Keeping your pots and frying pans clean can sometimes be a mission when it comes to cookware. I usually sit down and eat dinner before I clean the dishes, and there is many of us that don’t want to clean up straight away, but of course leaving dirty pots and pans to sit around makes them even harder to clean! Reader Leah recently reached out to our online community for some frying pan care clean pots and pans tips.
Hi, I’m so sick of having poor-quality frypans that become hard to clean and then hard to cook on with everything sticking to them. We end up throwing out so many over the years. So my husband and I have decided to throw out all our frypans and invest in good quality ones. Any recommendations? And then the next really important question is how to clean pots and pans correctly? If it is me that has been cleaning incorrectly and shortening the life of the pans, I don’t want to invest lots of money and then find out they end up the same way.
Suggestions? Advice?
My top tip to clean pots and pans would be to allow them to cool slightly, stick them in the sink and fill them with water to let them soak while you’re eating dinner. This way, they will be easier to clean and will be ready for you to come back to later on. I also use a non-scratch washing up pad to clean my pots and pans.
My go to cleaner is the Bar Keepers Friend Cookware Cleanser, it reduces the amount of scrubbing you need to do, truly the best investment!!
I use this wok pan from Tefal on my stovetop – it’s my favourite. It’s non-stick and I find washing up so easy!
Some lovely readers suggested:
- Use only wooden spoons and silicone/plastic utensils on pans and wash with non-scratch pads. – Kylie K
- One thing I have learned is that the spray oil destroys the pan! I couldn’t work out how my good pans were getting damaged, so did I some research. Something in the spray oil creates a residue on your pans which doesn’t come off, and that’s how they get damaged. Have since switched to using normal oil and have not had a problem since – Genene B (this is very interesting!!)
- The advice that the store gave us was to heat the pan up in increments – not go from cold to highest heat. It seems to be working. Also don’t put them in the dishwasher and wash after each use, putting water in it if you will be delayed washing it up. – Loryn C.
- Watch the temperature. Most of us have the temp too high and a medium temp is better. – Rebekah B
- We were told to never put the ring on high setting and always use rice oil never olive etc – Kathy B
- Use a medium heat. I use an analon brush and some gumption to clean occasionally – Wendy J
- Don’t use aerosol oil. It contains sugar which burns into the frying pan. Get a spray bottle like the decor one that you can fill with oil yourself. – Helen D
- Best tip is ONLY use medium heat and non-scratch utensils.
- Try putting water in the pan with a little dish soap. Bring to the boil and simmer gently till everything comes off. I sometimes use a sponge to help it as it simmers. Rinse & Dry. – Ami N
