Mamma burnt a pan

December. 

A chilly winter evening , 5 pm, calls for a hot beverage and what's better than a tea ☕ and here I will be sharing an ordeal for a cup of tea, one such evening.

Pan with water was kept on full flame. Green cardamom, cinnamon powder, laung (clove),a little ginger, few seeds of black cardamom were added, hurriedly, with chilly hands. Spices started dancing in boiling water. As the warm flavours met my olfactory receptors, I added tea leaves and little sugar and here comes-

"Mammaaaaa Pottttyyyyy.......", by my two-year old.

I put the flame to minimum and rushed to clean the potty.

All the mothers reading this, will definitely echo that lucky are the days when the meals are eaten, still warm. Little one's pee-poop has a perfect timing with mother's eating-drinking schedules. 

So, potty cleaned, bump dried, powder dabbed, diaper on, warmer tick, trouser done, socks tick, shoes done....Did I forget something? (Mothers of North-India will definitely understand this long schedule of potty-cleaning in winter days😀)

Oh yes! I forgot my tea. Aha! the kitchen was full with warm flavours, but water reduced to half and tea was about to become a kadha.

So, I added a little water and put the flame on full. Milk was added, tea boiled and strained in the cup. 

Ding Dong! 

The bell rang.

I rushed to open the door and it was a delivery boy with an order from a restaurant. I could smell some fried things inside it. But, I hadn't ordered it. Though, I wanted to accept the uninvited tea-time snacks, I politely said, " Bhaiya humne nahi mangvaya." He insisted that its the same flat number as ours. I checked, though the address was same, but, the tower number was different. I said tata-bye-bye to the packet and closed the door. 

So, I took my cup of tea and went to sit in a quilt, followed by an innocent ask, "Mamma, my doodoo (milk) cup." Though, as a mamma, I knew it was not her milk-time but still I said, "OK, let mamma finish tea, I will get the milk then."

The little one went away to play. This is what I thought. She came back with a huge grin and a big packet of rusk from kitchen drawer. "Mamma, dip...Mamma, dip". Chai-rusk is a beautiful combination served by dadi and nani to their little grand-kids, especially in Delhi and Punjab.

So, my tea had first interaction with rusk, before me. And, I, like all mothers, happily obliged. She ate rusk and went to play her block puzzles. So, when I took the sip....Ah! it was no more hot😕. So, I went to the kitchen, to reheat my three-fourth cup of tea.

Tring-tring, tring-tring...

I ran to check my mobile. It was a call from my elder one's class teacher. An important call, for all the dedicated mothers. I got busy in the call for next 3-4 minutes. As soon as I put the phone back, I went to ...

No, no, not kitchen...

But my kids room, to find the work being discussed over phone.

And suddenly, I remembered MY TEA!!!!

I knew, it was gone.

I went to the kitchen, all smoky with a burnt pan!!!!

...and my burnt tea!!!

What happened next???

Chimney on, and thankful entry of maid. I was bit embarrassed but she, the gentle soul, said, "Koi baat nahi didi. Ho jata hai."

I told her, "Sulekha, try to clean it. Jitna hoga thik hai, otherwise I will do it."

So, she cleaned it. Again, that is what I thought.

Next morning, I couldn't find the pan in my kitchen drawer. So, I asked my house- help that where had she kept the same and she told, " I put water in it and kept it under-the-sink cupboard behind dustbin." I was like, Whattt???

But why?? Were you going to throw it???

She said, "No, but it was not getting cleaned, so I thought of keeping it there for 2-3 days."

I nodded my head and mumbled, "Maids will be maids." (But deep inside, I, respect all the house-helps).

So, I opened my mobile, and browsed to find various ways to clean a burnt pan. A large number of articles and videos popped on my screen.

So, I will share the method, which, I followed. Actually, I mixed two-three methods to get my pan cleaned. 

1. Fill the burnt pan with water, till the point it is burnt (half to three-fourth).

2. Add 1 teaspoon baking soda and 1/2 teaspoon detergent powder and boil this water.

3. Squeeze 1/2 lemon into the boiling mixture.

4. Turn off the flame and allow it to cool.

5. After an hour or so, scrape the burnt pan with a spoon/ blunt knife. This step requires a bit force 💪.

6. Scrub with baking soda and dishwashing liquid or soap.

7. Your pan is clean, though, not like original yet, but in 2-3 days, it will shine back to normal again.

                               BEFORE       

                                  AFTER

TIPS: 

• Always wash the burnt pan immediately. Keeping it overnight will take double the effort, as in my case. 
• You can use ENO if baking soda is not available.
• I did not use vinegar. Avoid mixing vinegar and baking soda, the combination creates a volcanic effect. (Good for 'Model of Volcano' for kid's school project).
• Best is try to avoid getting the pan burnt. It is a mess.
• If maid is not ready to clean it, and you don't want to clean it alone, make it a joint venture with your husband. Remember marriage-vow to support in all good or bad😀.