Tips on Cleaning Your Kitchen (2357)

A clean kitchen can help you keep foods safe to eat. Pretend you are a health inspector and see if your kitchen can pass the safety test.

Is cooking equipment clean? You should wipe up food spills immediately. Wash and rinse range tops and non-self-cleaning ovens after each use to eliminate baked-on stains.

Ammonia works well to cut grease in ovens. Most control knobs can be removed for washing, and a stiff wire brush removes food particles from surface units.

If you have portable cooking appliances, do not forget that these conveniences can trap dirt and germs. Clean spills and spatters from the microwave oven after each use.

You can immerse a manually operated can opener in hot sudsy dishwater and wash it, but electric can openers pose cleaning problems. Scrub the cutting wheel often to prevent contamination. Unclean electric or mounted can openers can transfer bacteria buildup to otherwise safe canned foods.

Before you open cans, always wipe off the lids with a soapy cloth; this prevents any dust or debris from contaminating the food in the can. Canned foods have traveled a long way before reaching your kitchen.

Thoroughly wash and disinfect all appliances you use for grinding, slicing and mixing regularly to get rid of clinging food pieces and bacteria. A brush works well to remove food from a meat grinder’s inner surface. If you grind a lot of food at one time, do it quickly. Micro-organisms can begin to contaminate food that stays at room temperature more than 30 minutes. After you wash and rinse the grinder and its parts, rinse it in a very weak chlorine bleach solution (one tablespoon in one quart water).

Clean the blender the easy way: fill half the container with warm water, add detergent, cover, blend briefly, rinse and dry.

Non-immersible appliances demand extra care. To prevent bacteria contamination of an electric knife, remove the blade, wipe it with a sudsy cloth, rinse, and dry.

Wipe off toaster ovens frequently, inside and out. When you clean any appliance, follow the manufacturer’s directions for special tips.

For more information on this subject, Please visit the College of Agricultural Sciences Publications Web site.

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