Soak first, wipe gently, and match the cleaner to what the frother manual allows.
Part of our best stainless steel milk frothers guide. The steps below come from manufacturer manuals and cleaner-maker instructions, not from hands-on trials.
Burnt-milk cleaning methods for stainless steel frothers only suit a jug whose milk-contact surface is bare steel. A steel exterior does not prove a steel interior. Search the frother manual's cleaning section for "coating" or "non-stick"; if either word appears, the jug is coated and needs that manual's gentler routine.
Two common bare-steel cases are an induction frother such as the Breville Milk Cafe BMF600, whose booklet describes a stainless steel jug, and a plain steel frothing jug such as the IKEA MATTLIG used with a handheld whisk. Oat-milk film is a different residue, covered in our oat milk residue guide.
Milk sticks to the bottom of a stainless steel frother jug because the heat source sits under the jug base, so the milk resting on the base heats first, and each cycle run over old residue adds another layer. The Breville BMF600 instruction booklet says the milk jug, frothing disc and heating chamber should be cleaned after each use "to minimise milk residue build up." Running milk hotter than needed makes scorching more likely; our milk burning temperature guide explains the ranges.
Electric stainless steel frothers carry cleaning limits in the manual. The steps below follow the Breville BMF600 instruction booklet; check your own frother's manual for the same restrictions.
A plain stainless steel frothing jug has no heating element and no manual cleaner ban, so a stainless steel cookware cleanser is an option once a soak fails. Bar Keepers Friend's scorched-pan instructions for its Cookware Cleanser & Polish are:
Rinse the frothing jug thoroughly so no cleanser reaches the next batch of milk. For choosing a plain stainless steel jug in the first place, see our milk steaming pitcher guide.
On an electric stainless steel frother, the power base must never be immersed in water or any other liquid, according to the Breville BMF600 instruction booklet. The inner heating chamber gets a damp-cloth wipe only, and Breville asks owners to keep milk residue off the key sensor components inside that chamber. Milk that boiled over onto the base belongs in this wipe-down, not under a tap.
Check the frother manual first. Breville's BMF600 Milk Cafe booklet says not to use alkaline or abrasive cleaning agents, steel wool or scouring pads on the jug, so on that frother stick to warm soapy water and a soak. Bar Keepers Friend's scorched-pan method is written for stainless steel cookware, which makes it a better fit for a plain steel frothing jug with no electronics and no manual restriction.
Breville's BMF600 booklet allows the milk jug, lid, measuring cap and frothing discs on the dishwasher top shelf, and recommends hand-washing the discs. A dishwasher cycle will not always lift a thick cooked-on layer, so soak the jug in warm soapy water first.
In a heated frother the heat source sits under the jug base, so milk on the jug bottom heats and sets first. Leftover residue from a previous cycle makes the next layer stick faster, which is why Breville tells owners to clean the jug and frothing disc after every use.
No. This page covers bare stainless steel only. A non-stick or coated frother jug has its own cleaning limits, so follow that frother's own manual instead.
Sources reviewed September 28, 2026.
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