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Stained enamelware

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Good2Go

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My wife has one of those heavy cast iron French enamelware pots. She even sautés stuff in it before adding the rest of the ingredients. This pot is pretty heavy duty, can even stick it in the oven to finish off your recipe. Anyhows, something she was cooking in it burned a real nice charcoal gray stain into the enamel on the bottom of the pan. I've tried barkeepers friend (just letting it sit in it, not scrubbing with it as I don't want to screw up the enamel coating) but the stain is still there. Is there something else we can try to remove this, or do we chalk it up to 'this gives the pot panache', kinda like the scars we collect throughout our lives? Each one has a story!  

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2 hours ago, Reed422 said:

plastic utensil to scrape it off

I think there is nothing to scrape off, he said it was a stain, which those enameled Dutch Ovens have a tendency to do. You could try the above advice, but if it does come off, I wouldn't fret over it too much. Just the nature of the piece of equipment, and it doesn't make it dis-functional. (As opposed to dysfunctional ;) )

 

"You know the Bill of Rights is serving its purpose when it protects things you wish it didn't."

 

"You can no longer be oppressed if you are not afraid anymore - Unknown"

 

SOL Member #174

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34 mins ago, Steve in Mass said:

I think there is nothing to scrape off, he said it was a stain, which those enameled Dutch Ovens have a tendency to do. You could try the above advice, but if it does come off, I wouldn't fret over it too much. Just the nature of the piece of equipment, and it doesn't make it dis-functional. (As opposed to dysfunctional ;) )

 

nah it's probably broken, he should send it to me to dispose it.

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4 hours ago, Reed422 said:

nah it's probably broken, he should send it to me to dispose it.

And your avatar says 'drug free'???

 

Thanks for the suggestions guys. I'll try boiling some vinegar in it with the fan on full when the better half is outta the house. Or if the weather stays like this, I'll do it on the Weber. 

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56 mins ago, Good2Go said:

And your avatar says 'drug free'???

 

Thanks for the suggestions guys. I'll try boiling some vinegar in it with the fan on full when the better half is outta the house. Or if the weather stays like this, I'll do it on the Weber. 

Don't believe everything you read.

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Ez off oven cleaner. I've used it on cast iron and my stainless stuff to get all kinds of burnt on stuff off. Make sure you get the sodium hydroxide stuff, not the environmentally friendly stuff. Wear gloves and NEVER use it on aluminum or copper. Ez off will mess it up quicker than you can say monkeys uncle.

the human race has proved darwins theory of evolution wrong. we let the dumb survive. 

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10 hours ago, i07nyc said:

Ez off oven cleaner. I've used it on cast iron and my stainless stuff to get all kinds of burnt on stuff off. Make sure you get the sodium hydroxide stuff, not the environmentally friendly stuff. Wear gloves and NEVER use it on aluminum or copper. Ez off will mess it up quicker than you can say monkeys uncle.

The way this stuff can clean caked on gunk off stove amazes me. My kitchen isn't well ventilated and I'm probably killing myself by using it, but totally worth it.

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Again, if I read his original post correctly, it is not that the gunk is still burnt on and needs to be removed, just that it left a grey stain on the enamel. Reason I see it this way is I have done the same thing :o

 

And I have found nothing that will take it off and just live with it.

"You know the Bill of Rights is serving its purpose when it protects things you wish it didn't."

 

"You can no longer be oppressed if you are not afraid anymore - Unknown"

 

SOL Member #174

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Actually, one thing I didn't try is something that works quite well on enameled broiler pans that come with a lot of ovens.

 

Put the pan in a heavy duty plastic garbage bag and pour in about a quart of ammonia. Close up the bag and seal it with a twist tie, and let it "stew" for 24 hours or more. Any stuff comes right off, but in the case I am thinking of, those really aren't stains per se, but just polymerized fat/grease "stains". But it works like magic on that type of thing.

 

Pans I have done this on are enameled steel, don't know about enameled cast iron. And ya have to be sure that the enamel is pretty much intact and not badly chipped, cause the ammonia is gonna react differently to the underlying metal, dependent on what it is.

 

And turn you head away when you open and drain the bag! ;)

 

"You know the Bill of Rights is serving its purpose when it protects things you wish it didn't."

 

"You can no longer be oppressed if you are not afraid anymore - Unknown"

 

SOL Member #174

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