Stainless-steel is easier to maintain — it might get burnt cruds, badly scorches or even discoloration, but you can bring it shine again with the proper care. Also, it’s indestructible for scrubbing or putting in the dishwasher.
For Normal Treat
- For Daily Wash, normally, stainless-steel need very less treatment. You just need to use a non-scratch scrubber in soapy water. This helps keeping the exterior polish without scratchy marks over time.
- To Clean Water Spots or Marks, scrub them with a non-scratch damp sponge with a little of baking soda and rinse off. To prevent it occur later, dry the pan immediately after washing.
To Handle Food Burnt and Stains
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To Clean ‘Not-Too-Much’ Burnt Food. scrub the pan with a non-scratch sponge to get off some food you can, then fill it with soapy water or a cup of vinegar and bring it boil. The food should come off and allow to clean regularly.
For more sticky scorches, after boiling remove add 2 tablespoons of baking soda, empty the pan and scrub gently.
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To Remove Stubborn Burnt Crud:
- Use Vinegar. Sarah Jampel from Food52 suggested to make a paste of baking soda and water and leave it applied to the problem areas for a few minutes. Beware: this way might void your warranty.
- Use Dishwasher Detergent. Daniel Gritzer from Serious Eats advised to fill the pan with water and add a generous sprinkling of powdered dishwasher detergent (liquid doesn’t work as well) and leave it overnight. Then, almost everything would have lifted away or need very little effort to clean the rest.
- Use Barkeeper’s Friend. This is an easiest way. Just pour a small amount of water, ad a few Barkeeper’s Friend, mixing together. Then, scrub with non-abrasive scrubber.
To Bring the Shiny Surface Back
Even if you maintain good cleaning habits, your cookware can lose polish, get burnt marks and discolor over time. These are solutions:
- Use Baking Soda. Just sprinkle on some baking soda and rub it gently with soft sponge. Then dry it with towel or soft cloth.
- Use High Acid. Wash the pan with vinegar or cooking high-acid foods, such as tomato or citrus sauce.
- Use Barkeeper’s Friend. For heavy-duty cookware that used to get burnt, just use non-chlorine cleansers, like Barkeeper’s Friend, and rub in circular motion with a damp paper towel. Then wash away with water, soapy water, rinse off and dry immediately.
Expert Tips
- Hand-Washing to Keep Shiny. Dishwasher can be allowed for occasional Thanksgiving party or tired days. But for daily cleaning, it requires hand-washing with soapy and non-scratch scrubber to keep the surface glossy look.
- Let It Cold Before Washing. Allow the pan to cool completely before washing it. Dipping or soaking a hot stainless-steel pan in cold water might cause severe warping and denting.
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To Make Stainless-Steel Skillet Nonstick, Tommy Werner from Epicurious suggested to “Heat a skillet over medium or medium-high for 2 minutes. Add vegetable oil, canola is recommended, to coat the entire bottom of the pan with a ⅛ inch of oil. About 6 minutes later at high smoke point, remove the skillet from the heat and cool the oil completely. Once the pan has cooled, pour out the excess oil and use a paper towel to wipe up the remaining oil in the pan.” This seasoning can make a nonstick surface for a while.
Remember, if you want it stay nonstick, avoid washing the pan. Just wipe it clean between uses, or else it will lose the nonstick coat and need to re-season again. And, if you feel sick of this, finding a real nonstick pan is better.
