These Methods Will Change the Way You Clean Your Cooktop!

In the Kitchen Stories office, we’re used to cooking all day every day, and in the heat of the moment, small mishaps can happen—even to our professional chefs. They ran to quickly grab some flour from the pantry but then, all of the sudden, the pot of milk boiled over. Or maybe grease splatters from the frying steak all over the cooktop and, as if that isn’t enough, a container full of sugar spills as you reach in for a pinch.

Professional chef or not, every cook as certainly experienced all these situations more than once in their own kitchens, and the worst part is, if you don’t clean up the mess right away, a scratchy, scrubbing sponge is the last resort. And that just won’t do.

At this point I’d like to broach a widespread phenomenon: Whether it’s the oven or the stove, the coffee machine or the kettle—many people tend to first browse online for bizarre tips and household remedies before they even come up with the idea of taking a look at the manufacturer's instructions for cleaning.

I want to be honest with you, just a few years ago, I was exactly that kind of person, whose cleaning repertoire consisted mainly of vinegar, baking powder, and scouring creams. One day, by sheer chance, I got my hands on a special cleaner for stainless steel, and after cleaning my sink in less than a minute, I made up my mind: No more experiments! Since then, I’ve applied that rule when it comes to cleaning all my kitchen equipment.

If you’re a happy owner of a SCHOTT CERAN® cooktop, just as we are at Kitchen Stories, you will hopefully know that you should treat it with care. Unfortunately, bizarre cleaning tips are all over the internet, most of which harm your cooktop rather than help it shine.

Today, we’re cleaning up the most common myths and explaining how you should clean your glass-ceramic cooktop properly—and even faster!

First things first: What makes the glass-ceramic cooktop so special?

Glass-ceramic cooktops have been popular for a long time now. They’re well suited to handle high heats (up to 1300°F!) and are energy-efficient. Since the cooking surface is very thin and heat-permeable, the heat can reach the pot or pan with little to no energy loss.And not a small fact to gloss over, thanks to the specially developed melting technique, black glass-ceramic can even be produced in an environmentally friendly manner (i.e. without the use of the heavy metals arsenic and antimony).

In addition to their enormous heat resistance and stability, the cooktops are also distinguished by their sleek aesthetic and longevity. But, proper use and care is essential in order to maintain the quality and benefits of a glass-ceramic cooktop for a long time.

If you’ve ever read or applied the following “tips” for cleaning your cooktop, here's my request: Erase it from your memory, your cooktop will thank you!

5 no-go’s for cleaning your glass-ceramic cooktop

1. Sharp pointed items: Never use knives or other sharp pointed objects to remove crusted-on messes. If you do, you’ll have to get used to the scratches in your cooktop. Better to opt for a metal cleaning scraper, more on that later.

2. Scrubbing sponges: Especially with ingrained dirt, many people tend to use scrubbing sponges or even steel wool on their cooktops, but please try to resist this, otherwise, scratches are inevitable.

3. Scouring cream: Another enemy of your glass-ceramic hob is scouring cream. This cleaning agent is far too aggressive for the surface of a glass-ceramic cooktop.

4. Dishwasher tabs: If you want to believe in the broad-brush tips from the Internet, dissolved dishwasher tabs can also be used for cleaning, but I’d strongly advise against it as some of them contain ingredients that could harm your cooktop.

5. Oven cleaner: You should also be careful using these oven-specific spray cleaners. Again, there is a risk that certain ingredients can affect the material of your glass-ceramic cooktop.

The 4 easy steps that will change your cleaning game forever

Minor cooking mishaps can be fixed quickly with a simple cleaning routine that, from today on, you should know by heart!

1. Use a metal cleaning scraper for coarse soiling

For coarse soiling of spilled pasta water or brimmed milk, I'd like to introduce you to my new favorite cleaning gadget: the metal cleaning scraper! I know that sounds anything but spectacular at first, but I can assure you that once you've tried the cleaning scraper yourself, you'll wonder how you ever got along without it.

The small, sharp blade resolves even burned or ingrained soiling in a few seconds without any effort. The dissolved dirt can then be wiped off the cooktop with a kitchen towel.

2. A glass-ceramic cleaner is the only remedy you need

Even if it might sound enticing to experiment with the well-known home remedy cleaners, let me tell you: nothing works as reliably and thoroughly as a glass-ceramic cleaner, which was developed for exactly the purpose of cleaning your glass-ceramic cooktop.

The detergent contains a special composition of powerful active ingredients and delicate abrasive particles that remove fat and starch and loosen burnt-on dirt. Therefore, it’s also suitable for light soiling, such as grease splatters. An economical hazelnut-sized amount is sufficient for just about any sized mess.

3. For thorough cleaning, rub in with paper towel

Add the glass-ceramic cleaner to the cooktop and rub it on, using a dry paper towel. Please make sure to let your hob cool down first so the cleaner itself doesn’t get burnt in.

4. For the perfect finish, wipe and dry

After you’ve rubbed in the glass-ceramic cleaner with your paper towel, grab a damp paper towel and wipe the cooktop, then dry with a clean kitchen towel—that’s it!

Watch our instruction video to see how fast it works.

5 min

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How to clean a glass-ceramic cooktop

Go to recipe

Sugar is your cooktop’s greatest enemy

If you spill some sugar on your cooktop by accident, make sure to remove it immediately, ideally using a metal cleaning scraper.

Why should you be particularly careful when it comes to sugar? As already mentioned, glass-ceramic cooktops are extremely heat-resistant. When temperature rises, the glass expands as the ceramic components contract, keeping the material stable even at extreme fluctuation in temperature.

However, sugar does not have this ability. When heated, sugar expands. If the cooktop cools down now, the glass-ceramic remains stable, but the sugar expands again, causing damage to your cooktop that is irreparable.

One final note...

Your cooktop is the most important accessory in your kitchen and should be treated as such. On that note, always remember these three things:

Never use pots and pans with a damaged or dirty bottom—this may cause scratches.

I’m not going to sugarcoat this: If you want to enjoy the great features of your glass-ceramic cooktop, you always have to clean it immediately after soiling, preferably after each use.

hich type of cooktop do you have and how do you clean it? What cleaning tips can you share with other community members? Tell us in the comments!