cooking, to keep soot from sticking. I guess as long as the lid is on, that can't affect the food cooking inside.

I clean my cast iron with a chain mail scrubber. Amazon. It works really well. No soap on the cooking surface. Dawn on the outside.

I cook with wood. The ash comes right off.
There is plenty of folklore about DOs. Once they have been used awhile it is no big deal to use water and even some soap on them. The important thing is that have to be dry.

On the rare occasion that I use my cast iron on an open fire, I clean the outside with soap and water. If it is a real sooty mess, I pick up a handful of sand and scrub the outside with that. After using the sand and water, I switch to soap and water to clean off the dirt. Nothing like a hand powered sand blaster to get rid of greasy soot.

I also use soap on the inside of my cast iron pans and ovens. They are very old and well seasoned and I have never ruined the seasoning of the pans. I do not soak the pans in soapy water, I just add soap and water, scrub, and rinse.

opnspaces wrote:
That's weird, mine never get sooty on the outside. I typically use name brand charcoal (Kingsford) the cheaper brands end to burn out too quickly.

I would use soap on the outside to clean the soot. But then again I use soap on the inside as well. I've never bought into the no soap thing and my coating is fine. Just don't use the green scrubbing side of the dish sponge when washing.

OP Here

The lid is the worst from having the charcoal sitting on it.

Thinking that a quick rinse of the lid in hot water and then dry it really well might be enough. I'm also thinking to just wipe the outside with a damp paper towel and also make sure to dry it really well.

I don't use soap unless I'm planning on reseasoning the oven again. The inside must be seasoned okay because nothing really sticks to it and I can usally get it clean by wiping it out.

Dave

That's weird, mine never get sooty on the outside. I typically use name brand charcoal (Kingsford) the cheaper brands end to burn out too quickly.

I would use soap on the outside to clean the soot. But then again I use soap on the inside as well. I've never bought into the no soap thing and my coating is fine. Just don't use the green scrubbing side of the dish sponge when washing.

When i was in the Boy Scouts, we would put soap on the outside of the pots and pans that we used over the open fire and they would clean right up.