How do I clean the sides of my non-stick skillet?

August 9, 2023 7:07 AM

I've got a nonstick ceramic skillet - a Greenpan - that we like to cook with. The bottom is clean; the sides, though, are building up some stains. The Greenpan site suggests boiling detergent in the pan. I did that, worked great - for the bottom, which was already fine. Sides, though, weren't really affected. How do you get stubborn stains off the sides of your ceramic cookware?
posted by Tomorrowful to Home & Garden (7 answers total)

If boiling detergent in the pan worked great for the bottom, maybe you could try pouring a steady stream of boiling soapy water (from a kettle, say) onto the sides of the pan while it's sitting sideways in the sink? Or perhaps dunking the whole pan upside down in very hot soapy water in the sink?

Here's an idea: can you buy one of those cooktop cleaning sprays meant for flat electric cooking range tops which are described as "ceramic glass"? Those work GREAT on my cooktop - so why not on your pan too?
posted by MiraK at 7:34 AM on August 9, 2023

Barkeeper's Friend will clean it right off. I wash with soap again afterward.
posted by fritley at 7:47 AM on August 9, 2023 [4 favorites]

Maybe steam? Fill with half an inch of water, cover tightly, and boil vigorously for a few minutes? (You could also add detergent, but I don’t know if it would actually be incorporated into the steam.)
posted by staggernation at 8:46 AM on August 9, 2023

I've done this for removing stains from the interior of enameled (Le Creuset) pots: make a fairly thick paste of baking soda and water, plaster it on, leave it overnight, then rinse off in the morning.
posted by number9dream at 8:50 AM on August 9, 2023

If you boil water (or detergent) with a lid on the pan, that will help concentrate the boiling so that it hits the sides more. I'd try that for about 5 minutes, then scrubbing the sides should be more effective.
posted by hydra77 at 9:48 AM on August 9, 2023

also have a green pan, +1 on fritley's recommendation for Barkeeper's Friend. I was nervous it would damage the cook surface, but it's very low-key effective for things like oil getting baked on.
posted by SoundInhabitant at 10:51 AM on August 9, 2023

What works for me (for cleaning a lot of stubborn messes, not just pans) is mixing equal volumes of distilled vinegar with dish soap, like Dawn. Mix it thoroughly, apply with a scrub brush, let sit for a few minutes, then scrub off the remaining residue.
posted by cp311 at 3:17 PM on August 9, 2023