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smellycoat t1_jb2pc4s wrote

Anything Teflon. Despite claims to the contrary dishwashers will destroy Teflon pans in short order.

As an inherently lazy man this has been the main impetus for me to switch to stainless steel.

I keep a cheap Teflon pan around (mainly for eggs), but most stuff gets cooked in stainless these days.

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theflysnameisyou t1_jb2vr4b wrote

I hate our stainless because they are so hard to hand wash. What's your secret?

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SimpleVegetable5715 t1_jb33fie wrote

Deglaze the pan while it is still hot, I mean adding warm water (don't put cold water in a hot pan or it will warp). That will loosen up the stuck on food, the brown and black bits from searing. Then you should be able to clean it with a dish brush and some liquid soap like Dawn. I also highly recommend making a paste of water and Bar Keeper's Friend or Comet powder if you want to polish them back to looking like new.

I don't know why you got downvoted for simply asking a question. Take my upvote for being curious about how to properly care for your purchases. šŸ™‚

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smellycoat t1_jb2w8ry wrote

I love stainless steel because it goes straight in the dishwasher.

If I didnā€™t have one then Iā€™d use cast iron and non-stick more, but I love that itā€™s completely bulletproof. I donā€™t need to worry about what Iā€™m cooking, how hot Iā€™m getting it, what utensils Iā€™m using, etc. just cook->dishwasher.

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L0NGING t1_jb3oog0 wrote

Steel wool? Scraper? I like stainless cause I don't have to be gentle with it. But I also don't care how my pans looks, just how they function.

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Steelringin t1_jb54bw7 wrote

Add a bit of water while the pan is still hot and put a lid on it for a few minutes. Everything lifts off and then just give it a once over with a some soap and water.

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FactOfMatter t1_jb44d6j wrote

>I hate our stainless because they are so hard to hand wash. What's your secret?

Scrub with warm water on medium heat. For really caked on stuff, just heat some white vinegar and scrub. It will take anything off.

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1955photo t1_jb2rf9q wrote

I disagree. I put my nonstick skillets in the dishwasher routinely and they are fine.

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smellycoat t1_jb2tahf wrote

I mean, they wonā€™t explode. But washing them in the dishwasher reduces the effectiveness of the Teflon coating way faster and theyā€™ll start to stick.

Plus many non-stick pans are aluminium underneath which is decidedly not dishwasher safe - if you get a small scratch in the pan that exposes the aluminium a dishwasher can quickly cause the coating around it to start peeling off. I donā€™t really want to eat that.

Even if they are marketed as dishwasher safe (which these days most arenā€™t), most manufacturers will recommend against using dishwasher with them too often, and will recommend specific ā€œgentleā€ detergent.

Iā€™ve come to the realisation (having destroyed a couple of expensive non stick Scanpans) that Teflon is not bifl. I treat it as consumable so Iā€™ll use something else (eg stainless) where possible and break out the non-stick when necessary, and hand wash it.

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5spd4wd t1_jb2t9pi wrote

I've always put my non-stick skillets in the d.w. and it doesn't seem to bother them at all.

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jremsikjr t1_jb4v2mc wrote

Ruined my favorite non-stick pan this way because I got lazy once.

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SimpleVegetable5715 t1_jb32lq0 wrote

One trick for teflon pans is soaking them in white vinegar every so often. The residues from cooking sprays and soap scum from detergents (even proper ones like Dawn since they removed phosphates), make the non-stick coating less effective over time. I found the vinegar soak brings them back to life sometimes.

Edit: With stainless it really helps to deglaze the pan while it is still hot. Plus Bar Keeper's Friend is great stuff.

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Coz131 t1_jb8a5ta wrote

Do people even rinse their dishware properly?

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