How to Clean Stainless-Steel Pans to Keep Them Shiny and Functional | Architectural Digest

Nov 06, 2024

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Whether you’re a professional-grade, at-home chef or a new grad filling out the basics of a first apartment, knowing how to clean stainless-steel pans is a must in your arsenal of skills. This kind of cookware is something you’ll find in most household and restaurant kitchens because of its versatility, even heating, relative affordability, durability, low maintenance, and—perhaps best of all—easy cleaning. That said, you shouldn’t just carelessly throw them in the dishwasher—stainless-steel pots and stainless-steel pans are only durable if you take the time to properly learn how to clean stainless steel.

We asked three experts with serious stainless-steel cookware know-how about best practices when it comes to washing, caring, and maintaining stainless-steel pans: Dan Dilworth, a restaurant operations director and alumnus of Danny Meyer’s Union Square Hospitality Group; Cat Baldwin, studio manager for NYT Cooking; and Alycia Johnson, vice president of merchandising for the kitchen division of Sur La Table.

Stainless steel is a favorite material for pots, pans, and other cookware because it’s easy to care for and heats evenly.

Stainless-steel frying pans, stainless-steel pots, and other sorts of stainless-steel cookware are simply cooking utensils made with food-grade stainless steel, typically constructed from three to seven layers of the metal alloy. Some are hybrid pans that include aluminum as inner layers.

Professional chefs prefer stainless steel over many other types of pan because they heat evenly, are easily cleaned, nonporous, and do not impart off-flavors to the food. They’re also nonreactive, meaning that you can cook acidic foods (like tomato sauce, lemon juice, or wine) in them without worrying about discolorations to the pan or leaching metals or chemicals into the food.

“We use all [sorts of pans] at the NYT Cooking Studio, but stainless steel is in heavy rotation,” Baldwin says. “Unlike cast iron, it’s nonreactive to acidic foods, and it’s better suited for high heat, unlike nonstick.”

Dilworth says stainless-steel cookware is the core of both his professional and home kitchens.

“You want stainless steel over anything else, unless you feel like seasoning a cast iron skillet,” he says. “They last forever if you treat them right. I’ve had an All-Clad pan that I’ve taken care of for 20 years, and it’s like new.”

One note: Some stainless-steel pans come with a nonstick coating, in which case you’ll be treating it as a nonstick pan for all cleaning and storage purposes. Make sure to confirm what you own before embarking on the cleaning journey.

One of the best things about the versatility of stainless pans in all sorts of cooking is that they’re equally amenable to many kinds of cleaning and cleansers.

The basics of cleaning stainless-steel pans is actually quite similar to other dishes: Get a sink full of hot, soapy water, take out the scouring pad, and go to town.

“Hot water always works better for cleaning because it helps dissolve and melt butter and oil,” Dilworth says. “With cold water, it’ll congeal and stick to your sponge and you’ll just end up rubbing it around your pan.”

If your stainless-steel pan has a nonstick coating, you need to follow cleaning instructions for nonstick cookware. Generally, these instructions are more gentle as the goal is to preserve the integrity of the nonstick coating. In those cases, use a soft sponge and scrub gently. (You should also be using wooden spoons or silicone utensils when cooking with nonstick pans.)

Assuming there’s no coating, run hot water, then scrub in a circular motion all over the pan, inside and out. Don’t forget the handles, as residue and grime tends to collect around the crannies and screws attaching the handle to the pan.

Unless your stainless-steel pan has a nonstick coating, you don’t have to worry about being gentle—that’s why it’s perfectly safe to use a scouring pad instead of a soft sponge, though the former may be better at getting off food particles that are sticking.

“I use a Scotch-Brite dish washing pad on the scrubby side,” Dilworth says. “That’s the beauty of stainless steel: It doesn’t scratch unless you’re really trying to scratch it. Not a concern.”

Though the above steps should work with enough elbow grease, there are times when stainless-steel pans can look like blackened lava crust after a volcanic explosion, thanks to the stuck-on food buildup. While scrubbing long and hard may eventually do the trick, all our experts agreed that the savior in these most egregious burnt-food cases is Bar Keepers Friend, a patented mixture of oxalic acid, feldspar, and linear sodium dodecyl benzene sulfonate that has attained legendary status in the restaurant world since it was invented in 1882.

“I’ll let it sit with Bar Keepers Friend on for a few hours before scrubbing again,” Baldwin says. “I coat the problem areas on the pans with the liquid paste, not a thin layer—like thick enough that you can’t see through it. People might try to accomplish the same with a more scant amount, but I found that less effective.”

She prefers the liquid form because it “comes out of the bottle at a perfectly thick consistency that coats things well” and that she hasn’t been able to recreate herself with the powder.

Dilworth uses the powder form and says that a teaspoon to a tablespoon of Bar Keepers Friend is often “enough for most pans,” adding “Bar Keepers Friend is the number one secret for cleaning anything.”

But before you start applying Bar Keepers Friend to a large heap of dirty pans, you may want to pull on a pair of rubber dish gloves, since it can be caustic and abrasive.

“If you’re using Bar Keepers Friend in the same quantities that I am, gloves are necessary to keep it from eating off the first layer of your fingerprints,” Baldwin says.

That said, our experts disagreed about whether it’s okay to use steel wool on particularly dirty stainless-steel cookware. Dilworth and Baldwin had no problem with it, though Dilworth cautioned against doing so too often, as it could eventually scrub away the top layer of the pan.

“I find it’s useful for things that are really burnt or baked on,” he says.

But Johnson says to avoid steel wool altogether if your top priority is to stainless-steel pans scratch-free. “Steel wool can scratch and leave behind rust-causing particles, so stick to softer scrubbing tools,” she says.

Dilworth also advised against using degreasing agents on stainless-steel cookware, as “the degreaser can get into the bottom of the rivets or the layers of the bottom of the stainless steel” and start to undermine the structural integrity of your pan.

It’s not unusual for new stainless-steel pans to undergo changes in color after their first use—these aren’t the tough stains we’re talking about here.

“Heat marks are within the steel itself; [these happen] when you get a new pan,” Dilworth says. “The color will change slightly when it’s been used. There’s nothing to be done about that, and there’s no effect on cooking, as far as I know.”

Food stains, however, are easy enough to get rid of, thanks to—you guessed it—Bar Keepers Friend.

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“Stubborn stains can be removed with repeated applications of Bar Keepers Friend (left on for a few hours or overnight) and then scrubbing,” Baldwin says. “Repeat as needed until all stains marks are gone.”

You don’t worry have to worry about scorch marks on the outside of the pan from, say, overheating, unless you’re really into the aesthetics of your pan.

Stainless-steel pans shouldn’t rust at all if you maintain them, and if you do find rust on your stainless-steel cookware, throw them out immediately.

“A high-quality stainless-steel pan should never rust, though low-grade pans will rust,” Dilworth says. “It’s not good to cook with anything with rust and put that in your body. I would not eat anything that’s been on a rusty pan.”

If you’re a neat freak, it’s understandable that you’d want to get your precious pans clean as soon as possible—maybe even before sitting down to eat. However, it’s important to at least wait until the pans cool first.

“I tend to let the pan cool down so the water doesn’t instantly vaporize, because that extreme change in heat isn’t great for it,” Dilworth says.

If you repeatedly shock the pan with cold water right after it comes off the stovetop, you’ll stress the pan’s structure, which could cause the layers of the pan to separate and become unusable. You should, however, still try to clean your pans the same day you used them.

Though stainless-steel pans can go in the dishwasher, it’s usually best to hand clean them for a longer lifespan.

Probably, depending on your particular stainless-steel pan, though it’s not really recommended—you’ll get a longer lifespan out of your stainless-steel cookware if you wash by hand instead.

“Even though most stainless-steel pans are dishwasher-safe, hand-washing is ideal for a longer-lasting pan,” Johnson says.

Always check the manufacturer’s cleaning instructions first before putting anything in a dishwasher, including stainless-steel cookware.

The age-old debate: Does letting pans soak in the sink in warm, soapy water for a while before you clean them make them easier to scrub, or is it really just an excuse to prolong the inevitable?

Those who love a little break before getting into chores will be pleased to hear that our experts unanimously agree that soaking works. “I am pro-soak because it softens bits that are hard to scrub,” Baldwin says, adding that she also understands the perspective of the anti-soakers: “But some people are grossed out by soaking or don’t have time to do so, so they jump right in there and get it all done with elbow grease.”

No. Though soaking a pan can be beneficial, the pan needs to cool before you start cleaning it. Abrupt changes in temperature could cause permanent damage to the pan, including warping or causing the layers to come apart.

You could also seriously burn yourself if you try cleaning a hot pan right off the stovetop without giving it time to rest and cool off.

For the most part, a standard wash in hot water and dish soap is all you need—you’re just trying to get rid of any remaining chemicals or dirt from manufacturing or shipping.

A quick rinse with water and dish soap should be enough to clean new stainless-steel pans.

Keep your stainless-steel pans stored in a dry place where they can’t collect moisture. Dilworth, for example, keeps his personal pans on a hanging rack in his kitchen within easy reach but away from the sink.

If you have nonstick stainless-steel pans, you need to do everything you can to avoid scratching the nonstick coating, so, if necessary, cover the cooking surface with a soft towel when it’s not in use. If you’re stacking nonstick stainless-steel pans, for example, you’d sandwich towels between each to ensure the nonstick cooking surfaces are cushioned from the stainless-steel underside of the pan above.

Never use bleach on your stainless-steel cookware.

“Bleach is not a cleaning agent; it’s a sanitizing agent,” Dilworth says. “It should never be used for anything except to kill pathogens or clean your clothes.”

If you haven’t been properly maintaining your stainless-steel pan, or if you’ve been unlucky, it may be time to throw it out.

“If you see scratches, warping, separated layers, loose handles, or rust, it’s time to say goodbye to your stainless-steel pan,” Johnson says.

Dilworth says that a clear sign that the layers of a multilayer stainless-steel pan have come apart is seeing “bubbles come out of the edge of the pan, and when you heat it up, steam comes out.” This indicates that moisture has worked its way between the layers and there is a possibility of mold or bacteria building up inside (not to mention serious injury from scalding hot steam escaping).

If the pan changes shape, like going from concave to convex, it’s no longer safe to cook with. “If the pan’s warping, it’s done,” Dilworth adds.

If you have a nonstick coating on your stainless-steel pan that looks dry and brittle around the edges or is flaking off in any way, it’s time to toss it out and avoid the chemicals leaching off into your food. If you smell a burning, plasticky odor when cooking with a nonstick pan, it’s a sign that the nonstick coating may have started to come off.