Question 1

how to season the pan

Accepted Answer

Seasoning is creating an EPOXIDE layer.  Any edible oil works, safflower or canola may be best (flax not so great IMO).  Clean the pan first and heat evenly/slowly on  burner.  Using paper towels, swab the interior LIGHTLY with oil.  Heat till the oil just smokes.  At this temp the oil surface tension changes and it will bead-up like water drops on glass.  Knock-down(smooth) the beads w/ another paper towel *before they harden*.  Continue/repeat till the oils stops smoking - several minutes.  Repeat this 3-4 times. No need to cool down between - just apply oil LIGHTLY w/ paper towels & knock-down beads till it stops smoking - repeat for several cycles.   If you ever need to strip & re-season, heat some water+vinegar(or othe acid, oxalic preferred) in the pan, this will dissolve the epoxide easily.
Repeat the re-season cycle whenever you feel the pan is getting "grabby" to proteins.
DON'T breathe the oil smoke (like BBQ smoke it's mildly carcinogenic)
DON'T let paper towels scorch - work quickly.
DON'T burn yourself, use tongs.
Despite the FABULOUS pan quality, I don't believe the deBuyer vid is a reasonable way for home-users to dseason pans.

USE:
*ALWAYS* heat-dry a carbon steel pan on a stovetop till it's bone-dry after any water contact/washing.
Don't cook acidic foods in a seasoned pan (e.g. tomato sauce) ! This will remove the seasoning layer. 
A seasoned pan is "low-stick" not "non-stick" as teflon or ceramic - so use a little oil when cooking.
** The advantage is, a seasoned pan will produce a wonderful tasty fond and/or browning on foods that teflon cannot.

Mythbusting:
- You should clean the hard glassy EPOXIDE layer you've created with soapy water & sponge quickly (don't soak for many minutes) - or even a green-scrubbie occasionally to remove carbon-char. Avoid strong abrasives & acids.  Anything that comes off with soapy water is oil, not epoxide. 
- You are not "filling pores". Mild carbon steel (even cast iron) has (should have) no pores that food could enter.   When you cook on an unseasoned metal, the proteins create Maillard product that bond to the surface if they have direct contact (carbohydrates will too above ~350F, oils above their smoke-point).  This is why high protein, low fat items (like fish or eggs) stick so badly in an unseasoned pan right around the boiling point.  
- the seasoning epoxide layer is a carbon polymer - vaguely similar to epoxy glue, and to teflon(PTFE plastic).  It WILL break down at very high temperatures (>600F generally) and under acidic conditions, BUT it will not dissolve into water with soap.  Water contact (soaking) can eventually soften the epoxide the the point of failure.

Question 2

What is the difference between the DeBuyer Iron pan and a cast iron pan?

Accepted Answer

To the people posting here about carbon steel pans giving off iron, though true, it is minimal and is being overstated. All pans give off something. Stainless steel gives off nickel and chromium. Some copper is given off in copper pans. Non-stick gives off some chemicals. Carbon steel is still one of the best options.

Question 3

What is the best method for browning meats-like chicken Parmesan?  Heat pan fist then add oil?  Or add oil then heat pan?  How much oil to use? Thanks

Accepted Answer

If you’re cooking chicken Parmesan I would assume it is breaded. (BTW: I use a 50/50 combination of Italian seasoned breadcrumbs and grated Parmesan).  Then I fry in a combination of butter and olive oil. These pans are steel and so they’re great conductors of heat so stick with a med/high setting. Wait for the butter to foam and then start browning that chicken.   Put the butter in first put it in last…I really don’t see the difference. Keep an eye on how fast your chicken is browning and adjust temp accordingly. These pans will give great results at lower temp settings than other pans. Enjoy!

Question 4

Are these pans safe to use in a a house that has parrots (pet birds)? Thanks!

Accepted Answer

We had 5 parrots for many years, they were hand tame, spoke english were friends with our cats even, A guest came over to my house for a month, she bought a new pan and put it in the oven one day, next time we were cooking we didn't notice this pan was in the bottom of the oven, we cooked something at 400 degrees for an hour, we opened the oven and two minutes later 4 of our birds had lung hemorrhages and started seizing, they died in minutes. Teflon poisoning happens to people too but it's not deadly so we don't notice, idk y ppl don't take this seriously just thought i'd share to spread awareness

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De Buyer MINERAL B Carbon Steel Fry Pan - 12.25” Diameter, 9” Cooking Surface - Ideal for Searing, Sauteing & Reheating - PFAS, PFOA & PFOS Free - Made in France

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