You’ve just prepared some delicious food for the party tonight and now it’s time to clean up and set the table. You’ve done all you can but you just can’t seem to get rid of the kitchen smells in your house. Lingering smells can ruin your first impression, especially during holidays when there’s so much food to prep and so little time to clean up. Cooking smells can be the worst to deal with. Who likes to welcome people into a stinky house!
Kitchen smells can get really tricky. While some odors may be delightful such as baked cookies and cakes, others may force you to open the windows and turn on the fans.
The easiest way to reduce smells would be to follow an organized kitchen layout, because this will give you a head-start for cleaning up. A good start is by getting yourself high quality, affordable kitchen supplies in Dubai. Cleaning up spills instantly from the floor and counter tops makes sure the smells don’t diffuse in the air. Turn the fan on while you’re cooking and take the garbage out regularly. Also, periodically clean the garbage can on the inside as well. Keep your sink clean and dispose of any sponges or rags which smell. Here are a few inexpensive DIY tricks to ward off those horrible cooking smells.
Lemon
For a refreshing scent in your sink, let citrus be your friend. Lemon can do wonders for removing bad smells. Store leftover lemon rinds and citrus peels in the fridge and use twice a month or whenever the sink starts to stink.
Take some lemon rinds and toss them in the sink. Now turn on the faucet and the garbage disposal switch and let the rinds save the day. The citric acid in the rinds breaks down the gunk that was causing the smell and produces a pleasant lemon fragrance.
If there’s a food odor in the kitchen that doesn’t seem to go away, put lemon rinds and cinnamon in water and let it boil for 5 to 10 minutes. Turn the heat off and let the pot stay there all day. The lemon and cinnamon fumes will neutralize all other bad smells and refresh the atmosphere.
Lemon can also help you ward off that cringing fish odor from your hands. Just take a lemon half and squeeze out the juice over your hands. Now rub them together and rinse them off.
Vinegar
No matter how much you love to cook fish for a party, the stinky, pungent odor makes you to have second thoughts. Although the best way to avoid fish smells is to not cook it in the first place, vinegar can help you out here. As soon as you bring fish in your home, set out some bowls of vinegar in the kitchen. This will absorb the fish smell and neutralize the atmosphere. Once you’re done with cooking, wipe off the countertops and stove with some distilled white vinegar to get rid of any clingy scents.
Another good DIY cleanup is creating a vinegar mist. Take a saucepan and fill it with 3 tbsp of vinegar and 1 cup of water. Turn on the heat and let it boil for 5 to 10 minutes. The steam coming from the saucepan will diffuse in the air and counteract those nasty smells.
Baking Soda and Coffee Grounds
Baking soda is already well-known for deodorizing the atmosphere. Put some baking soda in mason jars and poke holes in the lid. Set them around the kitchen while preparing your meal. For a fragrant scent, you can also add some essential oils to it. For stronger smells put a bowl of coffee grounds on your kitchen counter and leave it overnight. This will alleviate any smells from the day before.
Baking soda can also be used to remove smells from the fridge. The first step would be to clean any spills that you see and check all the leftovers and expiry dates on products. Clingy odors may still persist, so keep a little bowl of baking soda at the back of your fridge. If the smell still seems strong, put some fresh dry coffee grounds in the fridge for a couple days. There’s no way this won’t work!
Baking soda is incredibly efficient for stinky drains. Take a cup of baking soda and dump it in the drain. Now pour boiling hot water into the sink. The baking soda will flush out all the foul smells with it. Baking soda and vinegar also make a good team. The chemical reaction might even help in unclogging the drain. Dump about a half cup of baking soda directly into the drain and chase it with a half cup of vinegar. Allow it to sit for at least 15 to 20 minutes and then flush out.
DIY Aromatherapy
Conquer bad smells with other great cooking smells. Spices like cinnamon and cloves, when simmered with water on a stove, can produce fresh natural fragrances that overpower all other lingering odors. Create your own DIY recipes and make your kitchen the best smelling part of your home. Here are a few DIY simple recipes you can try:
- If your kitchen smells like garlic or onions, put some cinnamon powder, butter, and brown sugar into a pan and bake it for a couple hours. Your kitchen will smell like a baked dessert or cookies.
- Boil some cloves in water and leave it on the stove for a few hours.
- The smell of roasting coffee beans is a treat for all. Grinding fresh coffee can also do the trick.
- Prepare a homemade mist with simple ingredients. Take an 8oz spray bottle and pour in a ¾ cup of water. Add 2 tbsp of rubbing alcohol or vodka and 20 drops of any essential oil like lavender, peppermint or any other oils you like. Shake well and store it under the kitchen sink cabinet. Spray whenever you need to freshen up the place.
- Soak cotton swabs in vanilla essence and place them in the corners of your counter tops.
- Make a mixture of all of your favorite essential oils with equal amounts of each and pour it into a spray bottle. Use this to spray around your stove top and vents. Turn the fan on for a few minutes and let it diffuse in the air.
Good Ventilation
Proper ventilation has to be the most important factor in controlling bad odors. While you’re cooking make sure there’s a good flow of air around your kitchen. If you have an exhaust fan or a vent over your stove, don’t forget to open it. If you don’t have one, keep your windows open or set up a fan that pushes air out of the window.
A good exhaust fan can make a huge difference if positioned correctly. Fans pull odors from the air and stop them from hanging in the atmosphere. If you don’t have a fan, consider installing one as this could be your first line of defense against lingering smells.
If you’re cooking something that makes too much smoke, have a plan to pull it out from the house beforehand. Keep all the kitchen doors and windows open so that the smoke has a place to escape. Turn on a portable fan and set it by the windows and door. Make sure the fan faces the door or windows. Doing this will clear out all the smoke in a matter of minutes.
If you can afford, invest in an electric chimney. Electric chimneys come with special filters which gather grease and fumes very efficiently. It might be an expensive option but it will save you a lot of hassle in the long run.