How to Properly Clean Stainless Steel Pans? Methods for cleaning stainless steel pans from soot: Stainless steel cookware enjoys the well-deserved love of housewives and professional chefs. During operation, situations often arise when stains and deposits form on kitchen utensils. Next, we will talk about how to wash a burnt stainless steel pan at home quickly and efficiently.
Advantages of Stainless Steel
If you are using Stainless steel cookware for the first time you should know that Stainless steel contains chromium, which contributes to the formation of a stable oxide film. It is chemically inert and is a reliable protection of metal from corrosion and aggressive substances. The material’s high strength has become one of the main reasons for the popularity of stainless steel kitchen utensils.
Pots and pans made of this material have several important advantages:
- The polished finish is shiny, stylish and attractive in any kitchen.
- The dishes are not afraid of high temperatures.
- The steel is resistant to drops, impacts and scratches.
- The thick multi-layered bottom provides uniform heating of products and long-term preservation of temperature.
- Transparent heat-resistant glass lids allow you to control the cooking process.
- A wide range of detergents is available for dish care.
- Stainless steel is an inert material that does not react chemically with acids and alkalis found in food.
- Microbes and bacteria do not accumulate on the polished surface.
These advantages have made stainless steel cookware popular with homemakers and chefs in cafes and restaurants.
Types of Soot
Two types of cookwares contamination can be distinguished: soot on the inner and outer surfaces of the pan.
- Inside the utensils, plaque formation leads to the burning of food when the water is completely boiled away and excessive heating of the food. Often this happens when the cook hesitates and does not watch the dish. Often this plaque is called a burn.
- Splashing drops of water and fat, pouring and splashing over the edges of milk, broths, and sauces lead to instantaneous evaporation of the liquid and the formation of a black layer of burning on the outside of the pan.
- Organic residues and carbon particles gradually cover the bottom and outer walls of the dish. If fat and food particles are not removed regularly, a dense and hard shell is formed, called “black soot.”
- Getting rid of it is sometimes difficult. Nagar leads not only to a deterioration in the appearance of kitchen utensils. It contains carcinogenic substances, which, if regularly ingested, can cause cancer.
How to Properly Clean Stainless Steel Pans?
It is often convenient to use proven folk remedies to clean Stainless Steel cookware quickly. They are inexpensive, always available and do not require much effort.
1. How to Clean Stainless Steel Pans With Salt
Table salt is suitable if you need to remove small dirt and burn it inside the pan. To do this, you need to dissolve 2-3 tbsp. l. substances in 1 litre of hot water and leave for 3 hours. Then you must thoroughly rinse the pans under running water, and you should remove the remaining soot with a soft sponge.
There is another way: table salt is poured into the bottom of the pan with a thin layer. Then the container is heated on a fire for 1 hour. After that, salt is poured out, plaque is removed with a sponge, and the pans are washed with water.
2. How to Clean Stainless Steel Pans With Vinegar to the Rescue
There is acetic acid in almost every kitchen. The substance is an effective agent for dissolving fats and removing burnt food particles. You should dilute a 9% acid solution with water in a ratio of 1:1, then brought to a boil and left in the pan for half an hour with the lid closed. Turning on the hood and intensive ventilation of the room will help get rid of the pungent odour.
You can clean the outside of the pans with a larger container. A contaminated pot is placed in it. Then the container is half-filled with water, an equal amount of vinegar essence is added, and the mixture is heated to a boil.
Leave the pans under steam for 10-15 minutes. After that, the utensils are removed and allowed to cool to room temperature. At the end of the cleaning procedure, the pan’s surface is thoroughly wiped with a napkin or sponge.
The operation must be carried out with gloves to avoid chemical burns. This way, you can get rid of old traces of soot and remnants of burnt fat.
3. Clean Stainless Steel Pans With Hydrogen Peroxide
The hydrogen peroxide solution is a strong oxidizing agent. You can successfully use it to eliminate traces of fat and stains. If the food in the pan burned badly and dense soot formed, the best result would be using a composition of peroxide and baking soda.
Add to 2-3 tbsp. l. soda is such an amount of peroxide that a mixture is formed that resembles sour cream in consistency. Apply it gently with a sponge to the pans and leave for half an hour. Then thoroughly rinse off the remaining cleaning mixture with water. It will remove traces of soot and grease, and the pans will become clean and shiny.
4. How to Clean Stainless Steel Pans With Soap
Laundry soap will help to wipe off the remnants of fat and burning. It is not easy to get rid of old traces of soot and deeply ingrained fat spots in this way, but the method shows high efficiency in the case of minor contamination.
Plan a third of a standard bar of laundry soap on a coarse grater, fill it with water about half and boil for half an hour. Then drain the solution and remove the remaining traces of plaque with a sponge. Adding 1-2 tbsp to the soap solution is recommended to enhance the effect.
5. How to Clean Stainless Steel Pans With Baking Soda
Ordinary baking soda (or sodium bicarbonate) is an excellent cleaner to eliminate burnt porridge residue, runaway milk, and dark spots. Dissolve 100 g of soda in 1 liter of warm water, pour into a saucepan and boil for 2 hours over low heat. So you can clean the pans from the inside.
You can remove old grease stains and dark spots on pans with a paste of baking soda and water. Moisten the pan’s surface with water, apply a substance layer, and leave for 2-3 hours. Wipe the remaining stains with a napkin. Then rinse the container with running water.
To wash the pan from the outside, you need to place it in a larger container filled with a solution of baking soda, bring to a boil and keep it on the stove for 1.5-2 hours, reducing the heat to a minimum.
6. How to Clean Stainless Steel Pans With Milk Serum (Whey)
The method has been popular since Soviet times when there was a shortage of detergents. Often, homemakers used whey to clean pans. The acid in this product can effectively dissolve fat deposits and burnt food particles that accumulate on the surface of stainless steel cookware.
For this, milk whey is poured into the pan to cover all the impurities with liquid. The pans are covered with a lid and left for 1 day to allow the lactic acid to dissolve the carbon deposits.
After that, the solution is drained, and the surface areas are wiped with a sponge, on which there are traces of burning. Then it remains to rinse the kitchen utensils with running water. After such a procedure, the pans in your house will shine like new.
7. How to Clean Stainless Steel Pans With Activated Carbon
Activated charcoal will help clean stainless steel pans. You can purchase tablets of the drug at any pharmacy. In addition to availability and low cost, activated charcoal is a harmless agent that does not adversely affect human health even if it enters the body.
To remove plaque on the pan:
- Take the drug package, and grind the tablets in a mortar or metal spoon.
- Place the resulting activated charcoal powder on the bottom of the dish, pour 100-200 ml of water or soap solution there, and mix until a slurry is formed.
- Apply the composition to the contaminated surface and leave it in this state for 30-40 minutes.
After that, drain the cleaning solution and wash the pan in hot water. Remove remaining dirt with a sponge or cloth. In the case of solid soot, increasing the soaking time to 2-3 hours is recommended.
8. How to Clean Stainless Steel Pans With Chemicals
You can find a wide range of detergents in household stores designed to care for stainless steel pans. In the case of persistent contamination, against which folk remedies are powerless, you can use special reagents to remove carbon deposits from metal utensils effectively.
It is recommended to avoid means of abrasive action. Such substances can scratch the polished surface. It is recommended to choose preparations of pasty or liquid consistency.
You must use them following the instructions on the package. It is required to apply the substance to the contaminated surface, wait for a while and then carefully remove all traces of the reagent under running water.
When choosing a cleanser, remember that it contains aggressive alkalis or acids. Therefore, you must pay special attention to safety precautions.
Using chemicals in rooms with no pregnant women, small children, or people suffering from allergies and chronic diseases is necessary. During the procedure, you must ventilate the kitchen to eliminate the pungent odors of the reagents. Applying the substance with rubber gloves is necessary to avoid chemical burns.
In addition to household chemicals for everyday use, the stores offer professional-grade stainless steel dishware care products. Created using the latest technology, they not only quickly cope with any dirt but also apply a special film to the surface, which gives the pans additional protection and shine.
Such preparations practically do not leave streaks and can mask scratches and damage:
- Stainless steel;
- Topper;
- Top House.
Their main disadvantage is the high cost when it becomes unprofitable to use such funds daily.
How to Care Instructions for Stainless Steel Pans?
The following recommendations will help to maintain the beautiful appearance and performance properties of the pans:
- For care, you should use preparations intended for stainless steel products.
- Avoid sudden temperature changes. Do not immediately put a hot pan under cold water: this can lead to the formation of microcracks on the product’s surface.
- Wiping the utensils with dishwashing sponges or soft cloths made of microfiber will be best.
- Do not use hard metal brushes and steel sponges.
- After cleaning, it is recommended to wipe the product’s surface dry to avoid the formation of streaks and stains.
- It is not recommended to wash these pans in dishwashers.
- After cooking, you need to wait for the pans to cool, then rinse them in warm water with the addition of detergents. This procedure prevents the formation of dark spots on the pan’s surface.
- Raw potatoes will help to add shine to stainless steel kitchen utensils. Raw potatoes need to be cut into two parts and rub the halves on the pan’s surface.
Conclusion
The described methods of caring for kitchen utensils will avoid unnecessary problems and financial costs.
Hello! I’m Paula Deen, a mother who loves to create memories in the kitchen. As a kitchen enthusiast, I love to do experiment with different kitchenware for daily recipes. This is my blog, where I’ll share my experience, knowledge, and reviews on various kitchenware and appliances.