As one of the greatest chefs in the world, the late Julia Child once said, “The only real stumbling block (when cooking) is fear of failure. In cooking you’ve got to have a what-the-hell attitude,” and that is only possible through preparation.
We all love a good home-cooked meal. The smell of food cooking, the taste of something made with care, and the joy of sharing it with family make cooking worth it. But then comes the part everyone fears the most: the cleanup.
You’ve just finished making a beautiful dinner, maybe some pasta with homemade sauce or juicy chicken thighs with roasted vegetables, and now you’re staring at a sink full of pots, pans, and cutting boards covered in garlic bits and sauce splatters, and the first thing that comes to your mind is, “Why didn’t I just order a f%$king takeout? Who’s going to clean all this mess?”
That’s a common thought process among many home-meal lovers, so cut yourself some slack and stop worrying about the sink full of dirty dishes, the grease on the stove, or the mess on the counter. All that will only make you want to order takeout next time; instead, check out these few tested-and-trusted ideas you can use to make post-meal cleanup easier and more enjoyable.
Clean As You Go
“I think the biggest thing is clean as you go. Wash all your knives, cutting boards, dishes, when you are done cooking, not look at a sink full of dishes after you are done,” says Catherine Ann Cora, one of America’s biggest pro chefs and TV personality.
What she’s saying might sound like more work, but it actually saves you time in the end. When you’re waiting for water to boil or food to cook in the oven, use those few minutes to wash a dish or wipe down the counter. If you just finished using a mixing bowl, give it a quick rinse before the food dries and sticks to it.
Keep a trash bowl on your counter while you cook. Instead of walking to the trash can every time you need to throw something away, put all your scraps in this bowl. Empty it when you’re done cooking. By the time you’re finished cooking, half your cleanup will have already been done.
Make Sure the Faucet Is In Great Condition
According to the experts at Aerator.com, having a faulty kitchen faucet can turn a simple cleanup into a real headache.
If your faucet drips, has low water pressure, or doesn’t spray properly, washing dishes takes twice as long. Folks put up with a problematic faucet for months or even years, unaware of how much harder it makes their daily cleaning and cooking tasks.
Use Brand Name Parts
Let’s assume you own a Delta-branded faucet, and it has low water pressure. The fix might be as simple as cleaning or replacing the Delta faucet aerator. This is the small screen at the tip of your faucet that controls water flow. Keeping it clean can save you time and frustration every single day. The key here is, just like with auto parts, sticking with the same brand name will ensure repairs are easier, and typically last longer as well.
Use the Right Tools
A good scrub brush can clean a pot in half the time it takes with an old, worn-out sponge. Keep different tools for different jobs:
- Use a soft sponge for your nice dishes
- Keep a tough scrub brush for pots
- Have a special brush for getting into corners and tight spaces
Don’t forget about your dish soap. Cheap soap might seem like a good deal, but you end up using twice as much to get things clean.
A good quality dish soap cuts through grease better and makes everything easier to wash. You actually save money in the long run because you use less of it.
Line Everything You Can
“Efficiency is key to a successful kitchen.” These are the words of Sherry Yard, one of the most awarded chefs of the last decade, and she’s on point here. Cooking doesn’t mean you have to mess up every utensil you have. Know what you want to prepare and try to be efficient with it.
Here are some simple lining tricks that will save you tons of cleanup time:
- Line your baking sheets with parchment paper or aluminum foil
- Use splatter screens when you fry food to catch oil splashes
- Put aluminum foil on the wall behind your stove for messy cooking
- Lay down parchment paper on counters before messy prep work
When you’re done cooking, just throw away the liner, and your pan is still clean. This works great for roasting vegetables, baking chicken, or making anything that might stick or leave residue.
Even your counters can benefit from this trick. When you’re doing messy prep work like breading chicken or rolling out dough, put down parchment paper first. When you’re finished, gather up the paper with all the mess and throw it away.
Soak Immediately
The biggest mistake we make is letting dirty dishes sit. Food dries and hardens, turning a simple rinse into a scrubbing session. As soon as you’re done using a pot or pan, put some water in it. Add a drop of dish soap if it’s really greasy. Let it soak while you eat your meal.
This is especially important for things like cheese, eggs, and pasta. These foods turn into cement if you let them dry on dishes.
But if you soak them right away, they wash off easily later. Even just running hot water over a plate right after you use it makes a big difference.
Wrapping Up
When cleanup is quick and easy, you’re more likely to cook healthy meals at home. You save money, eat better, and spend more quality time with your family around the dinner table.
The next time you cook, try just one of these tips. See how much easier it makes things. Once you see the difference, you’ll wonder why you didn’t start doing this sooner. Goodluck!
