Juventude.life!Want a kitchen as nice as ninepence? Here are some handy tips…"Your Life! Your Way!"

We’re all chefs in our kitchens. We like trying different recipes, coming up with new tastes, or making small surprises for our families. But do we really care about the hygiene of our kitchen as much as we care about what is cooked in it?

If you have very little time to spend in your kitchen but still worry about its cleanliness, the suggestions listed in this post may come in handy.

1- Start with the basics. Be organized!

The space where you cook should be organized enough so that you won’t waste time. Here are some clues for you:

Keep the most used items within easy reach of your cooker and put the least used ones far away.
Store the same group of food together so you can find them easier while you are cooking.
Keep plates, cups, and cutlery as close to the dishwasher as possible; this way, you can easily place them after washing.

2- Fed up with scattering spices all around your kitchen? Use a makeshift funnel.

You can make use of an envelope to come up with a makeshift funnel for dried food by snipping off one corner with scissors and opening it into a cone shape. It is a great help to pour your dried food or spices, or itsy bitsy stuff like sugar, salt, or flour. It is super practical and neat.

3. Want to eat potato chips but want no oil spills? Use a microwave.

You can use your microwave to make instant potato chips. It works interestingly, and it takes just minutes, making it enjoyable for you to eat your potato chips. Cut and shape your potatoes as thin as possible. Add some spices you like, a pinch of salt, and some olive oil to it. Then, mix them all and put it in the microwave for just two minutes. Ready to eat!

4. Want to get into the detail? Use a toothbrush.

Have you ever thought that a toothbrush is not just for brushing your teeth, but it is also a super practical cleaning tool for your little kitchen utensils? You can try it especially for garlic press, cheese grater, sieve, and oven. It works really well for dirt that is not easily removed, like grease spots.

5. Want to clean your microwave with no rub, no pain, no tears? Use a lemon.

It may sound hard to believe, but when you try this method, you are not going to need any other chemical cleaning products to keep your microwave clean. The method is quite an easy one, though. You will only need a lemon, a microwave-safe bowl, and some water.

6. Want to reduce the bacteria in your sponge? Microwave it.

Besides changing your sponge at regular intervals, you can try microwaving your larger sponges for 90 seconds on full power. The Journal of Environmental Health also claims that microwaving sponges decreases the bacteria on them by 99%.

7. Having scratched plates, but don’t know how to fix them?

Your plates might be scratched due to everyday use or the use of dishwashers. Some may think that those scratches cannot be fixed anymore, but there is a way to fix that unaesthetic look on your plates: baking soda. Try to come up with a paste by utilizing some baking soda and water. Then, apply it to the scratched areas. You will not be able to believe the outcome.

8. Bored of smelly trash bins? Try baking soda.

Baking soda is a natural sanitizer and deodorant. In case you have a bad smell coming out of your trash bin, you can try sprinkling some baking soda at the bottom of your bin after you empty and clean it. You can apply the same method to avoid the smell that comes from the toilet of your cats.

9. Have stains on your glasses? Apply vinegar.

If you usually wash your glasses in a dishwasher, you will observe that there are water or detergent stains on your glasses and they will lose their brightness after a while. At that point, vinegar might be the best aid for you in the kitchen. If you wipe your glasses with vinegar at regular intervals, you can also have glasses shining like diamonds!…

10. Lose so much time rubbing those burnt pots after cooking?

First of all, you don’t have to rub your pots for hours and hours anymore. All you need to do is believe in the power of chemistry. The first thing you could apply is to add some water to the pot and boil it until the oil is dissolved within the water with the effect of the heat. If you have a thick burnt layer, you can also get help from baking soda and some vinegar that work as a natural oil solvent.

11. Do not use a potato only for frying or baking. Try it on a cast-iron skillet as well.

Especially when grilling meat or meatballs, cast-iron skillets are quite useful for coming up with juicy and tasty meals. However, nothing comes without a price. In the end, we come across thick, hard-to-clean oil layers on the surface of them. Unfortunately, these skillets are not suitable for rubbing with steel wool, either. But you can try cleaning them with half of a potato. It may sound awkward and require some elbow grease, but it is worth giving it a shot.

12. Want a mirror-like sink? Polish it with flour.

If you have a steel sink and you want it to shine like a diamond, some flour will do the trick for you. First of all, clean your sink and dry it. After that, sprinkle 1/4 cup of flour on the surface. Start scrubbing the flour using a soft piece of cloth or a sponge and scrub it in circular motions. You will not regret the result.