de buyer mineral b carbon steel seasoning I bought a mineral b carbon steel pan some time ago and I've cooked with it probably about +-20 times (pretty much use it for steaks). I've been religious about seasoning it after every use using the following method:


Rinse with hot water and wipe dry.
Put back on stove top and reheat and ensure completely dried through.
Wipe on a thin layer of flaxseed oil.


Here is a pic of my pan currently:



Some questions I have:


Are the brown (rusty looking) areas quite normal? I'm certain it's not rust as I've taken a lot of care to prevent that, although if I smell closely it does have a slight rusty/metallic smell.
The only area of the pan that seems to develop some kind of patina is the center as you can see. How do I get that slick black finish over the entire pan? Will that just come from time &amp; use or is my seasoning method incorrect?
The patina seems quite flaky...is this normal?


Thank you for any info/feedback provided.
I have the same pan. Are you following the instructions that come with it?


The center is too burned.
Flaky is not good.
The border is not seasoned.
The border is not rusty.


Is your fire big enough for the pan?

You should clean the pan (thorough scrub with salt) and re-season. See this Q&amp;A