Kitchen Cleaning Tips: 8 Smart Tips to Have a Spotless Kitchen

It is believed that the kitchen is the heart of the home. That's because this is where families usually gather to go about their day over sumptuous lunch or dinner.

But what if the kitchen is also where germs and bacteria gather? This explains why 9% of foodborne illness outbreaks occur at home. That said, you must have a clean and spotless kitchen. And here are eight actionable kitchen cleaning tips that you can do to achieve it.

Disinfect Your Cutting Boards

Whether you are using wood or plastic cutting board, it can be contaminated when in contact with raw meat. And the bacteria can be transferred from the cutting board to other food items.

This explains why some chefs recommend using different cutting boards for fruits and vegetables, raw meat, and raw fish. You should also ensure that your cutting boards are clean before and after prepping your ingredients. Doing so can help prevent food poisoning.

Other than that, it would help if you also disinfected your cutting boards. The Washing State University recommends that you dilute a tablespoon of chlorine in a gallon of water. Use the solution to disinfect your cutting boards and leave it for a couple of minutes before rinsing with warm water.

Wipe Your Countertops Clean

If you want to build the habit of keeping your kitchen clean, we suggest that you start with the counter.

For one, you likely have a large countertop. This means that the clutter and mess will be obvious. As such, you will be compelled to keep it clean.

Secondly, you can practice habit stacking when dealing with your countertops. Here are some examples:

1. Wiping down the countertops before prepping your ingredients.

2. Wiping down the countertops after cooking.

3. Wiping down the countertops before mealtime.

4. Wiping down the countertops after you wash the dishes.

Wash Your Dishcloths

If you are using paper kitchen towels to wipe down stuff in the kitchen, you produce too much residential waste. Consider replacing them with washable dishcloths.

That way, you can keep your kitchen clean without producing too much waste.

However, we understand your concern about dishcloths being able to spread germs and bacteria in the kitchen. The key here is to wash them clean after every use and let them air-dry overnight.

You can also pull out a fresh dishcloth every week while the old ones are in the laundry.

Keep Unused Sponges Dry

In case you are unaware, your kitchen sponge can be densely packed with microscopic bacteria. This explains why you should replace them every two weeks.

But what if it is not yet time to replace them? At the very least, you should rinse them after every use. And let them air-dry.

This prevents the bacteria from building up. Otherwise, you might be transferring pathogens to your dishes.

Keep Your Kitchen Sink Clean

The kitchen sink is where you clean all your ingredients before cooking. It is also likely where food debris is left when you hand wash your dishes.

Hence, it only makes sense that you keep your kitchen sink clean. It can be as simple as scrubbing the sink with soapy water and rinsing it after washing the dinner dishes.

In addition, Maid Sailors Maid Service Jersey City recommends using half a lemon and coarse salt to scrub in your sink once in a while. It is a natural and cost-effective way to disinfect and deodorize your kitchen.

Get Rid of Expired Items in the Fridge

Other than your pantry, you also store food items in the fridge. From drinking water and leftover food to raw vegetables and meat, it will not be surprising that you keep expired items.

Hence, take some to defrost your fridge and clean it. This includes checking whether you have expired items that you should dispose of.

As for raw ingredients, check whether they are still okay for consumption. If that's the case, ensure that you will use them all up before the week ends. Otherwise, consider composting the raw fruits and vegetables.

As for the expired raw meats, please keep them in their packaging to reduce handling and prevent the spread of disease-causing bacteria. Throw them in the garbage and bring them out immediately. Please place them in the outdoor garage and ensure to close the lid.

Doing so can prevent the wild animals from rummaging your garbage, which is more problematic.

Lastly, learn how to properly store food in the fridge to prevent contamination and food waste.

Take Your Garbage Out Regularly

Often, we throw away food scraps and spoiled kitchen items in the trash. But when left unattended, it can lead to pest infestations, which causes the spread of germs and bacteria in the kitchen.

As such, you must take your garbage out regularly. Doing so prevents you from bringing the critters in.

Disinfect the Kitchen Floor Regularly

Last but not least, ensure that your kitchen floor gets the love and attention it deserves. After all, it is battered by the amount of foot traffic the comes in and out of the kitchen.

You can take care of the kitchen floor and sweep it like usual after every mealtime. And then disinfect it at least once per week. This includes sweeping and scrubbing the floor with soapy water.

You can also dilute a tablespoon of bleach in a gallon of water and use it to sweep the floor instead of soapy water. What's important is that you wipe it with a dry cloth afterwards.

A clean kitchen is a healthy kitchen. So, keep the above-mentioned cleaning tips in mind to have a spotless and germ-free kitchen all the time. What are your top kitchen cleaning hacks? Let us know in the comments, please. 

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