Whether you’re a kitchen pro or new to the heat, we all know the smell of burning food. And if you’re not sure how to deal with it, there’s nothing worse than trying to enjoy a home-cooked meal knowing that there’s a burnt-on mess waiting for you.
To make dinner more enjoyable, we’ve got tips for making burnt-on food cleanup a breeze.
Read on to learn about our go-to solutions for cleaning up any burnt-on food without endless scrubbing.
How to Clean a Burnt-on Pan
Food-stained pans are among the easiest things to clean because you can take them to the sink and scrub them.
To make this chore even easier, you can remove burnt food from a pan with a dishwasher tab. Fill the pan with warm-to-hot water, drop in a dishwasher tab, and let it sit for a couple of hours.
Leave the plastic coating on. The warm water will slowly dissolve the tab, and the direct burst of concentrated dish detergent will remove most burned-on food. You may just need to do some minor scrubbing to finish it off. This method works on both coated and non-coated pans.
If you don’t have dishwater tabs, you can scrub stainless steel pans with baking soda and aluminum foil following this four-step process:
- Rinse your pan with hot water.
- Use about 2 tablespoons of baking soda, or as much as you need to liberally cover the stain.
- Use just enough hot water to make a paste (usually a few teaspoons) and scrub the food remains with a crumpled ball of aluminum foil. You may have to repeat the baking soda scrub more than once.
- Rinse the cleaned pan with warm water and soap.
Clean Your Burnt-on Stovetop
During regular house cleanings using our Detail-Clean Rotation System, your stovetop will be thoroughly cleaned! However, if you need to give your stovetop a quick clean to remove any burnt bits, there are a few methods you can try!
First, make sure your stovetop is fully cooled. Then, remove the grate and burners from a gas stove or coil from an electric stove and soak them in hot water and dish soap. Now, pick the best stovetop cleaner for your mess:
- For general burnt-on grime: Mix baking soda and warm water into a paste, apply it to the burnt residue, and let sit for 15-20 minutes before scrubbing gently with a non-abrasive cloth.
- For caked-on residue: If you have layers of burnt-on food residue,sprinkle the area with baking soda and spray with distilled white vinegar until moistened. Cover with a hot, damp towel for 15 minutes before scraping away food residue.
- For greasy stains: Mix a few teaspoons of lemon juice into a cup of white vinegar and spray on burnt (or fresh!) grease residue. Let sit for 10 minutes before scrubbing with a microfiber cloth.
The faster you clean burnt-on food, the easier it will be to remove it, but always make sure the cooktop is cool first.
Removing Burnt-on Food from the Oven
If your oven has a lot of burnt-on food, the residue might smoke and set off your fire alarm. It’s important to completely remove these layers of baked-on grime, but this can be labor intensive and time-consuming. For a hassle-free deep clean, leave this task to professionals who have the expertise and products needed to refresh your oven.
However, if you opt to clean yourself, we recommend a mixture of baking soda and water (about ½ cup of baking soda to 2-3 tablespoons of water.) Here’s how:
- Remove all racks and pans for easy access.
- Wipe out any large, loose chunks of food with a paper towel.
- Make a thick paste from baking soda and water. Spread it on the burnt-on spots and let it sit overnight. If the residue is particularly stubborn, add vinegar until you see a bubbling reaction.
- In the morning, wipe away the paste and food remnants.
Leave Routine Kitchen Cleaning to Us
Cleaning up after cooking is already enough work, so let us spruce up the rest of the kitchen! With regular, professional cleaning services from The Cleaning Authority, you can kick back and dream up the next recipe you will tackle in your freshly cleaned kitchen.
Call (888) 658-0659 or request an estimate online to schedule cleaning services today!