DEAR SUN SPOTS: I know you’ve given instructions for curing cast iron pans before, but I’ve misplaced them. Would you be so nice as to print it again? I’ll make copies, so it won’t happen again. Thank you. — No Name, No Town

ANSWER: Sun Spots does not recall writing on this topic — although a previous Sun Spots may have done so — and did not find one in her archive, but on April 10, 2011, an Eats column by Max Mogensen (sunjournal.com/bplus/story/1007623) featuring Loren Shuck, the “Maine Pan Man,” covered the topic at length.

Shuck, of Greene, said that with proper care and maintenance a good cast-iron pan will last a lifetime. He explained how he treats, cleans and uses his cast iron. Here is an excerpt from Max’s story:

“Take your newly acquired pan and wash it in hot soapy water, using only liquid soap, because soap in powder form is abrasive and will eat at the iron. Use an SOS pad and clean out the pan in circles, run it under hot water, dry it with a towel and put it on the stove top at low heat to evaporate any remaining water that will otherwise cause rust.

“Next, according to Shuck, you want to cure your pan. This will create an oil seal over the cooking surface, which will make the pan non-stick and also protect against rusting. When it comes to curing, said Shuck, ‘everyone has their own ideas, but here’s my theory: I will take a piece of salt pork and rub it all over the inside of the pan when the pan is cold. It has a bit of a slimy texture, which will get left behind. Put the pan on a stove at low heat. When the residue starts to liquefy, take a paper towel and rub the liquid all around, then shut off the heat.’

“‘The first meal I’m going to cook in that pan is hamburger, bacon, something with a little grease,’ he said.

“Curing is really the first step in seasoning your cast iron, Shuck explained. Seasoning is the process by which your cookware, over time, acquires and retains slight flavoring from the things you cook on it. The beauty of cast iron, said Shuck, is that over time it develops a natural non-stick surface and a seasoning. In fact, he said, some people have their pans seasoned different ways, so they have a pan for each ingredient.’

Cast iron is not meant to be washed in the same way as other cookware, Shuck said. Some people advise never washing cast iron, for fear of damaging the seal. Others, like Shuck, wash out their cookware as necessary — for example, after cooking something very greasy — with hot water and liquid soap, toweling it off after and warming it on the stove to evaporate any water.

“Some people worry about bacteria with cast iron, said Shuck, because some owners don’t always wash it directly after use. However, he said, ‘if you get your pan red hot before you cook anything in it, there won’t be any bacteria.’

“With almost anything cooked on cast iron, Shuck said, the idea is to get the cookware as hot as necessary before adding any ingredients. He gave an example using cornbread muffins.

“‘Put your oven on to 350, take a cast-iron popover pan, put it in and let it get hot. About five minutes before putting the mix in, spray the pan with Pam, then put it back in the oven.’ It is not the heat from the oven, but the heat from the iron, that immediately begins cooking the muffins from every direction, he explained.

“Shuck warned that there are some health-related considerations to be made when cooking with cast iron. ‘Even with a sealed pan, you will get (a small amount of) iron from a cast-iron pan,’ he said. So people with anemia may benefit from using cast iron, while those with hemochromatosis and other excess-iron issues may want to stay away from it.”

DEAR SUN SPOTS: I’m hoping you can help me find pine cone tomatoes. I have used them forever and now cannot seem to find them anywhere. They are the closest to home canned tomatoes you can find. Recipes just aren’t the same without them. They used to be distributed by AG Grocers. Thanks for any help. — Ginger Patterson, Mrs_Cleaver@hotmail.com

ANSWER: Sun Spots found a post online that indicated that the Market Basket stores might carry them. She called, and sure enough they do. She spoke to several very nice men, who went looking, even telling her that they are in aisle 5.

You can find the Market Basket at Mariner Way, Biddeford, ME 04005, 207-282-9005. It’s a bit of a drive, so you might want to stock up.

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