Post your kitchen tips

[kenny]

When cleaning pots I use an old credit card to scrape of gunk without scratching the surface.
It's free, and we all have a never-ending free supply of expired cards.
Actually I use two of them, one uncut and the other cut in half, which gives you a very sharp edge for removing extra stubborn gunk.

Also, leaving a pot to soak in hot water helps.
Filling the pot half way with water and boiling it helps even more.

I like simple free stuff, instead of buying expensive products that may be bad for the environment, and bad my parrot's delicate lungs.

What are your kitchen tips?

 

[OdetteOdile]

I use baking soda to remove tea/coffee stains from mugs. My grandmother taught me that tip.

 

[kenny]

I do that too, and never even met your grandma.
We use a lot of baking soda, good stuff.
Costco sells it in 13.5 lb bags.

Instead of using scouring powder or Softscrub, I use baking soda and lemon juice for scrubbing in the kitchen and bathroom.
Baking soda, aluminum foil and boiling water effortlessly remove oxidation from sterling silver.

 

[rainydaze]

I use white vinegar to clean the counters. I have a spray bottle that I keep with a mostly-vingar-and-some-water mix ready to go. I pair it with reusable wood fiber cloths, instead of paper towels. Love them!

I know you wash your dishes by hand, kenny but for those who use dishwashers, I use white vinegar for the rinse aid.

 

[Asscherhalo_lover]

I have a very tiny garbage can that hangs from a drawer, perfect for tossing eggshells right at the counter and avoiding floor drips.

 

[stracci2000]

Yes to baking soda!
I dump some down the sink, followed by vinegar, to clean and deodorize the trap.

 

[stracci2000]

I keep an old coffee can on the counter for vegetable peels, tea bags, egg shells etc. Then this goes on the compost heap in the back yard. Free top soil! We live in the desert, so the soil here is really bad.

 

[Lookinagain]

I use white vinegar to clean the counters. I have a spray bottle that I keep with a mostly-vingar-and-some-water mix ready to go. I pair it with reusable wood fiber cloths, instead of paper towels. Love them!

I do the same with the vinegar/water and reusable cloths. I also keep a spray bottle with rubbing alcohol or a bleach water mix for the counter clean up when I've been preparing things like raw chicken.
I also quit using paper napkins and now only use cloth. I'm trying to be more conscious of the environment, so also try to buy less things that are in plastic.

 

[stracci2000]

Yes @Lookinagain
We gave up paper napkins, too. Cloth only now.
I also bought an assortment of glass storage containers, so I'm using less plastic for food storage.

 

[Rhd3]

The best way I've found to clean the microwave is to mix equal parts of water and vinegar (plus a toothpick) and set on high for a few minutes, then let it sit in the microwave for another few minutes and wipe clean. It's easy to wipe clean (even if you had a big mess).

Not kitchen related but I use baking soda and dish soap for tough stains on clothing. Rub the stain with dish soap and then cover with a paste made of baking soda and water. Let sit for 10 minutes. It great for deodorant and grease stains.

 

[seaurchin]

My best kitchen tip is probably just keeping up on it by what I see as I go through my day. A quick cleanout and wipe down of the fridge shelves when I'm grabbing something out of it anyway and notice any crumbs or anything old in there, a quick wipe out of the microwave after use, cleaning up as I go with cooking and so on. An ongoing habit of doing small tasks just based on what I see at the time keeps the kitchen sanitary all the time and it's so much easier to take a quick swipe here and there rather than having to deal with dried on gunk. For some reason, it took me decades to get this habit down so I'm quite proud of it!

 

[lala646]

We keep our compost in a little tub in the freezer. We're in a small apartment, with a small trash receptacle mounted to the cabinet door under the kitchen sink. Any food in the trash would get smelly quickly, and sometimes bring fruit flies. Freezing the compost means no smells and zero bugs!

 

[telephone89]

I also keep a spray bottle with rubbing alcohol or a bleach water mix for the counter clean up when I've been preparing things like raw chicken.

Not sure on rubbing alcohol, but bleach & water mixture is only good for 24h, so make sure you make a fresh batch when you're cleaning up!

My kitchen tips:
-most pots & pans should be heated up slowly. I turn mine on low when I am prepping food, this allows for a slow even heat and less warping.
-razor blade for cleaning the glass top stove
-I freeze most of my garden herbs & hot peppers (also ginger). Can prep them super easily and the habaneros and ginger grate super easily on a microplane
-I like to use parchment paper for baking (every tray gets lined before I put food on it). It gets composted and makes tray clean up easier

I recently learned a trick for softening butter that I havent tried yet, but microwave or pour hot water into a glass (for 1 stick of butter) or a small container if doing a lb. Let the water sit in the container for a min, dump it out, then place the container over top of the butter. The residual heat will soften the butter, but since its not directly touching it the butter shouldn't melt. I'm excited to try this one!

 

[MaisOuiMadame]

White Vinegar + baking soda for drain maintenance. Put in soda, add vinegar, rinse with very hot or boiling water after 15 minutes. Helps keeping everything clean from buildup and helps to declog minor issues.

 

[OdetteOdile]

Another kitchen tip I have is for when it is time to clean up and I am feeling a little overwhelmed with stuff all over the counters. I clean from left to right. I do a scan of the kitchen and start on the left most countertop and I just deal with all that stuff as I move toward the right. It helps me focus. I play WQXR while I work in the kitchen too.

 

[seaurchin]

Not sure on rubbing alcohol, but bleach & water mixture is only good for 24h, so make sure you make a fresh batch when you're cleaning up!

Where are you getting that from? I've used bleach and water in a bottle for years and only replace it when it's all used up.

 

[Ally T]

We have a huge compost bin in the garden, which takes all fruit & veg, eggshells, tea bags (PG Tips are currently the only UK tea company to offer plastic free, fully compostable bags) coffee grounds plus kitchen paper & cardboard. We bought it when we moved in 16 years ago & have never filled it, though occasionally it can get 3/4 full before the worms deal with it & mulch it down. I have a small compost container in my kitchen with an airtight lid, which I take out to empty every couple of days. Our landfill & recycling waste is dramatically small as a result. Mr T has a huge veg garden & every March he digs the compost in, plus a load of horse poo from the next door livery. Stinky for a day, but beautiful tasty veg & fruit!

 

[pearlsngems]

Where are you getting that from? I've used bleach and water in a bottle for years and only replace it when it's all used up.

That's what I've read also.

Bleach Dilution Ratio for Disinfecting | Clorox®

Check out our bleach dilution instructions the next time you're making a homemade solution. Our instructions are simple and easy to follow so your ratio can be accurate.

www.clorox.com

Frequently asked questions​

How long does a bleach and water solution last?
Bleach and water solutions need to be made fresh each day that you use them because the bleach active combined with your tap water breaks down quickly into salt and water. Ready-to-use products, on the other hand, are formulated with a one-year shelf life when properly stored away from direct sunlight in a cool, dry place.

 

[pearlsngems]

I also use vinegar, baking soda etc.

To keep a steel wool pad from rusting so you can reuse it, put it in a small plastic bag and freeze it. It defrosts quickly with a little warm water when you are ready to use it again.

To scrape pots (or dishes) I use this; it's like Kenny's old credit card idea but has a rounded grip that is comfortable to hold.

https://www.amazon.com/Favorite-Nylon-Pan-Scraper-Set/dp/B00U93NU3W/ref=sr_1_2?crid=1GRW419HII5AM&keywords=norpro+pot+scraper&qid=1645224533&sprefix=norpro+pot+scraper%2Caps%2C60&sr=8-2

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[lilmosun]

 

[MamaBee]

I mix up my own disinfectant for kitchen counters. I use an old spray bottle. I fill it up two thirds of the way with water. Then I pour a good glug of rubbing alcohol in leaving room at the top for a bit of lavender Fabuloso. The mixture turns a pretty shade of lavender. It smells heavenly..It makes the kitchen smell so fresh.

 

[telephone89]

Where are you getting that from? I've used bleach and water in a bottle for years and only replace it when it's all used up.

Straight from the horses mouth as pearlsngems posted above (clorox website). I only learned at the beginning of covid! I now make really small batches day of and toss it once I'm done cleaning. I don't use bleach a lot, mainly in the bathroom but if I'm using it, may as well be using it at its full extent!

 

[ringbling17]

I don’t scrub my pots. I add water and Dawn dish washing liquid soap and boil on the stove. It does an amazing job of soaking off the food.
I always use a microwave cover so that nothing splatters inside the microwave. I leave it in there to remind everyone to use it, esp during parties when people want to warm up food.
I use handle covers on my refrigerator, ovens, microwave,
Etc. They prevent them from getting sticky and dirty from my kids hands.
I have a dishwasher magnet that has a dirty and clean side. When
it’s on the dirty side everyone can put stuff into the dishwasher. When it’s on the clean side it means it’s either running or everything was just washed. Before using it my family was constantly putting dirty dishes inside not knowing the stuff inside was clean already.
I keep a big plastic bowl on the counter when I am prepping food as my mini garbage container. It makes it easier than opening and closing the big garbage can we have.

 

[kenny]

I also make a bleach/water solution kept in a spray bottle.
Here's my experience ...

I've always had aquariums.
55 years ago Little Kenny learned the hard way that untreated tap water kills fish.
To make it safe for fish you have to add a product like Tetra Aqua Safe Plus which Tetra says, "Works in seconds to neutralize chlorine, chloramines, and heavy metals present in tap water that can be harmful to fish."

AquaSafe® Plus | Tetra®

www.tetra-fish.com

Originally I made my bleach/water cleaning solution using untreated tap water.
At first the bleach smell was strong, but over time it got weaker and eventually disappeared.
So what Clorox company says must be true, in spite of the fact that they obviously want you to buy more bleach.

Then I suspected if Aqua Safe works for aquaria perhaps it will help the chlorine/chloramine last longer in my cleaning solution.
So when preparing my next bleach-water solution I first treated the water with Aqua Safe.
Bingo! The bleach smell remained till it was all used up, weeks or months later.

Now that we have a Reverse Osmosis water filter I just use RO water.
RO water doesn't need further treatment since chlorine and chloramines are two of the zillion yuckies the RO process removes.

So, if you prepare your own cleaning solution, perhaps the solution is to buy a chlorine-neutralizing product like Aqua Safe ... $5.89 on Amazon Prime.

https://www.amazon.com/Tetra-AquaSafe-Fish-Water-Conditioner/dp/B00068JW0A/ref=sr_1_1?crid=NM0Y0TQYWA28&keywords=tetra+aquasafe&qid=1645232522&sprefix=tetra+aqua%2Caps%2C155&sr=8-1

 

[Lookinagain]

Yes @Lookinagain
We gave up paper napkins, too. Cloth only now.
I also bought an assortment of glass storage containers, so I'm using less plastic for food storage.

I've been using silicone storage bags instead of plastic bags. I don't think I've purchased a box of zip lock plastic bags for several years. I feel better about it.

 

[Lookinagain]

Not sure on rubbing alcohol, but bleach & water mixture is only good for 24h, so make sure you make a fresh batch when you're cleaning up!

Yes, that's why I typically use either the water and vinegar mix or the alcohol. But I do sometimes mix a small batch of bleach and water. Once I'm done cleaning with it I will throw it in the washing machine with the white towels, etc.

 

[missy]

1. We use this too to get our quartz counters clean. It works like a charm. It gets any stain out of our white countertops and it is also is a great polisher of stainless steel.


2. Greg always sharpens the knives to make cutting a breeze. I leave that job to him as I am a klutz and have to be uber careful around sharp objects lol.
Having sharp knives makes cutting safer and food prep more enjoyable.
He uses this and it also works on serrated knives.






3. We use a stainless steel scraper to scoop up vegetables/fruit etc when chopping them.




It comes in very handy as I have been making homemade apple sauce and also sautéing root veggies every week. Lots of chopping and easy to collect this way.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

If you have half a left over carrot or,.onion, celery or what ever don't leave it in the fridge to be overlooked and to be wasted
Chop it up straight away and freeze it ready for soups or casseroles etc
i have a container in the freezer i keep going for this all year around

also left over cooked veg - freeze it into clear contsiners so you can see it and chuck it into the next soup also
i keep these on the top shelf of the freezer at eye level - no use keeping it if you dont think to use it

Also that last annoying bit of cabbage can be successfully frozen and also used in soups and stews

Almost any veg in the fridge that's about to spoil, freeze it and soup it !
I keep an eagle eye on tomatos as they are so expensive in the winter
Its no good waiting till they spoil and then having to biff them out

 

[pearlsngems]

@Daisys and Diamonds, I chop the leafy tops off new bunches of celery and freeze them to add to soups.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

@Daisys and Diamonds, I chop the leafy tops off new bunches of celery and freeze them to add to soups.

Yum !
Years ago when we used to juice we used to throw those bits away till
we discovered those bits had tons of flavor