You Can Use Ketchup To Polish Your Tarnished Silverware. Here's How - Tasting Table

"The acid from both the tomatoes and the vinegar in ketchup helps to break down the oxidation on the silver that we know as tarnish. For items with a light tarnish, simply squeeze ketchup onto a cloth or paper towel and rub it into the silver. If you have heavier tarnish, you can apply the ketchup directly to the silver and let it sit for 15 minutes."

"While ketchup will certainly work in a pinch, it's not without its drawbacks. It's messy to start with, and not efficient if you have a lot of silverware to polish. More importantly, acids should not be used on silverware that might be valuable. Some ketchup can also contain sulfites, which will make the tarnish worse. So if you do choose this method, be sure to check the label."

"Your kitchen holds the key to many more natural methods for cleaning silver, most of which are just as useful as ketchup - if not more so. When it comes to using acid, vinegar or lemon juice will work in the same way that ketchup does, but without the mess. And if you happen to have milk that's past its best before date, sour milk makes a surprisingly good tarnish remover too."

Ketchup removes silver tarnish because acids from tomatoes and vinegar break down oxidation. For light tarnish, apply ketchup to a cloth and rub; for heavier tarnish, apply directly and let sit for 15 minutes, using a toothbrush for crevices, then rinse and buff with a microfiber cloth. The method is messy and inefficient for large quantities, and acidic treatments can damage valuable silver. Some ketchup contains sulfites that can worsen tarnish, so labels should be checked. Safer household alternatives include vinegar, lemon juice, sour milk, toothpaste, baking soda, and cornstarch.

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