As home cooks, to really get your copper pots, pans and cups to shine you can’t just wash them in soapy water like other metals or stainless steel. Copper dulls or even changes color with oxidation. Oxidation is a chemical reaction that happens simply when the copper reacts to the oxygen in the air. When oxidation occurs it is best to clean them properly to avoid too much copper leaching which can cause food poisoning. Now, do not but afraid. Copper is good for your, too much copper can be bad for you. Do your research, make wise choices.
There are many ways to clean and polish copper and to be honest I was skeptical of a few of them… Today I found 3 copper pots at a yard sale for $2! They looked pretty bad and I wasn’t sure if the natural remedies and cleaning tricks where going to work on these copper pots. I want to avoid commercial copper cleaner and see if natural acids really does work to clean copper pans. After doing a little research I decided to try three different cleaning methods and see which one was the best way. These three methods are all made out of natural solutions. By using natural acids to clean copper the acids dissolve the oxidized copper exterior making it shine like new and safer to use. Here are the results and cleaning process so you can determine which is the best methods and best results.
Lemon and Salt
The first pot I used a combination of salt and lemon. This method is simple. Cut a lemon in half and dip it in table salt or sea salt. Then rub the lemon with salt all over the pot in circular motions, dipping into the salt as needed.
My daughter loved helping with this one and as you can see in the photo it started working right away! This made me very excited because I wasn’t sure how well the natural cleaning tricks would work.
To clean the copper pot off you can wipe it down with some warm water and dry with a clean cloth.
Vinegar, Flour and Salt
The next pot I mixed together a combination of white vinegar, 1/4 cup fine sea salt and 1/4 cup flour, just enough vinegar in it to make a paste in a small bowl. I spooned the paste onto the pot and scrubbed it down with my scrub pad. You can also use a soft sponge.
The vinegar is the true cleaning agent in this method but the flour helps keep it from just flowing off the pot. I can place more paste on the more affected area and the stubborn stains and let sit for longer. The flour and salt paste keeps the vinegar on the surface of the copper pot for a satisfying result.
Ketchup
Now to try the Ketchup. I know by now the vinegar and lemon both work well. Both vinegar and lemon are both acidic foods and that seems to be the trick. Ketchup is also an acidic food, both from the tomatoes and the vinegar in the ketchup. So in theory this should work…
And it did! I was actually very surprised with the ketchup method but it works really well.
Copper Pots Results
Now let’s look at all three natural ingredients compared them to each other.
I’m super impressed! And a little disappointed that they all work so wonderfully. I thought I would be able to compare and tell you all which one work better and which one didn’t work. So let me see if I can find fault in one of these methods…
Lemon and Salt:
The lemon and salt worked great but I felt like I couldn’t scrub it the same as the other. I still used my scrub pad and got a little cleaner. As I scrubbed I felt like I couldn’t keep the lemon juice where I wanted it like I could do with the vinegar paste and ketchup.
Vinegar and Four:
I like this one the best. Although the results of all three turned out the same this was the easiest to scrub with. I could see the vinegar at work because of the flour and I could paste the worse areas with more and let it sit there for a while for an easier clean. I could not do that with the lemon and salt mixture.
Ketchup:
Ketchup worked just as well as the others! This one was super easy to just grab out of the fridge and clean with. Its a little sticky because of the sugar but it all washes off well with hot water. For simple cleaning/maintenance for my copper pots I will probably just use ketchup. It was quick, simple and worked great. Although, if I have another deep clean that needs to happen I will use the vinegar and flour.
In Summery – Before and After
These were all very effective ways with simple steps to cleaning the surface of copper pots. Cleaning copper items are a lot easier then I expected. The Lemon, Vinegar and Ketchup are all acidic and clean the copper equally well. So there are no needs to buy any special commercial copper cleaner or harsh chemicals to get your copper clean. You can use natural cleaner that you already have in your kitchen.
Note: I do not advice using steel wool on your copper item. Copper is a soft metal and is easily scratched. Although you may make it shine again by de-oxidizing the copper you will most likely leave swirl marks and scratches on your copper pots, pans and cups. Use a soft sponge, soft cloth or microfiber cloth you clean copper with.
You can try this with other copper items such as copper cups, copper pans, copper sink, really anything that is made with a copper surface.
Want a Natural All Purpose Cleaner?
Did you know that you can make your own lemon scented all purpose cleaner? Its really easy and effective. Simple take lemon peels and put them in a jar. Fill the jar with vinegar and let sit for a week or two before you use. Pour into a spray bottle and you have a natural, effective all purpose clean!
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