10 Easy Steps To A Completely Clean Kitchen

11.25.18

10 Easy Steps To A Completely Clean Kitchen

The Holidays are here! No other time of year will you use your kitchen quite as you do during the winter season. From Holiday parties to baking cookies for Santa to roasting Christmas dinner, a lot of time is spent in the kitchen during these colder months. More time cooking, baking, roasting, and frying also means more messes. It also happens to be the time of year for hosting drop-in guests who bring special Holiday delights, party guests for hors-d’oeuvres and cocktails, and dear family members who have traveled afar to celebrate the season with you. Don’t let a messy kitchen stress, hinder, or embarrass you. With these 10 simple steps to a completely cleaned kitchen, your space will become spotless and ready to host in a manner of minutes.

1. Clear The Counters

The most noticeable mess happens on your countertops. This is a good place to start since your kitchen will immediately feel and look better. Plus if you don’t start with cleared counters, every task to get the rest of the kitchen clean becomes more difficult. Take dishes to the sink, sort through mail, and discard or put up random items in a junk drawer. You can also follow these tips to achieve a clutter-free countertop.

2. Tackle The Sink

No kitchen feels clean with a large pile of dishes in the sink, not to mention an unuseable sink makes it difficult to achieve anything from cleaning to cooking. Start loading the dishwasher with the easy dishes, like cups and plates, then fill up the sink with soapy, warm water to soak the more difficult dishes, like trays and pots or any item with caked on food.

3. Clean Out The Microwave

It’s best to prevent messes when it comes to your microwave. Always cover food items to prevent splattering, clean up spills right away to avoid baked-on messes, and regularly wipe down the inside and outside once a week. However, if your microwave isn’t in tip-top shape, loosen difficult baked-on foods by heating up 1 cup water, vinegar, and a chopped up lemon in the microwave until it’s nice and steamy, then wipe down.

4. Clear Out The Refrigerator

Your fridge likely has expired condiments and old leftovers that need tossing. Get out the trash can and start purging. With a warm, wet cloth and mild soap, start wiping down each shelf as you go long, moving foods over as needed so you don’t have to remove every item out of your fridge.

5. Move Top To Bottom

Messes naturally move downward thanks to gravity. There isn’t much point in cleaning your range’s cooktop before wiping out the crumbs of your over-the-range microwave – you will likely just have to do it again. Instead, start from the top by dusting your light fixture and wiping your upper cabinets with a warm, wet cloth and mild soap.

6. Wipe Down Cooktop & Countertops

Now that the upper half of the kitchen is clean, it’s time to focus on the bottom half. Since each countertop material is different and requires different cleaning methods, consult your countertop’s manual for proper instructions. For your cooktop, use a warm, wet cloth and mild soap to remove grease and food particles, wiping it down with a dry cloth to avoid water stains.

7. Clean Lower Cabinets

It’s easy to ignore the messes on your lower cabinets since they’re not at eye-level. However, this is another spot that can quickly accumulate germs and grime thanks to messes that spillover from the countertop.

8. Clean & Polish Appliance Surfaces

Even fingerprint-resistant stainless steel appliances can collect germs and messes. Get them cleaned up with a soft, non-abrasive cloth and a mixture of warm water and vinegar, followed by a dry, soft cloth. If you have stainless steel, move along the grain of the brushed metal, then polish with a dry, soft cloth or paper towel with a dab of olive oil or coconut oil. Click here to follow our step-by-step guide to cleaning stainless steel.

9. Vacuum The Floors

All the mess that started up high now resides on the floor. From a rollaway carrot to a slippery onion slice, the kitchen floor collects everything that gets missed. Spend a few minutes vacuuming up stray crumbs and dirt, then use a wet cloth to clean any spills you noticed.

10. Finish Back At The Sink

It’s time to get back to those difficult pots and pans you have soaking. Being much easier to clean at this point, scrub each dish and load them into the dishwasher or finish handwashing them yourself.

Now your kitchen is completely clean and ready for entertaining!