If your doctor recommends that you do not use cast iron (you are an iron accumulator), then you should not cook with mica pottery. Chemical analyses conducted on micaceous pottery otherwise demonstrate that it is safe for cooking and serving.
Proper seasoning will extend the life of your cook pot.
Proper seasoning will extend the life of your cook pot.
Picuris Mountains, New Mexico
| 1. | Fill the pot just below the rim with water |
| 2. | Place the vessel on a stove-top ring (electric or gas) |
| 3. | Allow the water to come to a rolling boil |
| 4. | Pour out the water and any loose clay or mica particles floating in the water |
| 5. | Heat the oven to 250 degrees and place the vessel in the oven for 10 minutes |
| 6. | While warm, coat the surface of the vessel with animal or vegetable fat (avoid the external bottom of the pot where it will rest on a burner) |
| 7. | Allow the vessel to cool and repeat steps 5 through 7 several times unitl the vessel surface is well-oiled and shiny |
Seasoning will change the color of the pot, but not dramatically. The color will become richer and more textured with use. The exterior bottom will become bleached or scorched over time, further adding to the overall character. Seasoning increases the life of the pot, makes cleaning easier, and enriches the flavor of food cooked within it. Use only warm water and a plastic scrub brush or sponge to clean your pot. Soap will remove the seasoning. Avoid allowing water to sit in your vessel (or your vessel to sit in water) for any extended period of time. Wooden or plastic spoons are kinder than metal to the interior surface. Fruit, cookies, bread, chips, and other food items will stain the inside of bowls. Use a doily or a napkin beneath the food if this bothers you.
My experience with cooking over the years have shown me that it takes the same amount of time to boil water, whether or not the stove top eye is turned to high or medium high. Covering the vessel significantly decreases the amount of time it takes to boil water. Once the water begins boiling, it will be rapid, intense, and long lasting. The surface of the pot will not get hot like metal. The rim can be touched and the vessel can even be carried by the rim or by the handles in most cases. Micaceous clay vessels are much safer to use than metal pots because they distribute heat more efficiently. They retain it rather than conducting it.
My experience with cooking over the years have shown me that it takes the same amount of time to boil water, whether or not the stove top eye is turned to high or medium high. Covering the vessel significantly decreases the amount of time it takes to boil water. Once the water begins boiling, it will be rapid, intense, and long lasting. The surface of the pot will not get hot like metal. The rim can be touched and the vessel can even be carried by the rim or by the handles in most cases. Micaceous clay vessels are much safer to use than metal pots because they distribute heat more efficiently. They retain it rather than conducting it.
A Jicarilla Apache hearth with mica vessels. Photograph by Pliny Goddard, Dulce Reservation 1911
Boiling water
Seasoning with vegetable/animal fat
Heating the vessel in the oven to set the seasoning
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