How to clean a burnt pan with coke? Apart from being a drink, Coca-Cola is also a cleaning agent. On the other hand, your burnt pan removes the beauty touch which affects your contemporary kitchen.
Coke will clean a burnt pan. Coke uses food-grade acid to cut the sweetness which makes them effective cleaners. This also means that your pan will not become toxic after cleaning.
The pH of coke is reportedly 2.6 to 2.7 because of H3PO4, phosphoric acid. Coke is a fizzy drink that contains dissolved carbon dioxide. However, it does not add to its acidity.
If you have the cans or dregs of a Coke bottle around, it is the solution for cleaning your burnt pan. You only have to fill your burnt pan with coke and allow it to soak for some hours. Your pan is now clean.
Why Does My Stainless Steel Pan Burn?
Your pan gets burnt for some reasons including the following:
- Your pan does not use a non-stick coating. If your pan does not use non-stick coating, food sticks easily, causing it to burn quickly. Buy non-stick stainless steel to resolve this issue.
- Low-quality pan. A cheapie pan gets burnt quickly. It does not allow the food to burn evenly due to the poor-quality material used.
- Not cleaning your pan before use. If you cook with your pan without cleaning or wiping it, older food residues can cause it to burn. Moreover, grimes can get burnt onto the outer pan by your cooker.
- If you allow your pan to cook for too long until there is no liquid in it, it will burn.
- Older pans underperform on fire. If yours warps, it encourages getting burnt.
What Do You Need to Clean Your Burnt Pan with Coca-Cola?
- Plastic scrubber
- Coca-Cola
- Scraper (plastic or wooden)
How to Clean a Burnt Pan with Coke
As mentioned earlier, you can make a burnt pan clean again using coke. Coke is acidic, and its acid content can remove scorch marks without damaging your pan.
Coke contains no foreign harmful chemicals and reduces your scrubbing time. You can simply leave it in the burnt pan to do the magic cleaning for a few hours.
Below is how you can clean a burnt pan with Coke:
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Fill your burnt pan with coke
First, dry off the bottom of your burnt pan, making sure it is dry from any liquid.
Pour in enough Coca-Cola inside your burnt pan. Make sure the Coke covers all the scorched or burnt areas.
Add additional inches (about three) of coke to your burnt pan. This is not necessary but advisable because Coke can evaporate during the heating process.
Inspect the bottom of your burnt pan again and wipe off Coke if any. It is not proper for drops of Coca-Cola to fill your cooker or stove.
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Heat the pan
Place the pan which is now filled with Coke on your stove. Increase the heat and let it boil. Do not simmer so that the heat covers the pan well enough.
You should see larger bubbles rising from the bottom of your burnt pan. This should be producing a nearly continuous stream.
Allow the Coke to set in your pan for some hours or until you notice the burns loosening.
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Scrape the pan
Get your scraper ready. Use it to get rid of as much residue as you can. Select between a wooden or plastic scraper. Metals will leave marks on your pan, removing the premium beauty.
Since your heated the pan with Coke and allowed it to set for a few hours, scraping will be easier. The burnt food on the pan loosens quickly due to the acidic content of Coke.
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Allow to cool and scrub again
Allow the pan to cool completely for about 30 minutes. Pour out the Coca-Cola content, your pan should appear cleaner.
Give it a final scrub to get rid of the debris and film. You might notice a rainbow or heat tint on your pan caused by the pan getting burnt.
To get rid of any scorch marks on your pan might require specialized kits to become cleaner.
You can use steel wool pads. However, it can scratch the bottom of your pan, taking away the beauty.
To avoid scratching the bottom of your burnt pan, use a sponge with plastic netting. You will have to pin down the pan a bit firmly to remove any scorches.
If you decide not to use Coke, you can use other cleaning agents such as vinegar (good for descaling kettle), salts, baking soda, and lemons.
How Does Coke Remove Burnt Food?
Coke removes burnt food easily due to its acid. At up to 2.6 to 2.7 pH, its acidic content is strong enough to weaken the burnt residues in your pan.
Make sure to cover the entire burnt area with coke. It is better if you are just bringing down the pan from cooking on heat. While you scrub the pan after putting it off the fire, the burnt residues drop faster since Coke loosened them.
As mentioned earlier, get plastic or wooden sponge to scrub your pan when it cools. Finally, wash it normally and dry, all stains and scorches will go off.
If you find tough marks that will not come off, you can use a paste of baking soda and water on your burnt pan.
How to Keep Your Pan from Getting Burnt
Cleaning a burnt pan can take time. It stops you from focusing on other activities while in the kitchen. Do the following to keep your pan from getting burnt:
- Buy a non-stick pan
Get a pan that is non-stick so that it reduces or eliminates the chances of burning. A non-stick pan uses a non-stick coating that keeps food from sticking so that no residue leads to it getting burnt on the next cook.
- Buy a premium pan
Your choice of cooking pan can contribute to it getting burnt. If you invest in a high-quality pan, you get decent and durable material that fire will not easily defeat.
- Do not leave the food unattended
When you leave your food unattended, you do not get to stir it. Therefore, food remains in one spot for a long time and then gets burnt onto the pan. By stirring your food, you keep it from burning.
- Use enough oil before cooking
Consider adding oil to your pan before you heat it on your oven, stove. Oil can serve as some sort of non-stick coating that keeps the pan from getting burnt. This is because no food residue sticks to the bottom while cooking your favorite meal.
Final Thoughts
When your pan is burnt, soak it in hot water first to loosen the debris while you get Coke.
After heating Coke in the pan, allow it to sit for some minutes, perhaps overnight, before pouring it out.
If you have an anodized aluminum pan, experts advise you to only wash it with your hand, hot water, and soap. You can use your dishwasher for cleaning scorched Teflon pan cookware.
