Maintaining the cleanliness of your air fryer or convection oven is imperative. Not only could proper cleaning have a bearing on its overall performance, it will definitely keep your meals accurate if you planned to use it. When we see how greasy and dirty the bottom pan has become, one can see how cleaning it could seem daunting. But have no fear! We have a few suggestions and some alternatives to make this cleaning task easier.
Vinegar and Baking Soda: This simple, effective cleaning duo is well known for its cleansing ability. Start by generously sprinkling the greasy areas of the bottom pan (or other dirty areas) with baking soda. Next, pour the vinegar over the baking soda and create a fizz. Let this fizz for a couple of minutes. Next, with your sponge or scrub brush, gently scrub the bottom pan, but really concentrate on the greasy spots. After you finish scrubbing, rinse the pan, trying to get off as much of the baking soda remainder as you can with warm water. Finally, pat dry with a cloth or towel.
Hot Water and Apple Cider Vinegar: Okay, so—this one’s kind of old-school but also weirdly satisfying if you’re the type who enjoys pretending to be in a 1940s cleaning ad for about half an hour. You fill up your sink or maybe a big basin or tub or whatever—just, it needs to be something that holds hot water. Not warm, like hot hot. Not boiling, just… hot enough to make you pause before sticking your hand in.
Then you pour in apple cider vinegar. How much? Honestly, no one has ever measured this with a straight face. Just keep going until it smells like you’ve summoned some sort of salad-dressing ghost from the 1800s. Like, stop short of making a potion but don’t skimp. Enough to feel like you’re doing something dramatic.
Then the greasy pan—yes, the bottom one that usually ends up looking like a fossil—goes right into that vinegary bath. Let it soak. Maybe half an hour? More if you forget. The idea is that the hot vinegar water kind of unglues the grease. You’ll know it’s ready when you feel like you’ve stalled long enough to avoid actual scrubbing.
After the soak, you fish the thing out—it will smell like steamed vinegar dreams—and scrub. Use a sponge or brush or anything that won’t scratch but will bully the grease into giving up. It’ll probably come off easier than before. Maybe not squeaky clean, but better. Rinse with warm water, obviously. Dry it however. Towel, cloth, air—whatever. No one’s judging.
Dawn Dish Soap: Now if you’re not in the mood for apple-cider-vinegar spa rituals and you want to go a little more industrial-strength, just get out the Dawn. Yes, specifically Dawn. Not the organic lavender eucalyptus artisanal soap someone gave you one Christmas. Just the blue stuff.
Warm water in the sink again—this time it doesn’t need to be scalding, just enough to feel like it’s doing something—and squeeze in a decent amount of dish soap. Like, don’t just do one drop and pretend it’ll multiply. Think generous. Make it look like it could foam up an entire evening of bad decisions.
Pan goes in. Submerge it. Leave it for… I don’t know, 15 to 20 minutes? Long enough to respond to a few texts and forget why your hands are pruny. Supposedly the grease lifts off during that time. In practice, it softens just enough to almost make you believe this is working. And it sort of is.
Then comes the scrub part again. Sponge, brush, your roommate’s abandoned loofah—whatever. Work at it until the bottom of the pan looks less like an artifact and more like cookware. Rinse it off with warm water. Dry it. That’s it.
No magic. No applause. Just—hopefully—a pan you don’t feel ashamed of.
Oven Cleaner: In serious cases where there is a lot of grease build-up and it is difficult to remove, you may use an oven cleaner made for a non-stick surface. Follow the instructions of the cleaner, & make sure it is in a well-ventilated area. Use protective gloves. Apply the oven cleaner to the grease spots on the bottom pan and allow it to sit the amount of time required. Then, scrub it free of grease with your scrubber or brush. Rinse the piece thoroughly and dry completely, before using.
Aluminum Foil & Baking Soda: To clean your dirty pot, rinse the pot with hot water and drain. Next, sprinkle a couple of tablespoons of baking soda all over it. Then add a small amount of hot water to the pot, which will make a paste with the baking soda. After that, use the crumpled foil ball, about the size of a golf ball, to scrub it out. Keep scrubbing until the burnt area is clean. Lastly, rinse the pot with hot soapy water to finish cleaning it.
Dishwasher Tab: To clean your dirty pan, you can use a dishwasher tab. Just grab a tab, head to a sink with hot water and rinse the pan. Then, scrub the bottom of the pan under warm water with the dishwasher tab until all food is gone. Finally, rinse it again with warm water to finish.
Preventing Burnt Grease Stains on Your Pans:
Foil Wrap: If you want to make the next clean-up easier, use the foil wrap method. After you clean the bottom pan, place a piece of aluminum foil on the bottom pan covering all of it. The foil will catch any grease or drippings so they don’t build up on the pan. Keep in mind that not all air fryers and convection ovens are designed to use aluminum foil. So be sure to reference the manual or manufacturer-recommended practices for your specific model.
Routinely Cleaning: Make it a habit to regularly clean the bottom pan of your air fryer or convection oven to prevent building up too much grease. You will often find that if you are able to keep to a weekly cleaning routine you will be engaged in less strenuous effort. The best way is to simply wipe off all food and grease residue after cooking. Do this with a damp cloth or sponge. You can also use oven liners to catch all drippings and spills while cooking. As always, reference the manufacturer cleaning instructions and cautions on products or materials to use.
You do not want to clean using products that are abrasive or scouring pads that may damage the non-stick coating on the pan. Always unplug the appliance and allow it time to cool.
With these tips and suggestions, you will easily master that greasy and dirty bottom pan. Happy cleaning and happy crispy meals!
