Para limpiar la sartén, primero uso una esponja con jabón.

Para + infinitive is a very common way to express purpose in Spanish.

• para limpiar = to clean / in order to clean

So Para limpiar la sartén... literally means To clean the frying pan... or In order to clean the frying pan...

This structure is used a lot:

• Para estudiar, necesito silencio. = To study, I need silence.
• Para abrir la puerta, usa esta llave. = To open the door, use this key.

A learner might confuse para and por, but here para is correct because the idea is purpose.

Because after para, Spanish normally uses the infinitive when the subject is general or the same person doing the action.

So:

• Para limpiar la sartén... = To clean the pan...

Not:

• Para limpio... ❌

The infinitive in Spanish is the dictionary form of the verb:

• limpiar = to clean
• usar = to use
• comer = to eat

In this sentence, yes: la sartén is treated as feminine.

So you get:

• la sartén
• una sartén

This is the most common choice in Spain. In some places, you may also hear el sartén, but for a learner of Spanish from Spain, la sartén is the safest and most natural option.

Sartén usually means frying pan or pan.

Examples:

• la sartén = the frying pan
• una sartén pequeña = a small frying pan

In everyday use, English pan can refer to different kinds of cookware, but sartén specifically points to a frying pan/skillet type of pan.

Uso is the first person singular of usar in the present tense:

• yo uso = I use

Full present tense of usar:

• yo uso
• tú usas
• él/ella/usted usa
• nosotros/as usamos
• vosotros/as usáis
• ellos/ellas/ustedes usan

Here it means something like I use or I usually use, depending on context.

Because Spanish often drops subject pronouns when the verb ending already makes the subject clear.

• uso already tells you the subject is yo.

So:

• primero uso una esponja... = first I use a sponge...
• yo uso una esponja... is also possible, but yo is not necessary.

Spanish does this a lot:

• Vivo en Madrid. = I live in Madrid.
• Tengo hambre. = I’m hungry.

You usually add yo only for emphasis, contrast, or clarity.

Primero means first, and here it works as an adverb telling us the order of actions.

• primero uso una esponja = first I use a sponge

This position is very natural in Spanish. You could also hear:

• Uso primero una esponja...

But primero uso... sounds very normal and clear.

Useful sequencing words:

• primero = first
• después / luego = then / afterwards
• finalmente / por último = finally

The comma separates the introductory phrase from the main clause:

• Para limpiar la sartén, = introductory purpose phrase
• primero uso una esponja con jabón. = main clause

This is similar to English punctuation in sentences like:

• To clean the pan, I first use a soapy sponge.

In short, the comma helps readability. In casual writing, punctuation can vary, but this comma is perfectly natural.

Spanish usually needs an article where English sometimes does not.

So:

• uso una esponja = I use a sponge

Without the article, uso esponja would sound incomplete or unnatural in standard Spanish in this context.

Compare:

• Necesito una toalla. = I need a towel.
• Compré un cuchillo. = I bought a knife.

Because jabón here is being used more like an uncountable substance: soap in general.

• una esponja con jabón = a sponge with soap / a soapy sponge

If you said con un jabón, it would sound more like with a soap / with a bar or type of soap, which is more specific and less natural in this sentence.

Compare:

• café con azúcar = coffee with sugar
• pan con mantequilla = bread with butter
• esponja con jabón = sponge with soap

Yes, absolutely.

Literally, it means:

• a sponge with soap

But in natural English, that often becomes:

• a soapy sponge

So both ideas are fine. The Spanish wording focuses on the sponge having soap on it or being used with soap.

Con means with.

So:

• una esponja con jabón = a sponge with soap

It connects the sponge to what is on it or used with it.

Very common uses of con:

• café con leche = coffee with milk
• pan con queso = bread with cheese
• escribo con un bolígrafo = I write with a pen

Usar is the most common and natural everyday verb here.

• uso una esponja = I use a sponge

You could also say empleo una esponja, but emplear sounds a bit more formal or less conversational in many contexts.

Another possible verb in cleaning contexts is:

• pasar una esponja = to wipe/scrub with a sponge

But that slightly changes the meaning. Uso una esponja is a simple, neutral way to say it.

Jabón is pronounced approximately ha-BON.

A few key points:

• The j in Spanish is a strong throaty sound, not like English j in job
• The h in English-style spelling is just a rough guide; the real Spanish sound is farther back in the mouth
• The written accent mark in jabón shows the stress falls on the last syllable: -bón

So:

• ja-bón → stress on bón

Sartén is pronounced approximately sar-TEN.

Notes:

• The stress is on the last syllable because of the accent mark: -tén
• The r is a single tapped r, not a strong rolled rr
• The e is a clear Spanish e, not like the English sound in teen

So:

• sar-tén

Yes. The Spanish present tense often covers both:

• what I am doing now, depending on context
• what I usually do
• a general procedure

So primero uso una esponja con jabón can mean:

• First, I use a sponge with soap right now
• or First, I use a sponge with soap as my usual method

In instructional or descriptive contexts, the present tense often describes a regular process.

Yes, it sounds natural and clear.

Para limpiar la sartén, primero uso una esponja con jabón. is a normal, understandable sentence in Spanish from Spain.

A native speaker might also say similar alternatives such as:

• Para limpiar la sartén, primero uso una esponja con un poco de jabón.
• Primero limpio la sartén con una esponja y jabón.
• Para fregar la sartén, primero uso una esponja con jabón.

But your original sentence is perfectly good Spanish.