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Why does my top of my cast iron oval roaster pan have rust areas when I use it to bake things in the oven. It looks to be very well seasoned but the moisture collects on the inside of the top and there are many areas that are rusty looking. It also smells funny. I am wondering if it is because there is too much oil layered on it in correctly.
I ended up using a glass top on another cast iron chicken pot to prevent the moisture from dropping that into my recipe.
This happened to my Cast Iron when I left it in the oven. If it has the slightest hint of moisture, it will rust, even if it is seasoned. You don't ever want a cast iron or Wok to be left sitting around with moisture on it.
Scour your cast iron with a bristle-brush to remove the rust. Use hot water. Wipe it dry with paper towels. Keep washing until the paper towels aren't showing any brown-orange from the rust.
The next part is crucial!
Take a dry paper towel. Put a small amount of oil in the pan. Coat the entire surface of the cast iron with oil. This layer of oil will prevent any further rust from forming
After cleaning cast iron, NO SOAP EVER., wipe dry with paper towel that has a small amount of vegetable oil ( I wouldn't use any oil other than vegetable or sunflower oil), place in oven at about 200'F for about 10 minutes and then shut oven off, cool, then store in a dry area. DO NOT OIL OUTSIDE BOTTOM OF CAST IRON COOKWARE or it may cause severe smoking or fire next time you use it on stove top. If condensation on lid while baking is a problem, try leaving lid a bit askew so it will vent or leave off entirely depending on recipe.
