How to get cooked on grease stains off of the side of a stainless steel pan?

I left my boyfriend's stainless steel pan on the stove with the gas left on for about 2 hours on accident, and the oil from what I had cooked in it spattered over onto the sides. The sides are that gleaming, mirror finish stainless steel, and these stains are dark brown and seem like they are part of the pan now. They're totally flush with the surface and scraping with a wooden scraper does nothing. Is there any way to get this off without damaging the surface? I got all the stuff off every other part of the pan but just don't know what to do about this. Thanks in advance.How to get cooked on grease stains off of the side of a stainless steel pan?
Do you have a deadline? If yes, I think using a commercial stainless steel cleaner, or silver polish is the only quick solution, but that's never worked for me. However, if you have a couple of days and a BIG pot, you can get off every last spot easily by ';cooking'; the burned pan in a larger pan. Cover it with water and add a cup or so of either ammonia, OR white vinegar, OR dishwasher gel/powder OR Baking soda. Heat it to a low boil, Be sure to NOT MIX any of those or you could have big problems. Also, be especially careful handling the ammonia. Wear eye protection - the stuff is really caustic! And don't do what I did -I sniffed it, because it will fry your sinuses! I have had each of those work for me at one time or another, so maybe it's more the heat and the soaking than the additive that does the trick. Maybe plain water and dish soap would work just as well. If you are somehow in a situation where you don't have a larger pan, or ammonia, or the other stuff - you could even try putting the pan in a larger container,(Waterproof, of course) and pour hot water and soap (or?) over it and cover that for a couple of days. Sometimes ya gotta get real creative! But, since nobody else has answered, I thought I would give you something harmless to start with. Good luck! Oh yeah - use plastic scouring pads, or Scotch thingies when the stuff without scratching the boyfriend's beautiful stainless.How to get cooked on grease stains off of the side of a stainless steel pan?
Spray sides of pan with oven cleaner. Let stand then wash. Should cut right through it.
Get some Barkeeper's Friend. It's a powdered cleanser but is much less harsh than scouring powder and works great on metals. Do not use oven cleaner, steel wool pads like Brillo or SOS will scratch.



The Barkeeper's is cheap and you can find it in a lot of grocery stores. Bon Ami is a good second choice also. Dampen the pan, sprinkle generously and smear the cleanser around with a sponge. Put the pan down and walk away for a good 15 minutes to allow the product to start soaking off the grease. Then come back and scrub with one of those nylon scrub pads. It might take a couple cycles of the soak and scrub process but it does work. I have all stainless steel cookware and some copper and the Barkeeper's is all I use to keep them looking good!



After you get the pan clean, a quick wash in hot soapy water and a good rinse will remove any residue and you're go to go. I just made a monster batch of tomato sauce in my big 22 qt. stainless steel stockpot and it tried to stick. One soak with the Barkeepers, a little gentle scraping and a good scrub and the pot looks like new again.