Cooking pots on display? Cooking pots that look like they have never been used? Why? I am proud of my well used pots and pans.
Linda C

I assume you're talking about rainbow-colored discoloration in stainless steel. A little Barkeeper's Friend will take care of that discoloration just fine. Stainless can discolor either from prolonged exposure to heat (even low heat, like a low, long simmer) or from minerals in your water. BKF will take out those stains with no scrubbing.

And what's the point of good pots if you can't turn the heat up high? I have NEVER understood that particular instruction from some of these manufacturers. Even if All-Clad or Calphalon in an excess of caution advise you to keep the heat at medium, I assure you that you can crank it up without doing any harm to their products.

I use plain white vinegar on my set of SS Al Clad and it works great for most things - since we have hard water and get a lot of spotting. With bad stains, I use BKF.

L

chitownfifi I understand why you want to keep your pans looking pristine. BKF and white vinegar will become useful to have on hand. I may be way off but I think the high heat issue has to do with the newer cookware it isn't necessary. I know I can sear on med hi in my ALL Clad SS saute just fine. I usually use hi heat for a big pot of water for pasta or stir fry only. I have seen the rainbow look you are talking about and a little scrub with BKF takes care of it. You are not doomed. Enjoy your cookware.

Hi folks, can you please let me know what BKF is?
On some of our newly All Clad we have hard water spots and on some the rainbow effect... What is the process to clean this up?
Thank,
Taya

Nothing wrong with wanting to keep your pans nice looking. My mom has Wearever pots that are at least 50 years old and still look great!

BKF = Bar Keeper's Friend.

Here is a link that might be useful: BKF

The warning of not cooking in high heat is NOT to protect your SS cookware (your SS cookware can take it), but it's for our protection, as cooking in high heat not only destroys the nutrients of the food, but also releases heavy metals toxicity into your food, which is not good for the body. This occurs in every brand of SS cookware, except cookware made out of titanium surgical steel. I learned this by watching (YouTube) Dr. James Meschino, expert in nutrition, prevention of cancer, & more. Watch "Dangerous Cookware To Avoid" on YouTube. This was very infornative for me and I now use and own the best and safest cookware there is! Do your own research on cookware, stainless steel vs titanium. Good health to ALL :)