Polishing Stainless Steel Cookware

How often do you polish your stainless steel cookware?

With proper use and care, stainless steel cookware will remain its glossy looking and appear as new as it was first used.  Polishing the pots and pans is one element to maintain its beautiful appearance.  After washing the pots and pans, you can polish the pots and pans by using stainless steel polish found at local stores or online.  However, you can always use baking soda to polish your favorite stainless cookware by following these easy steps.

After cooking, wash the pot or pan to remove all accumulated food at the bottom, on the side and around the handle.  Use soft dish washcloth or non-abrasive sponge with soap and warm water to scrub the food off.  It is best to soak the pot or pan in warm water before scrubbing.  Scrub the pot or pan until food residues are completely gone.

Turn the pot or pan around and look for any remaining stains.   Mix baking soda with water to a paste form and scrub it over the stain areas.  It's not a bad idea to leave the soda paste over the stains for a while before scrubbing.  Continue scrubbing the soda paste over the stains with non-abrasive sponge or soft dish washcloth until the stains are completely gone.  Stubborn stains may be difficult to remove.  Try a few times to make the stains lighter and keep scrubbing until the stains disappear.

When the stains are all gone, wash the pots and pans thoroughly with hot water and wipe the pots and pans completely with a dry clean towel.

It is important to polish stainless steel pots and pans routinely in order to keep its sparkle appearance.  To reduce the presence of stubborn stains, be sure to wash the pots and pans thoroughly after each use.  This will also help the polishing task be completed in a more enjoyable fashion.

Easy Way to Remove Water Stains on Stainless Steel Cookware

When do not dry stainless steel cookware completely after washing, the excess water remains on the pot or pan will turn into murky stains making the cookware look overcast over all.  In order to treat the water stains from stainless steel cookware, white vinegar is often used to remove the stains.

• Rub the water stains by using a soft cloth or paper towel with the vinegar.  Keep rubbing until the stains seem to disappear.

• Use a dry dish wash cloth or paper towel to wipe the pot or pan to check for any remained water stains.  If the stains still exist, continue to rub with the towel and vinegar and then wipe the pot or pan with a dry towel to make sure the stains are completed removed.

• Once the water stains are all gone, soak a clean soft cloth or paper towel with water and then wipe the pot or pan to remove any vinegar remaining on the cookware.

• Finally, wipe the pot or pan with a clean dry dish wash cloth or paper towel before storage.

Overall, in order to prevent the stainless steel cookware diminished appearance caused by the water stains, always wipe your stainless steel pots and pans after washing with a dry clean towel.  On the other hand, to remove the already existing water stains on stainless cookware, follow the above easy tip to quickly remove the stains and make your pot or pan maintain its shiny look.

How to Restore Discoloration on Stainless Steel Cookware

Cooking on high heat can cause brown or blue stains on stainless steel cookware.  Burnt food, if not removed, also cause the stains when the pot or pan is reheated.  Mineral solids in water, over time will leave water stains on stainless cookware as well.  Bar Keepers Friend and white vinegar are often used to restore the discoloration from stainless steel cookware.

Bar Keepers Friend

Bar Keepers Friend (BKF) is a premium cleanser that works without chlorine bleach which can be used on stainless steel.  BKF can be purchased online or at local stores at the household cleaning aisle and can be found in either liquid or powder. 

• Make sure the cookware surface is wet before applying BKF onto the surface then lightly rub in circulation with a wet soft cloth where the stains present.  If using powder BKF, sometimes it's a good idea to mix the powder with water to turn it into a paste form before rubbing in order to remove stubborn stains.  Also, leaving BKF on the wet cookware surface for a while before rubbing would make the stains gone off easily. 

• When the stains are disappeared, rinse the cookware through warm water and wash it with soap to wash off all chemical residues. 

• Finally, rinse the cookware thoroughly with hot water and use dry clean towel to wipe it completely.

White vinegar

• Fill the discolored stainless steel cookware with one cup of vinegar and add water as needed to cover the stains. 

• Boil the vinegar water mixture for about five minutes then allow it to cool down completely. 

• Wash stainless steel cookware with soap and hot water using a soft dish wash cloth or a nonabrasive pad. 

• When done cleaning, rinse the stainless steel cookware thoroughly with hot water and dry it completely with a clean towel.

Best of all, in order to avoid discoloration, remember not to put stainless steel pots and pans over high heat.  It is recommended once the pots and pans are hot after preheating, maintain medium or medium-low for cooking.  Clean pots and pans after each use and wipe it with dry clean towels would certainly help the cookware remain spotless.

Do you have any other tips in removing the discoloration?  We appreciate your comments and suggestions.

What Makes Stainless Steel Stainless?

Have you been wondering what made of stainless steel?

Stainless steel is an alloy of iron, chromium and nickel.  To be stainless steel, the chromium content needs to be at least 10.5%.  The higher content of chromium enhanced the corrosion resistance.  At 10.5% or higher level, the chromium forms a passivation layer (a shielding outer layer of corrosion which spontaneously occurred in nature) when exposed to oxygen.  Because the layer is extremely thin, it is invisible and the steel remains radiant.  The layer is resistant to water and air, thus protecting the steel beneath.  This layer also is rapidly reformed when the surface is scratched.  This process explains why stainless steel stainless.

How to choose a high quality stainless steel cookware?

Stainless steel cookware often contains 18% of chromium with either 8% or 10% of nickel.  The percentage of chromium and nickel in the cookware also refers as 18/10 or 18/8.  The lower percentage of nickel content reflects the higher corrosive rate.  A cookware set labeled with premium stainless steel 18/10 is considered more resilient than the set labeled with 18/8.  It is important to understand that high quality stainless steel cookware endure high heat.  In order to have the best heat conduction, look for stainless steel pots and pans with aluminium or copper-coated bottoms.  With aluminium or copper-based feature, the cookware will increase its performance in spreading the heat evenly.

Will stainless steel corrode?

The high percentage of chromium will enhance the corrosion resistant of the steel but it does not mean that it can prevent rust.  The steel will corrode with the presence of chlorides as chlorides will significantly aggravate its conditions for fighting corrosion.  Chloride is also used to form salts that can preserve food such as sodium chloride.  Salt can eat through and destroy the protective layer of passivation that protects stainless steel from corrosion.  Leaving salt in stainless steel cookware unintentionally after a period of time would damage it eventually as salt will spread and destroy the stainless steel.  The pot or pan will ultimately stain thus not stainless as it supposed to.  In order to prevent corrosion in stainless cookware, make sure to clean the pot or pan after each use.

With proper care, stainless steel cookware will maintain its durable feature and last for a long period of time.  If you’re thinking to look for a stainless cookware set, browse stainless steel cookware.