How to Make Your Pots and Pans Look New Again

Are the bottoms of your pots and pans looking grubby? Find yourself scrubbing and scrubbing at those orangey brown stains on the bottoms of your pots and pans and wondering where they came from and how to get rid of them?

Those stains are burnt on food, grease, and carbon from cooking. Don't ask me how your food and oil got on the 'bottom' of your pan, just know that it is what it is. Figuring out how to clean it off is just as difficult as finding out how it got there!

But, here are some helpful tips to get the bottom of your pans cleaner and looking almost as new as when you first got them. If you buy new pots and pans and start using these methods from the beginning, your pots and pan will look newer longer. If you have had these stains for a long period of time, you may have to try these methods a couple of times to get the desired effect.

First, soak the pots and pans in warm to hot water with dish detergent overnight.

For you thrifty people out there, you can make a paste of either cream of tartar and lemon juice to scrub the bottoms of the pan, or you can buy Palmolive Super Scrub Gel. Rub the paste on the stains and let set for an hour or more depending on the severity of the stains. It is best to go with the grain of the pot. If you have many stains on the bottom of your pans, you may want to try this method several times. Meaning let them soak overnight again, rescrub with the paste and repeat.

If the majority of your stains and discolorations are from burnt on oil, you can try taking a straight edge razor and carefully scrape away the oil. I did this and was amazed at how easily it came off. I first soaked the pot in hot water with regular dish detergent overnight. Then I took the pot out, flipped it over and began scraping. It came off so easily!

Remember, it is better to prevent the buildup than it is to treat the buildup. Therefore, if you get new pots and pans, always let them soak in detergent before washing. This will help loosen up what oil splattered on it and help you avoid those unsightly stains.