If you're like most people, the kitchen is one of the busiest rooms of your home. It's probably not surprising, then, that the kitchen can also be one of the messiest. To keep your kitchen safe, healthy, and inviting, come up with a cleaning routine that helps you tackle and prevent grime. If you take care of a few chores a day, messes won't pile up so cleanup is faster.

1

Take out the trash as soon as it's full or smelly.

  1. Putting the trash out keeps your kitchen fresh and prevents bacterial growth. If you don't typically take out the trash until it's full, you might not realize how smelly it's making your kitchen, especially if there's no lid on top. Start taking out the trash at the end of each day so your kitchen smells great and food in the trash can doesn't begin to rot, which can grow maggots and fruit flies.[1]
    • Don't forget to clean your trashcan—take the empty can outside and spray it with a disinfecting spray. Then, pop on a pair of gloves and scrub the inside and outside before you rinse it off.
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3

Clean up after each meal.

  1. You won't have to spend as much time and your kitchen will stay cleaner. If you're like most people, doing the dishes is a chore. However, if you let dirty dishes pile up, you'll have to work hard to clean them and you won't have clean working space in your kitchen. Get in the habit of clearing the table, washing the dishes, and wiping the counters after every meal.[3]
    • If you live with other people, ask them to help out, especially if you're the one making the meals. You might ask your kids to load the dishwasher after dinner or get your roommate to take out the trash, for instance.
    • Do you have a dishwasher? Get into a routine of loading and running it every day. Try to unload it as soon as the dishes are cool enough to handle. This way, it's empty when you put away dirty dishes.
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4

Clear the counters and wipe them clean.

  1. Messy counters take up workspace and can be hazardous. If you stack dishes, pots, or knives, you're losing out on valuable space in your kitchen and these could topple over and cause accidents. Clear off your countertops as you cook. Then, wipe the surfaces with a cloth soaked in hot soapy water or a multi-purpose kitchen cleaner that contains bleach.
    • If you hate wiping up crumbs with a wet cloth, get a small brush and dustpan or use a small vacuum. This can be useful cleaning up around a toaster.
    • Try to store large items or appliances you use in cabinets or your pantry so they're not taking up space on your counters.
5

Scrub your sink every day.

  1. Wash the inside of your sink and faucet every day to remove bacteria. A typical kitchen sink has more bacteria than a trash can! To clean your sink, wash the faucet and sink with hot, soapy water. To deep-clean it, wipe the surface with a diluted bleach mixture. You may want to do this once a week to keep your kitchen sanitized, especially if you cook a lot.[4]
    • To make a diluted bleach solution, mix 1 tablespoon (15 ml) of bleach with 4 cups (0.95 L) of water.
    • If you've got a garbage disposal, clean it once a week. Turn off the disposal and put 6 ice cubes into it along with 1 tablespoon (14 g) of baking soda, 3 thin slices of lemon, and 1 teaspoon (4.9 ml) of bleach. Add 6 more ice cubes and turn on the disposal without running any water. Once the grinding stops, keep the disposal running and turn on the water for 30 seconds.[5]
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7

Prevent cross-contamination from cutting boards.

8

Sweep your floors daily and mop once a week.

  1. Keep dust, crumbs, and dirt out of your kitchen. If you've got messy eaters in your home, you may want to sweep after each meal. Then, once a week, fill your sink or a bucket with hot soapy water or a floor-cleaning solution. Dip your mop into it and squeeze out the excess before you scrub the floor with it.[8]
    • There are tons of great spot-mop products available at most hardware or home goods stores. Many of these use a pre-moistened cleaning cloth that you attach to a mop-like tool before you wipe it over the spot on your floor.
    • Let the floor air dry completely before you walk on it or you may slip or leave footmarks.
9

Clean out your fridge and freezer.

  1. Toss old food and clean shelves to sanitize the fridge. Your fridge is the workhorse of the kitchen, so give it the attention it deserves. Remove all of the food and check for moldy, expired food. Throw out the rotten food and wipe down all of the shelves with hot soapy water before you put food back in. Do the same for your freezer.[9]
    • Place an open box of baking soda into your fridge for a cheap way to deodorize it.
    • Keeping a clean fridge can help your food stay fresher for longer.
    • Put a little thermometer into the fridge so you can monitor the fridge temperature—it should be at 40 °F (4 °C) or below and your freezer needs to be at 0 °F (−18 °C).[10]
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12

Keep a small fire extinguisher in your kitchen.

  1. Put out cooking fires before they have a chance to spread. Kitchen fires are often responsible for causing house fires so keep a 5 lb (2.3 kg) fire extinguisher in an easy-to-reach spot or near a kitchen exit. This is especially important if you frequently deep-fry food.[12]
    • Don't have a fire extinguisher yet? In the meantime, you can put out kitchen grease fires by covering the container with a metal lid. This starves the fire of oxygen so it goes out. Don't pour water on the grease fire or you could make it flare up or spread.
    • Always have a first aid kit near your kitchen with burn cream. This is helpful for relieving pain from minor burns like when you accidentally touch a hot pan.
13

Cook meat to a food-safe temperature.

  1. Get an instant-read thermometer to be sure. While it might be tempting to eyeball if your steak or burgers are done, it's best to check the meat's temperature with a thermometer so you know harmful bacteria are destroyed. Cook poultry to 165 °F (74 °C) and ground meat, pork, or beef cuts to 160 °F (71 °C).
    • If you need to defrost food, your best bet is to put it in the fridge overnight. This helps the food thaw out, but if you're in a hurry, you could also submerge the frozen food in cold water. Just change out the water every 30 minutes until the food is defrosted.
    • Cook raw eggs completely, too! Although you might see recipes for raw or lightly cooked eggs, skip these since salmonella is a risk.
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Expert Q&A
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  • Question
    What's the best way to store my kitchen dishes?
    Robert Rybarski
    Robert Rybarski
    Organizational Specialist
    Robert Rybarski is an Organizational Specialist and Co-Owner of Conquering Clutter, a business that customizes closets, garages, and plantation shutters to ensure organized homes and lifestyles. Robert has over 23 years of consulting and sales experience in the organization industry. His business is based in Southern California.
    Robert Rybarski
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    Use drawers instead of cabinets for your plates and other dishes. That way you can easily stack them up and get as many as you need without having to lift something heavy over your head.
  • Question
    Where should I store seasonal kitchen items?
    Robert Rybarski
    Robert Rybarski
    Organizational Specialist
    Robert Rybarski is an Organizational Specialist and Co-Owner of Conquering Clutter, a business that customizes closets, garages, and plantation shutters to ensure organized homes and lifestyles. Robert has over 23 years of consulting and sales experience in the organization industry. His business is based in Southern California.
    Robert Rybarski
    Organizational Specialist
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    Store seasonal items in a small, very sturdy box. They tend to get heavy so you want to make sure the box is sturdy so nothing gets damaged in storage.
  • Question
    How can I organize all of my wine glasses?
    Robert Rybarski
    Robert Rybarski
    Organizational Specialist
    Robert Rybarski is an Organizational Specialist and Co-Owner of Conquering Clutter, a business that customizes closets, garages, and plantation shutters to ensure organized homes and lifestyles. Robert has over 23 years of consulting and sales experience in the organization industry. His business is based in Southern California.
    Robert Rybarski
    Organizational Specialist
    Expert Answer

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    They make a lot of racks for those now. You can mount a rack underneath your upper cabinet and then slide the glasses in there. Alternatively, if you don't use them a lot, you can keep them in a cabinet, like a Lazy Susan.
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About This Article

Robert Rybarski
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Organizational Specialist
This article was co-authored by Robert Rybarski and by wikiHow staff writer, Jessica Gibson. Robert Rybarski is an Organizational Specialist and Co-Owner of Conquering Clutter, a business that customizes closets, garages, and plantation shutters to ensure organized homes and lifestyles. Robert has over 23 years of consulting and sales experience in the organization industry. His business is based in Southern California. This article has been viewed 289,748 times.
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Co-authors: 39
Updated: March 18, 2023
Views: 289,748
Categories: Kitchens | Kitchen Cleaning
Article SummaryX

If you want to keep your kitchen clean and safe, put away any leftover food and wash your dishes after each meal. Clean up any spills when they occur, and use a disinfecting spray if the spill involves raw meat. Take out the garbage when the bag is full, and wipe down the garbage can regularly. Also, be sure to sweep or vacuum the floor in the kitchen at least once a day, and mop weekly. For tips on safe food handling, including the temperature for reheating leftovers, keep reading!

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