The oven and microwave are essential appliances in everyday life. We use them almost every day to invent tasty recipes or to heat our food. The only problem: they don’t escape encrustations of dirt stains. Indeed, when you cook a dish with sauce in the oven or heat a dish in the microwave, both are not protected from splashes. It’s almost inevitable, food spills on the grills, walls and windows. Result: grease stains invade the rooms and burning smells darken the paint. If there is no silver bullet to avoid them yet, there is always a way to track down dirt and clean these devices effectively.

Yes, we sympathize, the task is never easy. Cleaning the oven and microwave often takes a lot of time and effort. It’s long and boring. But maybe you didn’t know the cup method? No need to prolong the suspense, quickly discover the trick you were missing!

For optimal cleaning, here are the ingredients you will need. The advantage is that you won’t have to incur unnecessary expenses: you certainly already have them all in your kitchen!

Ingredients :

• 1/2 glass of water
• Juice of one lemon
• 1/2 glass of white vinegar
• 1 ceramic mug suitable for microwave and oven

For those who don’t know, white vinegar is a powerful detergent with incredible stain-removing, degreasing, descaling and deodorizing properties. Its place is often in the kitchen since it is a staple food product. But its versatility also makes it a true ally for all types of household jobs.

Like vinegar, lemon is a citrus fruit with a thousand virtues. As much as it purifies the body, it can replace a good number of industrial products for cleaning the house. Furthermore, thanks to its acidity, it tracks dirt, makes surfaces shine and drives away bad smells. Here it will strengthen the descaling action of the vinegar and give a fresh and fragrant touch to the inside of the appliances.

To clean the oven

Are you still curious about the cup trick? We’ll get there.

Get an oven-safe ceramic mug. Fill it with the ingredients, taking care to respect the doses indicated above. Let’s now see the procedure  to effectively cleanse the day . You’ll see, it’s very simple!

Turn on the oven and preheat it to 180°C. Insert the cup and leave it inside for at least 10 minutes. Then check that the solution in the cup has evaporated. If you feel that there is still not enough steam, leave it for a few more minutes. It is precisely this steam that will soften the stains, making them less resistant and much easier to remove. And it is also she who will banish unpleasant odors!

Then turn off the oven, carefully remove the cup (without burning yourself!) and use the remaining solution to descale the oven. Using gloves and a sponge, scrub well into all corners. You will find that there is no need to pray about stains. From the grates to the door, everything will be spotless in no time!

NB  : always be very careful not to burn yourself when cleaning the appliance.

To clean the microwave

Now here are the steps to clean the microwave . Unlike the oven, being smaller, it transfers heat faster.

As a precaution, it is better to halve the doses to be placed in the cup. Also, as a matter of convenience, opt for a smaller cup instead. However, be careful not to make dosage errors: even when reducing quantities, always remember to have equal parts of water and vinegar.

Then, as with the oven, place the mug in the microwave and run it on low for a few minutes. The liquid in the cup will evaporate, thus softening the encrusted dirt.

Then remove the cup very carefully so as not to burn yourself. Put on gloves and scrub with a sponge to remove embedded dirt. You will be pleasantly surprised to see that the stains disappear without any effort on your part. And if you smell carefully, you will find that even the bad odors have disappeared!

Please note

Test the remedies in a hidden corner of your devices first to ensure you don’t damage or stain them further.

Always remember to clean your oven and microwave when temperatures drop. Never consider doing this while they are still hot!