Out of Foil, Cotton wool, And bubble wrap which is the best insulator and why ?
you're not supposed to wash a cast iron skillet in soap and water because it can rustif you need to rinse it out quick that's ok, but you should clean it with salt and a cloth (the salt will scrub the food off), wipe the salt out, (very quick rinse with water if you need to), add a little bit of oil and rub it all over the pan, and heat it in the ovenonce it's heated up then turn the oven off and just leave it in there to cool downthis is the proper cleaning method because it keeps the pan seasoned, so nothing will stick to itbetween the salt and the heat, all the germs get killed so you don't have to worry about getting sickthere's many different brands of cast iron cookware, just look for one that feels nice and heavy, not cheap and lighti would look at store websites to see what stores in your area carry them.
I was told that if you need to wash your skillet, you can use mild soap and arm waterBut washing isn't necessary if you are pretty much cooking the same thing in itFor example, I have a skillet I use only for baconI wipe it down and put it awayThe skillets i bought were from a local kitchen store which it probably your best bet verses say like Wal-Mart.
The cotton wool would be the best insulator of the three you gaveFoil is a good reflector of radiant heat, but since you have hot water in your beaker there isn't a great deal of radiant heat to reflect With hot water the main heat loss is thru conduction thru the glass and convection thru the surface of the waterRadiant heat loss is probably less than 10% of the total heat loss, so you would pick the cotton to limit the loss of that 90% of the rest of the heatThe slower you make the heat loss be, the hotter the water will remain for a longer periodThe bubble wrap is good, but with only one layer, there is only one air space layer to stop convective and conductive losses from the glass The cotton wool has hundreds of microscopic air spaces between the fibers and so heat travel thru the cotton would be slower than thru one layer of bubble wrapNotice when they insulate attics in houses they insulate with fiberglass wool instead of bubble wrapBubble wrap isn't really designed as an insulation, it is designed to be a light weight shock absorber for shippingNotice also when manufacturers make blankets for your bed, they don't put a piece of bubble wrap in the middle of a couple of sheets for a warm blanketThey fill the sheets with fiberfill (cotton wool type material) Generally the more air spaces you can get per volume and density , the better the insulator.
I'm using 3 skillets a dutch ovenNone are less than 50 years oldOne of the skillets is at least 80Never use soap unless you plan to re-season the skilletI use hot water a 3M Scrubbie if something is stuckDoesn't happen often with a well seasoned skilletDon't EVER put them in a dishwasherThe harsh soap hot water make a rusty messDon't ask how I know this :-( I like the idea of putting them in a self cleaning ovenI'm gonna steal that ideaBeats my way of putting them in a super hot BBQ grill or using a propane torch to clean them up.
It is totally safe to just wipe down your cast-iron skilletThe oil residue from whatever you cooked will season the pan and make it act like it's nonstickJust make sure you wipe it wellIf you want to give it a scrub in the sink, just DON'T use soapSoap will strip the oils out of your pan and make your food stick to it next timeIf you do use soap, or scrub it after using, you can season it again by heating a little peanut or vegetable oil in it for a few minutes on low heat, then pouring the oil out and wiping the excess offYou can find a basic cast iron skillet at Target, Bed Bath and Beyond, Department stores, basically anywhere you buy cookwareI don't know about the bestThey're all about the same One more tip: don't let it stay wet after washingPut it on low heat on the stove for a few seconds until it dries outOr wipe it down with a paper towelOtherwise it might rustI was also told not to cook anything too acidic, like tomatoes in it, but can't remember why.
