Copper pans, cookware, and bakeware can add plenty of style to your kitchen.
However, just like all the other types of cookware and baking sets, the red copper pans can lose their shine, and over time develop a tarnish that looks quite unpleasant.
Even if you are storing and washing your cooper pans correctly, they can still develop an ugly tarnish.
When it comes to cleaning red copper pots and pans, you need to follow the tips and tricks to ensure you are cleaning them correctly to keep your copper pans in the best condition.
You don’t want to use harsh scrubbers and cleaners as you can scratch the metal.
Below we talk about the best ways to clean red copper pans and just the right way to go about it.
Table of Contents
How To Clean A Red Copper Pan?
If you have a red copper pan that needs cleaning, detergent and hot water is all you need. Soak the pot in hot soapy water then give it a good scrub with a soft cloth. If the pot is stained you might need something a little more acidic such as ½ cup of white vinegar added to the water to soak. After 20 mins take the pot out give it a good scrub over, rinse with clean water and buff dry.
Cleaning Copper With Worcestershire Sauce
Worcestershire sauce is not really a popular sauce that you find at every house, as you might ketchup, but the sauce is actually a great cleaning solution for copper pans and utensils.
All you need to do is soak a sponge in some fresh Worcestershire sauce and rub the sponge over your red copper pan gently and once covered, let the sauce sit for a few minutes.
Now you can wash your pan as usual and give it a good rinse, and you will see how much better your copper pans look.
Tartar Cream With Lemon Juice
Tartar cream is commonly found in pantries and used in many recipes, but tartar just happens to be very useful for cleaning red copper pans.
Mixing the tartar sauce with the lemon juice creates a cleaning agent that works fast.
All you need to do is mix a couple of spoons of tartar sauce in with a couple of squeezes of lemon juice until you get a nice paste consistency.
You want the paste to stick to the pan without running off. This paste can be used on all red copper pots and pans as long as you apply with a soft, clean cloth.
The paste can sit on the pans for 10 minutes. After that time, you can go ahead and wash the copper pans with warm water and some mild detergent, then rinse well and dry.
The result should be a nice clean and shiny coat.
Baking Soda And Lemon Juice
The common household ingredient is the well-known baking soda. Baking soda can be used for so much around the home and cleans everything from shower screens to floors.
Baking soda and lemon juice is actually a popular combination for stains on clothing and shoes.
Did you know that baking soda actually cleans red copper very well?
To use baking soda and lemon, you need to add a few teaspoons of fresh lemon juice into a bowl with 2 tablespoons of your baking soda and mix into a paste.
You can apply this with a clean, soft cloth and rub it into the burnt and stained areas well.
The grime should start to dissolve within one minute. Once done, give a good scrub, rinse and dry.
Salt And Vinegar
We aren’t talking about salt and vinegar chips here, but acid actually happens to be a common chemical that is found in many cleaners designed for red copper pans.
Salt and vinegar together as a cleaning agent are very powerful and works very aggressively.
To make this mixture, you need to add four tablespoons of table salt into a clean sprayer then fill to the top with white vinegar.
You can use normal brown vinegar, but white works better for stubborn grime as it contains stronger acidic properties than all the other varieties of vinegar.
Give the sprayer a good shake until the salt has completely dissolved. You can now spray the cleaning solution onto the red copper pan and leave it to sit for fifteen minutes.
Now give a good scrub with a sponge, rinse and dry the pan. How good does that look?
Is There A Way To Clean Badly Tarnished, Red Copper?
There sure is. Table salt and fresh lemon added to this cleaning routine will ensure your pots are clear of tarnish.
All you need to do is cut a lemon in half, then add a few spoons of salt to a bowl.
Dip the halved lemon into the salt and, using a little bit of elbow grease, scrub away as the stubborn tarnish and stains.
This is one of the best cleaning methods for badly tarnished copped.
The lemon juice will help to clean the copper surface with its acidic content, and the salt works as a scrubber to loosen the grime.
These ingredients, when used together, create a cleaning agent that works best for tarnished copper.
Now all you need to do is to rinse your pan in warm water and ensure the pan is scorched before you go ahead and use it.
Can You Get Burnet Grease Off Copper Pans?
Using Vinegar
For this method, you just need to add 1.4 cups of white vinegar to a microwave-safe bowl and then heat the vinegar in the microwave for one minute.
Now get ½ cup of white flour with ½ cup of table salt and add the warmed vinegar into the dry mix and give it a good stir until you form a paste.
Apply the mixture to the parts of your copper pans that have badly burnt grease and let it sit until the mixture has completely dried up.
Remove the paste with a cloth, then scrub with a clean, soft cloth and hot water.
Baking Soda Method
Give the pan a good wash to get rid of any food residue sitting on the pan. Now add three drops of mild detergent into the pan and fill it up with hot water.
Now get your baking soda, and you want to add two tablespoons of baking soda into the water and let your grease pan soak for one to two hours.
After that time, you can grab a scrubbing brush or pad but ensure it is non-abrasive and scrub at the burnt areas of your red copper pan.
If this doesn’t seem to be helping, make the mixture up again and aim to soak the pan overnight.
This should do the trick, then just rinse and dry, and your pan is clean and ready to use.
Red copper cookware often has another metal that is on the inside of the pan, which is to stop the copper from reactivity after it has been heated.
The copper pans are made for better heat distribution and because people just simply like the look.
If you have a copper pan and the lining is actually damaged or has large scratches, you cannot clean this; you need to throw it away immediately.
This means the food is exposed to copper, which is dangerous. If the copper is just dirty, stained, and grimy, then you can keep the pan and give it a good clean over and see how well you can clean it up.
What Chemical Cleaners Will Clean Copper?
If you prefer to use chemical cleaners for your copper pans, here are a few that work great:
Acetic acid: This is a common acid that cleans copper pans and utensils well. Acetic acid can be found online or from the local hardware store.
Citric acid: Citric acid is very strong, and due to being an organic acid, it works well to get rid of oxidized copper.
Hydrochloric acid: This is a very strong acid and is commonly found in many cleaning products.
The acid works well to eliminate staining from copper cookware.
The chemical is harsh, so ensure you use it outside and wear a protective mask, gloves, and gown to protect your clothing.
Should I Clean Red Copper Pans After Each Use?
It is a good idea to avoid too much build-up and set-in stains. Cleaning right after use will also help to prolong the life of your red copper.
Cleaning the pan this way isn’t very difficult all you need to do is wash over the inside of the pan and wipe over the outside with detergent and hot water with a soft cloth to avoid too much grease and burnt food building up.
This will make your deep cleans easier.
How To Clean Red Copper Pans With Burnt Marks?
You can clean burnt marks on red copper with a plastic scrubber. You don’t want to use steel wool, abrasive cleaning pads, and harsh cleaners as a plastic scrubber used after each use will do the job.
Using Detergent
Detergent and a plastic scrubber will work well for the red copper pans. All you need to do is to fill your red pan with water and simmer the pan for 5 minutes.
Tip the water out and add one cup of water to one tablespoon of detergent and scrub clean.
After washing, ensure you rinse the pan properly and wipe it down with a clean cloth.
This can be repeated if it needs some more cleaning; you can also let it sit for a while before you clean and rinse.
Using A Professional Oven Cleaner
You can use a professional, easy-off cleaner for the over to clean red copper pans.
First, you need to spray it on the inside of the pan and outside if the pan is very burnt. You want to leave it to soak in and do its magic for an hour.
Now all you need to do is grab a wet rag and wipe over the cleaner, and you should see a clean pan with all burnt residues gone.
This stuff can be potent so ensure you spray the pan outside and wear protective gear like masks and gloves.
How Do You Care For Red Copper Cookware?
If you want to enhance the life of your red copper cookware, then it is important that you maintain the non-stick coating, which can be done by seasoning the pan every few months to allow for a smooth cooking surface to be created.
Don’t leave the pan sitting on the heat even when you have turned the heat off. This can cause damage and a burnt bottom.
There are some copper pans that are safe for cleaning in dishwashers, but just to be on the safe side, you should always handwash as sometimes the cleaning products in dishwasher tabs can tarnish and discolor the red copper.
You can ruin the surface of the pan if you use metal utensils, so go with silicone or wood utensils if possible.
Cracks can develop in your red copper pans if you add them to cold water when they are hot. This can also damage the surface of the cookware.
Cooking spray is best to be avoided as it causes a residue that can be hard to clean off copper pans.
Conclusion
Now you know all about cleaning and maintaining your beautiful red copper pots and pans, you can be sure they won’t look old and nasty ever again.
You might need to try a few of the above tips and tricks to see which type of cleaner and method works best for your red copper pots and pans.
Frequently Asked Questions About How To Clean A Red Copper Pan
Can I Clean Copper With Steel Wool?
This is not a good idea, period. Even abrasive cleaners can damage the patina, so avoid steel wool, wire brushes, and even hard scrubbers on your red copper bakeware.
Can Water Tannish Red Copper?
Moisture helps the oxidation process. It does this by encouraging the copper to reactivate, which will lead to patina and corrosion. It is best to dry the copper cookware right after cleaning instead of leaving them with water sitting there to air dry.