The Product That Makes Fussy Sheet Pans Easy To Clean

Unless you just purchased your baking pans, they're probably a bit dingy. Which isn't to say that they're not well-loved or that they don't do their job, just that they're likely a bit of an eyesore in your, no doubt, otherwise pristine kitchen. If you've taken to them with a bit of elbow grease to try and remove the years' worth of baked-in coating, you might have realized that it was pointless and given up your battle (though you should probably hold onto to one of your gross sheet pans, anyway). But there's still hope for you in the form of one clever product.

And that product is oven cleaner. Well, why not — this magical spray substance is used for removing the baked-on gunk inside your oven, so why shouldn't it work for the baked-on gunk that's coated your pans all these years? To use it, just spray enough on to cover the entire pan and then you can place it in the oven to sit (so you're not inhaling the fumes) for about 30 minutes. Once time is up, you're going to grab a heavy duty scrubber and really go at the pan with it. Then you can rinse and repeat if you like. Or, if you're happy with the results, give the pan a good clean with dish soap and let dry — and maybe use parchment paper over your pans from now on.

If the thought of putting chemicals on the pans you cook with gives you the willies (even despite a thorough cleaning at the end), you can try these more natural methods for removing the baked-on sheen, starting with ketchup. Yes, you read that correctly. Ketchup is not just great on pretty much everything, it also doubles as a cleaner thanks to its vinegar and tomato content, which make it quite acidic. That works in combination with its gloopy texture which allows the ketchup to more or less stay put where you slather it. You can let your pan sit with a layer of ketchup overnight.

There is also the baking soda and vinegar method, whose chemical combination makes for great science fair volcanoes and also a fantastic cleaning agent. You'll put the baking soda down first, then pour vinegar over it and let the fizzy bubbles do their thing. You can leave it for as little as half an hour, but also as much as overnight, depending on how bad your pans are.