Removing Burnt-On Food from Pots and Pans - Tip of the Day

by Max Shrem, Posted Mar 7th 2009 @ 4:20PM

Burnt foods leave stubborn spots in pots and pans that could take hours to remove. Luckily, a few essentials in your pantry can help restore your pans to practically new.

Recently, while making risotto, I got distracted for just a few seconds (maybe one full minute!), and the next thing I knew there was a thick layer of burnt food stuck to the bottom of the pot. No amount of elbow grease was able to take out these stains. So, I tried something new that I read about in Cook's Illustrated: baking soda and white vinegar.

First, fill the pot or pan two inches high with water. Then, add a quarter cup of baking soda and a quarter cup of distilled white vinegar. Now, bring to a boil and cook for 15 minutes. Turn off the heat and let sit until cooled. Then, drain the water and clean the pot as you normally would. If there's any burnt food left, repeat the process.

You can also do a similar technique using dish washing liquid. Fill the pot with water and add one to two tea spoons of dish washing liquid. Bring it to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes. Then, cover the pot, turn off the heat and leave the pot to soak for 30 minutes. Personally, I find the baking soda and white vinegar technique more efficient.

Filed Under: Tip of the Day, How To
Tags: cleaning products, CleaningProducts, pots and pans, PotsAndPans, tip of the day, TipOfTheDay

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Reader comments (Page 1 of 1)

3-10-2009 @3:08AM Jennifer Sickles said... I have done this with the soap before and I ended up with a pot that made my food taste like soap no matter how much I cleand it. It was like it soaked into the teflon or something.
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