How One Plastic Container Lid Solves A Messy Cooking Problem

Behind every prettily plated dish is usually a kitchen that looks a little less aesthetically appealing. While there are endless tricks to keep your kitchen tidy without long cleaning sessions, sometimes the mess feels unavoidable. To help you minimize meal-prep spills so you can instead focus on preparing an award-worthy dish, get your hands on a plastic container lid and turn it into a spoon holder while you cook.

We're all about genius kitchen hacks that make use of reusing everyday items, even more so when it contributes to a spotless kitchen. For a repurposed spoon rest, all you'll need to do is grab a clean lid from a plastic container and place it on the counter top so that it can collect the mess and dribbles. Typically a plastic container lid is raised around the edges, making it an ideal shallow dish for preventing leakages and making it easy to discard of everything afterwards. To prevent hazards, plastic lids will be best placed at a safe distance away from gas stoves and open flames, and you'll also want to wait a few minutes before resting the hot spoon on the plastic lid to prevent potential damage to the lid. If you have spare aluminum candle lids or metal safety button lids from jam jars, you could also make use of these as your alternative, which are designed to be heat-safe. The droplets of soup or liquid on your kitchen counter top will be a thing of the past.

Plastic containers are one of the most useful food and utensil storage items, and while you should definitely pay attention to when it's time to discard them, giving the lids a new lease on life makes sense for several reasons. Firstly, it doesn't have to only serve as a spoon rest. It can be used as a handy tool to catch all sorts of messes while cooking, such as a base for measuring cups, tongs, whisks, or hand mixers. This way, whether you're measuring out your morning oats or stirring up a smoothie, your kitchen counter won't need an added wipe down.

The multi-purpose use of the make-shift spoon rest also depends on the size of the lid. The larger the lid, the more kitchen tools you can store on it (saving you even more washing up time). It also will make things easier if the recipe requires the use of a host of kitchen tools. In case you're already a proud spoon rest-owner, the hack is worth remembering for the days you find yourself without this item (such as in another kitchen or camping) and need a fix to keep things spotless.

Using the lids results in one less kitchen item to splurge on. While you can certainly find spoon holders at various price points, using a lid that you have laying around is free. A basic silicone spoon rest could cost as low as $3.99 and a more sophisticated one with multiple utensil slots could cost over $7. Save your dollars and cleanliness woes by turning to your trusty plastic container cabinet for a solution instead.