Dealing with Stained Baking Sheets

Do you happen to use a lot of baking or cooking sheets in your kitchen? If so, then you know just how disgusting they can get over time. Simply put, baking sheets become so dirty and disgusting looking over time due to how difficult it can be to clean them. When dealing with stained baking sheets, the best way is to prevent them from ever getting too nasty to begin with. You can do this by starting to use these methods when they first become dirty, rather than waiting till they have built up over time. However, if you didn't, you can still use these methods to get the sheets clean, it will simply take longer to do so.

• Soap and water. Perhaps the most traditional method for dealing with stained baking sheets is to simply use some soap and water. Clean the baking sheets by washing the sheets like you normally would. This will help remove most, if not all, of the baked on gunk, grease, and other staining agents. However, just because you get the baking sheet clean doesn't mean that you have removed all of the stains.
• Baking soda. To deal with some of the simpler stains you can wet the sheet, and then sprinkle a little bit of baking soda onto the stained areas. Use a regular cloth, and then begin wiping away at the baking soda and stain. You shouldn't need to scrub too much to get rid of most of the stains.
• Vinegar and baking soda. For stains that are a little more difficult sprinkle some baking soda onto a completely dried baking sheet. Ensure that there is a small film of the soda covering the sheet completely, and then pour some vinegar onto the baking powder. This should bubble away most, if not all, of the remaining stains though you may need to try it two or three times to get them all.
• Oven cleaner. If you are still faced with some really difficult stains, then your last resort is to try using some oven cleaner. Only do this in an area that is well ventilated as the fumes can be fairly toxic to anyone who breathes them in. Spray the oven cleaner onto the baking sheet after it has completely dried, then wait for a minimum of 15 minutes to wash it off. Completely wash and dry the cookie sheet as you normally would to ensure that you have gotten all of the oven cleaner off.