Burnt Le Creuset Pan

kimmo58

You shouldn't use soap in these type of pans as it strips off the oil coating (patina) that should be building up. Just use water, bring up to heat and leave overnight. If it's really badly burnt it may need 2 or more tries. Just use a nylon brush to remove the soaked burnt on bits then dry on a low heat then re-oil/heat it several times.
My pre owned badly abused large frying pan I got for free isn't perfect but with several soakings and re-oiling it's looking good. Mine had the black peeling off so I just soaked and brushed, soaked and brushed until no more would come off, then I started to reseason it. My best pans are the plain old cast iron ones that cost less than quarterr of the price of the le cruset pans.

honeythewitch

kimmo58 wrote: »

You shouldn't use soap in these type of pans as it strips off the oil coating (patina) that should be building up. Just use water, bring up to heat and leave overnight. If it's really badly burnt it may need 2 or more tries. Just use a nylon brush to remove the soaked burnt on bits then dry on a low heat then re-oil/heat it several times.
My pre owned badly abused large frying pan I got for free isn't perfect but with several soakings and re-oiling it's looking good. Mine had the black peeling off so I just soaked and brushed, soaked and brushed until no more would come off, then I started to reseason it. My best pans are the plain old cast iron ones that cost less than quarterr of the price of the le cruset pans.

Yours must be the type that was non stick coating over cast iron. It wasn't very successful and they discontinued it pretty quick, I think.
Still, if you have managed to get all the coating off you will be left with the best of both worlds, I should think, with enamel outside and raw cast iron inside?

All Le Creuset pans are coated. The black insides on the frying pans , woks, karahis and bouillabaisse pots is actually a black enamel which is slightly rougher than usual so it can develop a patina similar to raw cast iron.
Normal washing wont normally remove the patina once it is established.

suki1964

I burned a saucepan the other day, rice, pure black

Mum said she had just read a tip, rhubarb leaves, so chopped a few up, boiled them up, let it sit over night and my pan is back sparkling

Mrs_Salad_Dodger

I have owned my Le Creuset pots & pans for 38 years wedding gift (re first marriage) f I’m my uncle - 5 pans with lids (the bright orange with the cream enamel) & the wooden storage unit + two frying pans with the black insides + a casserole dish (recently donated to cs) Unfortunately the insides of the pans are the worse for wear - so I will be trying some or maybe all of the suggested remedies when I get back from my holiday :rotfl:

Willlet you all know which remedy works for me

MrsSD

mj1

My Better Half was going to throw a pan out...



Glad I found this thread the Rhubarb trick worked a little (maybe leaves a bit old as just out of season)



So then I tried the Dishwasher Tablet which did the trick!!! Very Impressive...



A word of warning do not leave the tablet on the bottom mix it around until dissolved in the heat, I left it sit and created a mark on that spot.


Not a deal breaker with my better half who was very impressed that it was super clean...


Maybe the bleach trick will even out colour but not tried that...

pjaj

Mrs_Salad_Dodger wrote: »

I have owned my Le Creuset pots & pans for 38 years wedding gift (re first marriage) f I’m my uncle - 5 pans with lids (the bright orange with the cream enamel) & the wooden storage unit + two frying pans with the black insides + a casserole dish (recently donated to cs) Unfortunately the insides of the pans are the worse for wear - so I will be trying some or maybe all of the suggested remedies when I get back from my holiday :rotfl:

Willlet you all know which remedy works for me

MrsSD

Yes, we had an almost identical set of 4 saucepans for our wedding nearly 47 years ago, but we weren't so lucky, Food burnt onto the enamel very easily and, not knowing about the methods above,it got badly damaged trying to clean them. I doubt they lasted more than 5 years before we threw them out :(. We do own one of the large, circular casseroles, but I'm wary of using it. and doubt if I would ever buy Le Creuset again.

pjaj

suki1964 wrote: »

I burned a saucepan the other day, rice, pure black

Mum said she had just read a tip, rhubarb leaves, so chopped a few up, boiled them up, let it sit over night and my pan is back sparkling

That sounds as if the oxalic acid in the leaves (poisonous, which is why you don't eat them) did the trick. Might be worth trying to clean a pan with just the acid (less messy) which you can buy on Ebay if not from your local ironmongers. Particularly when rhubarb is out of season or only available trimmed of its leaves.