The Easy Oven Cleaner Hack To Remove Stains From Your Dutch Oven
Cooking is a messy business. Heat combined with grease and other ingredients will eventually get baked onto your cookware and create stains. Even the chef who is diligent about cleanliness will experience discoloration and signs of use over time. While a patina can be beneficial to certain cookware, the stains, such as those you get on the bottom of your beautiful enameled Dutch oven, aren't as desirable. Luckily, it is possible to get your cookware looking like new. And it doesn't even take a great deal of effort.
If you'd like to remove those nasty stains that eventually occur on the bottom and sides of your cast iron enameled Dutch oven, you can follow the manufacturer's directions and sponge it clean in room-temperature water, and hope for the best. Or, as one Reddit user points out, you can give it a spray with your favorite oven cleaner, wait, and rinse. The longer you wait, the greater the cleaning potential and the easier the rinse.
What to remember when using oven cleaner on your Dutch oven
Oven cleaners have a high alkalinity. This means they are highly caustic and will break down fats and proteins upon contact. In most cases, under two hours is sufficient time to provide a thorough cleaning. However, cooked-on fats may take longer. It is essential to read all the directions on your oven cleaner and follow them, taking the proper precautions to ensure safe and efficient results.
Some general tips are to avoid contact with skin because oven cleaner will break down tissue and continue to penetrate deeper after the initial contact. Oven cleaner fumes can irritate and damage the airways when inhaled, so you should only use the product in a well-ventilated area. Also, be sure to rinse your Dutch oven thoroughly after cleaning to remove all residue before using.
If you have never cleaned your Dutch oven this way before, it is wise to first perform a small test cleaning at an inconspicuous location. This will help ensure that the oven cleaner will not adversely affect the finish of your prized Dutch oven.