It’s finally starting to feel like spring, which means it’s time to spring clean your home. Nothing makes us feel more energized than a fresh, clean kitchen. Think shiny granite counters; sparkly, streakless stovetops; a spotless oven; crumb-free cabinets—and don’t forget the kitchen sink.
We’ll walk you through how to clean each section or large appliance in your kitchen, and give you tips along the way.Cleaning expert and founder of Clean My Space, Melissa Maker, has some overall guidelines to help you get started, like:
- Always clean from top to bottom so any dirt and crumbs can accumulate towards the bottom of the appliance, making it easier to effectively clean.
- Use an “S” shape when wiping any surface, rather than a circle, as a circular motion just moves the dirt around, whereas the “S” movement helps to lift and pick up the residue.
- Make sure you have all of your products ready to go before you start to help with efficiency. We know you don’t have a ton of time to spare.
We’ve also curated a list of eco-friendly and healthy cleaning products to keep you and your household safe and sound while you take on your kitchen cleaning endeavor. With just a little planning and foresight, your kitchen will look ready for its closeup.
How to Clean Your Oven, Stovetop, and Microwave
Clean Your Oven
Whether you use your oven multiple times a day or just once a week, it’s bound to get grimy, even if you aren’t roasting a Thanksgiving turkey on a weekly rotation. Bits of burnt food, cheese drippings, and the like tend to collect in the bottom of the oven, so it’s a good idea to give your oven a hearty scrub, and you can accomplish this without any harsh chemicals.
Oven cleaning is easy, but it requires some planning ahead and takes a bit of time, basically overnight. Simply create a baking soda paste, apply in the evening, and let it soak overnight. After the baking soda paste has done its magic, in the morning you can do a wipe down, and a final finishing touch of a vinegar spray, which is another natural cleaning superpower.
Essentials:
- a large cleaning bucket
- ½ cup baking soda
- 3 tablespoons water
- a scrubber sponge
- a glass spray bottle
- white vinegar
- all-purpose cleaner
- paper towels
- cleaning gloves
How to clean your oven:
1. Empty your oven, and set aside your racks.
2. Make a baking soda paste with approximately ½ cup baking soda and 3 tablespoons of water. Stir until paste is formed. You may need to adjust proportions as needed.
3. Put on your cleaning gloves and spread paste throughout the oven’s interior with a sponge and lightly rub. You may notice the paste turning brown and that’s okay; it means that the paste is working.
4. Let paste sit for 12 hours.
5. In the morning, dampen a scrubber sponge and wipe away the paste and residue.
6. Add a splash of vinegar into a spray bottle filled with water, and spray directly onto the paste residue. Wipe off the remaining paste residue with a tree-free paper towel until interior is clean.
7. Spray racks, oven door, and oven door handle with all-purpose cleaner, and wipe down with a tree-free paper towel. Replace racks, and now your oven is ready to use.
Clean Your Stovetop
For your stovetop, you will need something tough to help cut down on the grease. If you cook regularly, you may find that oil and other cooking bits love to splatter and stain, adding residue to your stovetop. To help cut down on the grease, try Meliora, a natural cleaning scrub that you can also use on bathroom tile and in the bathtub.
Essentials:
- cleaning scrub
- sponge
- water
- all-purpose cleaner
- paper towels
How to clean your stovetop:
1. Remove burner grates and set aside.
2. Wet a sponge with water, and give your stovetop a rinse.
3. Sprinkle the cleaning scrub on the stovetop surface.
4. With a damp sponge, gently rub cleaning scrub in that “S” motion we talked about earlier.
5. Rinse stovetop surface again, and dry off with a tree-free paper towel.
6. Spray knobs, stovetop console, and burner gates with all-purpose cleaner, and wipe down with a tree-free paper towel. Replace your burner grates and you’re good to go. Check out some Chowhound community tips on how to clean really gunky grates.
Clean Your Microwave
For your microwave, simply use some all-purpose spray and make sure to give the interior, exterior, and the exterior handle a good scrub with a tree-free paper towel.
Angry Mama Microwave Steam Cleaner, $6.20 on Amazon
You could also try this gadget that promises to help steam the crud off of really dirty microwave interiors.
How to Clean Your Refrigerator and Freezer
Clean Your Fridge
Grove Collaborative, an online household product company that creates and sells natural and sustainable home goods and cleaning supplies directly to your home, recommends doing a deep clean of your refrigerator and freezer at least twice a year. While you’re cleaning, it’s a great moment to go through all of your stored food and condiments and take a look at any expiration dates or funky looking products. Give old food and containers a toss and you instantly feel refreshed. Consider investing in a few microfiber cloths. They’re, durable, reusable, and washable, so you will feel good about wasting less paper product when cleaning down surfaces.
Essentials:
- a large cleaning bucket
- 1 quart hot water
- 2 tablespoons baking soda
- all-purpose cleaner
- microfiber cloths
- cleaning gloves
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How to clean your refrigerator:
1. Empty your entire fridge (yes, you read that correctly, everything), and take a look at labels and expired product dates. Toss anything that’s expired or somewhat questionable. For anything that you worry can’t sit out at room temperature for the time it takes to clean the fridge, put it in a cooler with some ice packs.
2. Add a quart of hot water into a large cleaning bucket. Add 2 tablespoons of baking soda and stir. This is your cleaning solution, courtesy of Grove Collaborative.
3. Remove shelves and drawers, and clean with the cleaning solution and a microfiber cloth. Due to the shelves’ awkward sizes, you may find it easier to clean and scrub in a bathtub or utility sink. Let shelves dry before replacing.
4. Meanwhile, clean fridge with cleaning solution from top to bottom, using a bit of elbow grease when needed for tough stains and food/liquid residue.
5. Spray fridge exterior with an all-purpose cleaner, and wipe and clean with a microfiber cloth. Give extra attention to the exterior handles, which tend to harbor lots of hand prints.
6. Repeat above steps for freezer. Restock your fridge and freezer (but only with the things you’re actually going to use!).
Grove Collaborative Pro tip: Food absorbs odors, so it’s best to use unscented cleaning products when cleaning your fridge and freezer.
How to Clean Your Countertops
Keep your beloved granite, marble, and quartz countertops safe and clean. For these stone counters, it’s best to go with a solution that’s formulated specifically for the materials. Method Daily Granite Cleaner is a plant-based, non-toxic cleaner that will make your granite sparkle.
You will need to clear off your countertops, especially those heavy appliances like your coveted KitchenAid mixer and Vitamix blender. You can work in sections in your kitchen to make it easier, and start by sweeping any debris off the countertops by working from walls to the edges. That way, any bits that fall on the floor will be vacuumed or swept up later!
Essentials:
- granite cleaner
- microfiber cloths
How to clean your kitchen counters:
1. Clear countertops off. (Stacking everything in the other room may make you anxious, but it’s only temporary.)
2. Sweep countertops starting from the wall to the edge of the countertop with a dry microfiber cloth. Focus particularly on areas near the stove where food, salt, and other bits of crumbs tend to accumulate.
3. Spray granite cleaner onto countertops. Use a microfiber cloth to buff countertops in an “S” motion until they sparkle.
Grove Collaborative Pro tip: Before using any type of granite cleaner, make sure your countertops are sealed by dropping a few splashes of water on your granite, if the water beads, then they are sealed.
How to Clean Your Sink
Whether you routinely cook or just use your sink to refuel on water for hydration, it needs a good scrub from time to time. Bon Ami Powder Cleanser is a powerful, natural, and inexpensive cleaning product that’s an essential kitchen and bathroom item.
Essentials:
- powder cleanser
- sponge
- microfiber cloths
- water
- disinfectant spray
How to clean your kitchen sink:
1. Wet your sink and sprinkle on Bon Ami. Gently rub the Bon Ami into the sink with a wet sponge or a microfiber cloth. Rinse, and repeat if necessary. (Don’t forget to clean your sponge too!)
2. Spray faucet and handles with disinfectant spray. Wipe down with a tree-free paper towel or clean, dry cloth.
3. If you happen to have a garbage disposal, it’s important to clean this appliance as well! And yes, you can do this safely without sticking your precious hands down the drain (yikes). The Family Handyman suggests adding some ice cubes and lemon rinds, and a little baking soda down the drain. Let your disposal run while adding some water or vinegar to give your disposal a nice deep clean and flush. Cleaning under the splash guard with a toothbrush and some baking soda mixed with water will help clear out any food residue or grease near the drain, but make sure you’re not running the disposal when your hands are near the splash guard.
How to Clean Your Pantry and Cabinets
It’s essential to do a deep clean and sweep of your pantry, which means—just like with the fridge—that you must completely empty out the shelves. While you’re going through your cans of coconut milk, jars of artisan sun-dried tomatoes, and red lentil pasta, pay special attention to any food items that are expired. You may notice lots of dust and crumbs inside your pantry. Getting rid of cereal and grain residue and cracker crumbs helps not only keep your pantry clean, but is also less inviting to insects and other pesky creatures. Clean out dust and food crumbs easily with a bendable and machine-washable duster that will grab all of those annoying dust bunnies and almond-flour cracker crumbs. For more ideas for organizing and maintaining your pantry, see our comprehensive pantry organization guide.
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Essentials:
- dust pan and brush
- microfiber duster
- all-purpose cleaner
- microfiber cloths
How to clean your pantry:
1. Empty every single shelf, checking expiration dates and chucking old products as necessary.
2. Give each shelf a brushing, working from top to bottom. Catch crumbs with a duster.
3. Spray shelves with an all-purpose cleaner and gently grab any remaining residue with a microfiber cloth. Again, work from top to bottom.
4. Spray interior doors, exterior doors, and handles and knobs with all-purpose spray and gently wipe with a microfiber cloth.
5. Restock as needed.
For extra organizational flair, check out storage ideas inspired by Marie Kondo and The Home Edit. And use up some of your pantry staples in our pantry dinner recipes.
How to Clean Your Windows
Don’t forget about your windows or any other glass surfaces in your kitchen. Let that light shine in with squeaky clean windows. Using a glass cleaning concentrate is a nice environmentally friendly way to clean; it cuts down on plastics and takes up less space in your cleaning cabinet. Simply empty the cleaning concentrate into a 16-ounce glass spray bottle, gently shake, and you’re ready to go.
Essentials:
- glass gleaner concentrate
- glass spray bottle
- microfiber cloth
How to clean your windows (and glass cabinet fronts):
1. Spray glass cleaning concentrate on kitchen windows or any other glass surfaces.
2. To avoid streaks, gently buff in an “S” shape motion with a microfiber cloth until your glass sparkles.
How to Clean Your Kitchen Floors
Your floors need a good shine, too! Whether it’s walking back and forth to the fridge to grab your favorite takeout container or cooking up Julia Child’s beef bourguignon, your kitchen floors are bound to get some heavy foot traffic. Using a vinegar-based cleaner will take care of the dirt and grime without smelly and toxic chemicals.
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Essentials:
- vacuum or dust pan and broom
- floor cleaner
- mop & bucket system
How to clean your kitchen floor:
1. Begin by vacuuming or sweeping your kitchen floors to catch any large debris. Pay special attention to the area near and under the stove and anywhere with you tend to do a lot of food prep.
2. Add ½ cup (4 oz) of floor wash cleaner into a large bucket. Then, add two gallons of water to bucket.
3. Dip mop into solution, and mop floors. Wring out the mop when ready to re-dip. Keep going until your floor is spotless.
4. Limit access to the kitchen until floors are dry to prevent slipping or unexpected falls.
Now you can have a picnic on your floor! If you’re in the market for a new mop, check out our favorite mops, brooms, and wipes for cleaning up spills.
With a gleaming, clean kitchen, we hope you’re feeling refreshed and refueled, and ready to start cooking again (or merely admiring your hard work while you gobble down your takeout pad Thai noodles). And by using thoughtful and sustainable cleaning products, you should feel proud of your effort to ensure that our planet and lives are safer and healthier!
Related Reading: The Best Green Laundry Products
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