Hi, has anyone got a "tried and true" receipe for cleaning them??
Thanks,
Josie

To be honest, I just don't bother (I've got three). Life's too short and mine don't hang from the ceiling for all to see. Having said that, I do tend to be a tidy cook, so they never seem to get very dirty - nothing a "Goldilocks" scrub won't fix. Every now and again I've been surprised by how all the black stuff falls off when you've accidentally overheated the pot on the element (boiled dry, etc) - this method possibly does unrealised damage to the pot but certainly gets them clean!

I'm sure my mum used to use salt & vinegar?? like a paste? rub on then clean off

I thought it was a paste of baking soda and vinegar.

maybe baking soda & vinegar with salt to give it some body - i.e. so you've got something that will stick to the base for 5 mins.

or maybe it was the hot chips and salt & vinegar....

Lemon juice and salt. Rub, Rub, Shiny Shiny.
Cheers

I've got a round brass kitchen sink. I planned on changing it when I bought my house, but never quite got there. Its a bit of a curse sometimes with a large roasting pan - the square peg into a round hole idea!.
Brasso cleans it really well, as it would copper bottomed pots. I have copper bottomed pots but like Jennifer, I long ago gave up trying to keep them shiny.
On the sink I usually use salt and vinegar - doesnt clean quite as well as Brasso, but a heck of a lot cheaper.

Paula

Thanks for all your help, although my pots don't hang up I still like to have them clean even tho they are stored in a cupboard! Not a problem!
Josie

I.ve had my copper bottom saucepans for 30 years. Every so often I sprinkle them with salt and rub with a cut lemon, squeezing out the juice. They come up like new every time.

My dear old Mum had the cleanest copper bottom saucepans you ever did see. She always had a small container of homemade cleaner in the cupboard and she cleaned them after every use. They were shinier than the stainless steel.

Equal quantities of flour and salt. Mixed with enough vinegar (She used malt) to make a paste. She would rub it on with a cloth, and then wash off and rinse in very hot water.

If you try to mix baking soda and vinegar together it will bubble up. It is great for cleaning sluggish plug holes and waste pipes. Do mine every couple of months. Put a good tablespoon of B.Soda down the plug hole and then pour some vinegar down. When it has finished bubbling and fizzing, pour some freshly boiled water down behind it. Clean, Clean, Clean!!!!!!!

Hope this is helpful
Raewyn

You're quite right Raewyn - of course baking soda and vinegar will fizzle. Sorry about that!:/

I always used a commonly named soap pad starting with "S"!!! Worked like a dream, and they used to glisten!

I should have said too that the salt needs to be plain salt not iodised. Don't ask me why, just what Mum used to do.

I use iodised salt. That's what is in my salt pig on the bench. Still cleans the copper.:-o:-o:-o

Ours are all copper, not just the bottoms, and they hang up, so they get cleaned with Polaris cleaner, every time they're washed. They are a joy to behold! The cleaner is available in all supermarkets, Mitre Ten and so on. It lasts for ages. It's the only thing that takes the 'blueing' (like petrol on a wet road) off the gas hobs in the commercial kitchen where we make our mustard.
Stephanie

In reply to Raewyn G - I totally endorse the baking soda and vinegar for sluggish plug holes. I regularly treat my shower to this, and have tonight (after cleaning blasted said brass sink) done the same with baking soda and vinegar followed by boiling water. Its now flowing freely again.

Cheers
Paula