How to Clean a Made In Carbon Steel Pan

Q: How do you clean stuck-on food from a Made In pan?

Deglaze with hot water while the pan is hot. For tougher residue scrub with coarse salt and a paper towel.

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Clean a Made In carbon steel pan while it is still warm using hot water and a brush, add dish soap if you want, then dry it on the hob and wipe on a thin film of oil. Made In lists the pan as hand wash only. The dishwasher will strip the factory seasoning.

How to clean a made in carbon steel pan.

The routine

Clean while warm. Residue lifts easily and sets hard once cold.
Hot water and a brush or sponge. Enough for most meals.
Soap if you want it. Dish soap does not dissolve polymerised seasoning.
Dry on the hob over low heat until no moisture remains.
Wipe on a thin film of oil while warm, then wipe it back.
Cool, then store.

Made In specifies hand wash only. Follow that.

Stuck-on food

Deglaze with hot water while the pan is still hot. Most residue lifts in seconds.

For tougher material, scrub with coarse salt and a paper towel. Salt is abrasive enough for food and soft enough to leave seasoning alone.

For genuinely welded-on food, simmer water in the pan for a few minutes then scrape with a wooden spatula.

Avoid chainmail and steel wool in routine cleaning. Both will take off the factory seasoning you are trying to preserve.

Black coming off on your towel

Common enough on Made In pans that the company publishes its own page about it.

Loose carbon from uneven or excess seasoning transfers onto a paper towel as black residue. It is not the pan disintegrating and it is not harmful.

Scrub the affected area with salt and oil, then run one thin seasoning round. If it keeps happening, the layer is too thick and needs scrubbing back further.

If the seasoning peels

Worth addressing directly, because it appears repeatedly in Made In’s own published customer reviews, sometimes with photographs and sometimes within two months of purchase. Their overall rating sits at 4.7 from 11,316 reviews, so this is a minority experience rather than the norm.

It is fixable either way. Scrub off everything loose with a scouring pad, wash, dry on the hob, then rebuild with two or three thin rounds. Full method in how to reseason a carbon steel pan.

Made In offers a warranty. If a pan fails early, contact them before you start scrubbing.

What not to do

Dishwasher. Made In lists hand wash only. Detergent plus a long wet cycle strips seasoning and starts rust.

Soaking. Carbon steel rusts within hours in standing water.

Cold water on a hot pan. Thin steel can warp permanently.

Air drying. Residual water leaves rust spots.

Scouring the black off. That dark layer is the seasoning working.

Frequently asked questions

Can a Made In carbon steel pan go in the dishwasher?

No. Made In lists the pan as hand wash only. Dishwasher detergent is far harsher than dish soap and a long wet cycle strips seasoning and starts rust.

Can you use soap on a Made In carbon steel pan?

Yes. Dish soap does not dissolve polymerised seasoning, which is a hard film fused to the steel rather than loose oil. Abrasive scouring, soaking and acid are what strip seasoning.

Why is black coming off my Made In pan?

Loose carbon from uneven or excess seasoning transferring onto a towel. It is not harmful and not a defect. Scrub the area with coarse salt and oil, then run one thin seasoning round.

How do you clean stuck-on food from a Made In pan?

Deglaze with hot water while the pan is still hot, which handles most cases. For tougher residue scrub with coarse salt and a paper towel. For welded-on food simmer water then scrape with a wooden spatula.

Care instructions from Made In product listing, checked 22 July 2026.