The kitchen is a room in our home where we spend a significant amount of time preparing meals, cooking and eating. Since it’s the place we store all our food as well as get it ready and ultimately put that food in our bodies, it’s quintessential that the kitchen is neat and clean at all times. Read on if you’d like to know more about the tips on keeping your kitchen safe and clean.
1. Clean up after every meal
If you’re wondering how to keep your kitchen clean and safe the best way to start is to clean up after each meal. Meal preparation and any kind of cooking is a messy process. That’s why the number one tip in keeping your kitchen clean and safe is to wash the dishes and countertops immediately after the meal. In this way, the mess doesn’t pile up and your kitchen awaits for your next cooking experience all neat and crisp.
When you finish each meal, you should clean the table as well as leftovers if any, and place them into an airtight container and into the fridge. You should also wash, dry and put away all the dishes that you used. Also, you should clean all the spills, messes and crumbs from the table, countertops and the stove right after you finish your meal. And lastly, you should remember to wash out the sink as well. Now, your kitchen is spotless.
2. Clean up the spills as they occur
In order to prevent stains and the development of bacteria, you should tackle the spills as they occur. If you spill some food, use a spoon or a cloth to clean up the solid waste and use a cloth to clean up all the excess or liquids. After this, use an all-purpose cleaner and wipe everything dry. However, if you spill raw meat, make sure to use a disinfecting spray to prevent the spread of bacteria.
3. Clear off your countertops
Cluttered countertops are a common occurrence. And actually, we should keep them clutter-free for the sake of better organization and overall hygiene. By having empty countertops, you create more free space for food preparation and other things. How to keep your countertops free?
Keep all the appliances in the cupboards, keep produce in a bowl on the kitchen table, organize a drawer for keeping things you commonly use, find a place for every piece of kitchenware and store all the ingredients in the pantry. When you have countertops without a thing on them, it’s much easier to clean them even a few times a day.
4. Clean the garbage disposal regularly
Another thing we often forget is to clean the garbage disposal regularly. It is a perfect place for all kinds of dangerous and life hazardous bacteria to thrive, besides the bed smell it harbours. The easiest way to clean it is to fill the ice cube tray with vinegar and freeze it, pour baking soda into the disposal, turn on the water and run the disposal, pour frozen vinegar cubes down the disposal and leave the disposal on until the baking soda and the cubes are all gone. You’ll end up with a clean, freshly smelling garbage disposal.
5. Clean the fridge and freezer
The fridge and the freezer are the places that keep all of our food safe from going bad. That’s why it’s quintessential that they are cleaned promptly and properly. Once a month, remove everything from it and clean all the shelves and the surfaces with an all-purpose cleaner and dry the surfaces so you can put everything back.
6. Use multiple cutting boards
In order to prevent cross-contamination of food, the most hygienic thing is to use multiple cutting boards as well as knives for meat and vegetables.
7. Sweep and mop the kitchen floor
The kitchen floor gets covered in dirt and dust very quickly, on a daily basis, and that means we should sweep it every day. To keep the floor free of dust, crumbs, food particles, and other matter sweep it or vacuum it every evening after the final meal, or each morning before breakfast. It won’t take up much of your time, but it will do wonders for the hygiene in your kitchen. As far as moping is concerned, you should clean your floors with water once a week.
Moping will remove different types of dirt, spills, sticky spots, and other messes. It’s best to use soapy water and a mop to wipe the floor thoroughly. Remember to be safe and leave the floor to dry before walking on it in order to prevent injuries. Keeping your kitchen clean in these ways is acceptable but once in a while, you can hire pros like Simple Spotless Cleaning to do the job thoroughly.
A kitchen is a place where we should all strive to be perfectionists in order not to threaten our health by eating from dirty plates, a sticky table or off a countertop covered in crumbs and dirt.