I have zero idea what this is all about. What’s so bad about cleaning an iron pan? Rust?
You remove the cast iron pan’s seasoning if you do this.............
The whole idea of a cast iron skillet, or a dutch oven, is that by cooking with oil a layer builds up that makes it non-stick. You can do this with a new pan or dutch oven by putting canola oil or flax oil or something similar on it and baking it in the oven with nothing in it for a couple of hours. After that, each use makes it just a little bit better, according to theory.
Soap will destroy all of the work of the ages. Supposedly such things as tomato sauce are also not good.
How old are you? (smile). Others will tell why, but a seasoned heavy cast iron pan is the most important (and only essential-type) pan (not pot) here. It best cooks evenly, without sticking (forget Teflon but I just give it a little non-stick spray first) and resists burning (though it can also do that - all on you).
And with a good cover can double as a small oven, and can slowly cook breads as well as meats etc,, poultry, etc. and on low heat even from a frozen state without turning over.
Last week I put about a pound of frozen ground turkey in my heavy cast iron pan and covered it, over the lowest heat, and go busy outside, and forgot about it for about 2.5-3 hours, then remembered and came back and turned it off, then stuck it outside to cool off, and when I took it out later none of it was burned at all, and fine to eat. And you can just wipe the pan clean, maybe using a soft pad on some spots. Thank God.
After drying, I have the cover on it.
And if you do really burn something, then unlike some pans I have know, you can soak and scrap it clean and re-season it.
You gotta be a Yankee! LOL