On a busy work night the last thing you feel like doing is to wash dishes and clean the kitchen. But, you know if you don’t it will all be there the next morning and will be less appealing to tackle. So it will save you time later and make your daily life more pleasant if you acquire some good kitchen cleaning habits. This presents six habits which will make it easier to get the job done and help you manage your time more efficiently.
1. Clean as You Go
Good time managers know that it’s easier to clean and pick up the kitchen while preparing meals so there is less to do after dinner. Instead of leaving the kitchen while your meal is cooking, spend a few moments to wipe off cutting boards, wash knives and put ingredients away that you’re done with. In addition, use a cloth or sponge to wipe up spills immediately after they occur so they are less difficult to clean later after they have time to harden. Another benefit of cleaning while you’re preparing meals is it helps prevent the chances of spreading bacteria and contamination.
2. Regularly Wipe Items Down
Many containers we use in meal preparation become sticky and can leave messes on countertops and tables if left as they are. Some examples include jelly jars, ketchup and mustard bottles, and olive oil and salad dressing bottles. When left as is the drips and splatters harden and congeal and become more difficult to clean. So it’s a good habit to wipe down these items with a damp cloth before putting them away in the refrigerator or kitchen cabinets.
3. Utilize Plastic Food Storage Containers
Once you open packages, some foods and ingredients become messy when they are left in the original package. Your refrigerator shelves can become grimy with fruit and vegetable residue and cabinets can get dusty with sugar and flour if certain items are not stored in a plastic container. Prevent this from happening by using clear plastic storage containers and label the containers beforehand. Next, store vegetables and fruits in bins which you can wash on a regular basis.
4. Organize Your Refrigerator, Cabinets and Pantry
If you organize things in your kitchen you will be able to prepare meals more efficiently and not have to search for ingredients, leaving time for you to clean up during dinner preparation. Additionally, you will help to prevent kitchen accidents that occur when searching for items and knocking them over. Areas you should focus on are:
- organizing your refrigerator by similar items
- creating an organizational plan for where to store items in your cabinets
- planning the most efficient way to store small kitchen appliances and pantry items
5. Learn to Love Liners and Trays
Using trays and liners will make your kitchen clean up so much easier by containing spills eliminating the need for cleaning altogether. There are a few ways liners and trays can be used to simplify things:
- Use aluminum foil to line pans which minimizes cleanup.
- Place shelf liners in your kitchen cabinets so you can more easily wipe up spills.
- Use plastic placemats to line your refrigerator shelves and drawers that can be removed, cleaned and replaced instead of having to wash out the entire refrigerator.
- Use trays inside the refrigerator to store poultry, seafood and meats to contain juices that could drip from packages and could contaminate foods. Remember to clean these trays on a regular basis.
- Purchase and install oven liners which can be cleaned and reused; this will save you from having to scrape off baked-on messes when meals overflow.
6. Clean Dishes and Countertops Before Bed
Although you might not feel like doing dishes after your dinner, it shouldn’t take more than 15 minutes if you have been cleaning up while you prepared the meal. It should only take a minute to clean the counter with a cloth and cleaner. By making this a routine, you will not have to deal with a lot of dirty dishes when starting your day in the morning. Also, if you have older kids they should be able to pitch in and have their assigned chores to share the tasks and help make them get done more quickly.
However, if your life is so busy with long work hours and other commitments that you barely manage to have dinner much less time to cook and clean, contact a local professional cleaning service that can do the cleaning for you. It’s understandable that families may not have time to maintain a daily kitchen cleaning schedule a while dealing with kids’ homework and other activities. By seeking professional help, you can enjoy coming home and relaxing after dinner.
Maid Spotless Cleaning Services offers a full suite of professional house cleaning services in Albany and the Greater Capital Region.
Contact us for a FREE quote today!
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