Care & Seasoning

How to Tend Your Captain Crepe Pan

"The more you use it, the better the seasoned surface will become. Eventually, it will be a smooth beautiful black surface."
— Joe Sandor

Joe Sandor spent years figuring out how to season these pans. He built wood-fire ovens in blizzards, switched to propane, and finally landed on the right answer: an indoor electric oven and patience. He treated each pan like a glaze in pottery — every one a unique shade of amber to black.

These are his instructions, in his tradition.

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First Use — Seasoning Your Pan

Your Captain Crepe Pan arrives pre-seasoned, but building up additional layers of seasoning before first use will give you the best results.

1. Wash the pan gently with warm water and a soft cloth. Dry it completely — immediately and thoroughly.
2. Apply a very thin, even coat of a high smoke-point oil. Joe recommends flax oil or walnut oil. Wipe off any excess — you want the thinnest possible layer.
3. Place the pan upside down in your oven at 450–500°F (230–260°C) for one hour. Put a sheet of foil on the rack below to catch drips.
4. Turn off the oven and let the pan cool completely inside before removing.
5. Repeat 2–3 times for a strong base seasoning.

"I treated the seasoning like patina work in sculpture or like glazing in pottery. Every one is a unique shade of amber to black."
— Joe Sandor

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Smoothing the Surface (Optional)

Joe was honest about the nature of sand-cast iron — the surface is naturally textured from the casting process. Seasoning will smooth it over time, but if you want to accelerate that, here's how he recommended doing it:

"I use a random orbital sander with 60 or 80 grit sandpaper. You can also use a palm sander. Work the surface for about 7–10 minutes moving in a circular motion. Make sure to keep it completely flat so as not to carve into the surface. You can also smooth over the edges to soften them up."
— Joe Sandor

After sanding, wash, dry thoroughly, and re-season before cooking.

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Everyday Use

• Preheat the pan over medium heat for 2–3 minutes before adding butter or oil.
• Use a small amount of butter for crêpes — it adds flavor and helps with the release.
• The pan holds heat exceptionally well. You may need less heat than you expect.
• Use the wooden spreader in a circular motion from the center outward for thin, even crêpes.
• The flat spatula slides cleanly under crêpes once the edges lift naturally — don't rush it.

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Cleaning

• Clean while the pan is still warm — hot water and a stiff brush or cloth. No soap needed for regular cleaning.
• Dry immediately and completely. Cast iron and moisture don't mix.
• After drying, wipe with a very light coat of oil before storing.
• Never put it in the dishwasher. Never soak it in water.
• If rust spots appear — Joe dealt with this in blizzard conditions — scrub with a wire brush or steel wool, wash, dry, and re-season. The pan is not ruined.

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Rust Happens. Don't Panic.

"Every flake of snow leaves a rust circle which I have to polish out with a wire brush."
— Joe Sandor, December 2012

Joe ground and polished 273 pans in a freezing Wisconsin garage. A little rust spot is nothing. Scrub it out, dry it, oil it, season it. The pan will outlast everything.

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Long-Term Care

Cast iron only gets better with time. The more crêpes you make, the smoother and more non-stick the surface becomes. Joe's backers reported making their first crêpes the same evening the pan arrived. One tested it as a pizza stone the next morning.

This pan is "one piece, one part, one button to push — and it will never break or fade away."

Use it. Pass it down.

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Joe's Basic Crêpe Recipe

Simple. Classic. The way it was always meant to be made.

• 2 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• ½ cup water
• 1 cup flour
• 2 tablespoons melted butter
• Pinch of salt

Whisk together and let rest for 30 minutes. Cook on a preheated, lightly buttered Captain Crepe Pan over medium heat. Spread thin with the wooden spreader. Flip when the edges lift.

Joe's favorites: savory ham, egg and cheese — and Nutella with strawberry.

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