How do I recover from overheating my cast-iron skillet? This morning, as with many, I let my skillet dry by leaving it on the burner. Unfortunately, my attention was drawn away and I forgot to take it off the burner! Of course, the moment I noticed, I moved it to another burner to cool, but this light-brown ring appeared.



After it cooled, touched the ring and discovered it was a powder, not merely a discoloration:



I'm not sure what this signifies. How do I recover the skillet?
Give it a good salt scrub and re-season. Cast iron is virtually indestructible. As long as it's not cracked, it can always be cleaned up and used again.