The Finest Technique To Clear Caught-on Meals From Pots and Pans

On weekdays, I make quick, tried-and-true recipes the whole family likes, nonetheless on Sundays, I get to pick out what we eat for dinner with no stipulations. Maybe the lasagna I’ve been craving or hen biryani. I sit up for cooking, nonetheless the arduous actuality is that cooking and cleaning go hand in hand, and I am left with plenty of dirty pots and pans to wash.

After loading the dishwasher, my husband strikes the Dutch oven and cast-iron skillet (two kitchen workhorses we love) into the sink, hoping {{that a}} good prolonged soak will loosen stuck-on meals. Sadly, soaking isn’t ample to hold all that burnt-on stuff.

Harsh abrasives or scouring pads hurt the enamel finish and take away the seasoning off cast-iron. So what do I do as a substitute? I flip to the one ingredient I’ve sitting on my counter all the time for the job: salt.

I sprinkle coarse salt over the bits of meals that don’t want to come off. Then I take a moist sponge and rub it until the stuck-on bits carry off. It doesn’t take prolonged, and my pots and pans are clear and ready for our subsequent cooking extravaganza.

How To Scrub Your Pots and Pans Using Salt

For instance I’ve a Dutch oven with burnt, stuck-on meals throughout the outer edges. I start by washing it with a soapy sponge and water. If it has stuck-on bits that gained’t scrub off merely, I rinse it and pour out the water—additional water will dissolve the salt quickly, which I don’t want.

I sprinkle a tablespoon of coarse salt all through and rub it in circles with the sponge using the equivalent amount of pressure as I do when washing with cleansing cleaning soap and water. The salt acts as a delicate abrasive.

As quickly because the salt dissolves and I now probably not really feel or see it, I rinse the pot and study to see if I have to repeat the strategy, nonetheless usually just a few occasions is ample. I give the pot one remaining quick wash and rinse. That’s it!.

The Biggest Salt for Scrubbing Pots and Pans

I exploit Diamond Crystal, a tough kosher salt, because of that’s what I’ve obtainable. Coarse sea salt or totally different producers of coarse kosher salt, just like Morton, will work. I’ve found that coarse sea salt is rougher and stronger than coarse kosher salt, so I might attain for that you just most likely have it.

Stay away from desk salt or expensive ending salts. Desk salt isn’t abrasive ample to do the job and ending salts are too expensive and delicate—put it apart for these caramel brownies.

Salt Is Safe for Solely Some Surfaces

I exploit this cleaning trick most often on my enameled cast-iron Dutch ovens and my cast-iron skillets, nonetheless it moreover works for ceramic or glass baking dishes. Refrain from using it on aluminum, stainless steel, or on pans with a nonstick coating. Salt can scratch aluminum pans and nonstick surfaces, and would possibly set off pitting and rust on stainless steel.