When you have good pots at home, cooking is easier… Unfortunately, some of them are often subject to dried dirt and grease. How can you clean it?
Have you noticed that some pots – even after years of cooking – look great, and then there are “pieces” that just stand on the stove a few times and are literally like a pig? According to experts, the material is to blame. There are certain types of materials that are less resistant to dirt or deform in some way during cooking. “Unsurprisingly, stainless steel is one of the problem metals. It has poor conductivity, oxidizes quickly, and picks up dirt or grease from the cooktop. That’s why your stainless steel pans and pots tend to have a lot of deposits and black streaks on the bottom,” says Australian-American culinary expert and “Helen’s Kitchen” YouTuber, Helen Ronnie.
Enameled surprise
Unfortunately, enamel pots are no better. This retro tableware of our grandmothers is paradoxically very fragile and does not tolerate temperature shocks. The result is that the pores in the coating quickly capture carbon and the entire bottom gets really “strange” from the outside. “The reason for these defects is that they overheat when empty or half-empty,” says the expert and in one breath he adds that when cooking with enamelware, you should only use a medium flame, which will slowly heat the food but not cause it to overheat.
Beware of thermal shocks
According to Helen Ronnie, stains can be avoided if you do not expose the dishes to temperature shocks. “People often do this by putting a hot pot in cold water after cooking. Not only do they ruin it, but they also add more work because the pot will be less stain-resistant,” says Ronnie, adding that it’s always best to wash dishes after they’ve cooled thoroughly.
Cleansing vinegar treatment
Instead of chemical preparations, use natural ones… They are effective, cheap and ecological. In addition, you usually have many of them at home. Try any of these three methods. The first one is quite simple, just soak a cloth in a solution that you prepared from one part water and one part vinegar. Then place the wet cloth on the outside of the bottom of the pot and leave for 30 minutes. Then clean the surface with a dish sponge and rinse with cold water. Vinegar is known for dissolving dirt and grease residues.
Bowls with baking soda
Another natural remedy for cleaning baking soda is a paste of baking soda and water. You will appreciate its effects especially in the case of enameled pots. “Baking soda is alkaline, so it neutralizes ‘acidic’ greasy stains and smudges very well,” explains Ronnie and adds that baking soda has an abrasive (granular) texture and acts as an exfoliator. If you would like to multiply its cleansing power, mix it with warm water. Baking soda chemically reacts to a higher temperature and the whole process is speeded up.
Salt or ash
Both of these ingredients work as a cleansing peeling. So they remove stains and deposits mechanically – i.e. by gentle sanding. How to do it: Moisten the lower part of the pot and gradually clean it using a damp sponge with a deposit of salt or ash. Finally, rinse the bottom, it should be much cleaner.
