For quite a few years we had non stick pans. You know, those Teflon ones that are a breeze to clean because everything just glides right off. If it didn’t glide off initially, a long soak in a sink full of water with some dish soap took care of it. But after 6 years of continual use on gas and electric stoves, the Teflon was no longer there and I was a little concerned about what we were eating in addition to what I had cooked.
When we were gifted with a new stainless steel set for Christmas, the Teflon went out the door very quickly. When reading up on how to clean stainless steel pans, the instructions on them seemed so restrictive to me. Mainly, I couldn’t take the easy way out and let them soak in a sink full of water.
One day I had made scrambled eggs for Monkey and Lady Bug for lunch. The eggs didn’t come off entirely after using dish soap and water. Enter a quest to find a new method for cleaning them that didn’t require a ton of work.
I’m all about simplicity people.
After a lot of research, I noticed that Bar Keepers Friend was the most recommended choice. The ingredients didn’t seem too far off from Comet though, and I was not about to put it on my pans that we would continue to cook with.
Instead, I bought Mrs. Meyer’s Surface Cleaner at $4 for a small container. It’s made from natural ingredients, so I figured it had to be better than Bark Keepers Friend, right? After two rounds of some serious scrubbing, it finally cleaned the entire surface and rinsed off thoroughly. The only problem was it left a funny taste the next time we used that pan to cook. Back to square one.
After some more research, and not coming up with much, I talked to my mom. She suggested baking soda. I don’t know why I didn’t think of it sooner because baking soda has a lot of uses in our house, but cleaning my pots and pans was not one of them! So it was time to put it to the test to see if it could claim the title of stainless steel cleaner.
Enter the pan; it was used to saute onions and peppers for sausage sandwiches. Yum!!
But what was left behind made me cringe just thinking about having to clean it.
Enter the workers. Both of these, and some water, I have on hand so there was nothing extra to buy. Even better!
Sprinkle some baking soda on the pan, add a drop {or three, or five} of dish soap, and enough water to turn the mixture into a paste.
Scrub the pan for a little bit so that the paste is incorporated and focusing on the really stuck on bits. Don’t scrub for more than five minutes. Better yet, no more than two minutes. Seriously. Just rub the paste around, and walk away. You could add a splash of vinegar before walking away, but it’s not necessary.
I’ve let them sit like this for a few minutes to overnight, depending on what’s going on. When you come back, the pan should look something like this.
Run a sponge around if it makes you feel better, but you don’t need to. Then just rinse your pan, and dry.
Voila!
I seriously love using this homemade version. It doesn’t leave a nasty aftertaste, and it gets the job done. I’ve cleaned stuck on rice, scrambled eggs, fried chicken… you name it, it’s cleaned it! And the best part? I don’t have to spend money on yet another cleaner!
Have you tried using baking soda as a homemade stainless steel cleaner? How has it worked for you? Let me know below!
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