Cleaning the Kitchen

By Melissa Ringstaff, Director
The kitchen is often the center of the dwelling and should be the cleanest room in the house. Having good kitchen habits is important to the health and well being of your family. In an area where food is prepared and stored, it is imporatnt to keep it well sanitized and free of mold, bacteria, and bugs! If you are going to cook; you are going to have a mess. There is no way to get around this fact. So the best way to attack the kitchen is with a well laid out plan. A good plan, if done daily, will become a habit which requires little effort or thought.

While cooking, clean as you go. Rather than stacking the batter bowl, two frying pans, a cutting board, knives, mixing spoons, and other items in the sink, wash them by hand as soon as you dirty them. You can wash a fresh mixing bowl within 30 seconds if you do it immediately. It can take several minutes of scrubbing if you allow the food to dry on hard. This is using your time efficently. Clean up any spills immediately so they do not become sticky hard messes which can be very unpleasant to deal with. By cleaning as you go you will make your overall work much less gruelling and much more fulfilling. Cleaning should not be drudgery. Cleaning as you go also reduces any chance of food becoming spoiled or cross-contaminated.

Cleaning the Kitchen:Monthly:
1. Scrub top of stove vent.
2. Wipe down outside of cabinets, around light switches.
3. Dust baseboards and wash with warm, soapy water.
4. Clean top of refrigerator.

Cleaning the Kitchen: Weekly:
1. Throw out any old food.
2. Wipe down inside of refrigerator. This is best done the day before you do your weekly shopping.
3. Clean out freezer.
4. Scrub Stove Top.
5. Wash inside of Microwave.
6. Wash small appliances such as toaster, toaster oven, and can opener.
7. Mop the floor.

Cleaning the Kitchen: Daily Order After Each Meal:
1. Tidy up by returning any items out of order back to their place.
2. Place dishes in dishwasher if using one.
3. Hand wash dishes, pots and pans as required.
4. Wipe down countertops, backsplashes, table, stove, and inside microwave.
5. Scrub sink until it is shining and return dried, hand washed dishes where they belong.
6. Sweep the floor.
7. At end of day, rinse out sponges, dishrags, or brushes with hot sudsy water using a little bleach to disinfect. Hang to dry. Replace used rags, towles, sponges, and brushes with fresh ones for the next day.