Preserving cast iron with vegetable oil

With cast iron, you apply a thin layer of vegetable oil to the cooking surface before storage.

This is to preserve the seasoning and prevent rust.

I found pouring vegetable oil to be a bit messy, so I would spray Pam, thinking it was the same.

It's not. Pam has other ingredients that are not good for cast iron-- including water.

And I wondered why I would sometimes find a sticky residue that needed to be cleaned off.

So I got a spray bottle and filled it with vegetable oil, and now that's what I use.