Anyone else think its weird we use chemicals to clean the things we cook our food in? Have you read those labels?
In the pioneer spirit I prefer to use natural cleaners. I don't like my food, body, or home exposed to chemicals.
Can I get an amen? Our skin is our largest organ and the things we touch or put on our bodies shouldn't be dangerous or come with warning.
As I started out quest to all natural cleaners and products in our home, one of the things I discovered was a DIY natural oven cleaning recipe. It used a paste of baking soda and water. You put it on your oven, let it sit a few hours, and then wiped it clean.
I was very excited to try this. I made my paste, applied it thickly, and waited the two hours. I scrubbed and hardly anything came up. Maybe I didn't leave it on long enough?
I reapplied and let it sit for four hours. Still nothing! By this time I was exasperated so I poured some vinegar on. It foamed marvelously, but most of the burnt on mess was still there. Disgusted, I gave up and used the nasty old spray on oven cleaner under my cupboard.
A few months later I baked some fish in a glass baking dish. I let the pan soak overnight in hot soapy water and still couldn't get the burnt on mess cleaned off.
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Fast Acting Easy DIY Oven Cleaner
Baking Soda
Elbow Grease
The box of baking soda was sitting on the counter from the earlier scrub on the sink. The glass dish was dry and I decided to pour the baking soda on the burnt crud. I rubbed it around with the pad of my finger and almost immediately the baking soda turned brown from absorbing the grease and the black mess lifted off the glass! Eureka. I rubbed the pan clean in less than a minute.
I yanked open my cold oven door and poured the baking soda on the glass. Using just my finger I rubbed the entire surface clean in less than five minutes. Every time the baking soda turns brown from absorbing the grease, I simply poured more on. When I was done, I swept up the dry baking soda, now a brown color from the grease, and wiped the glass down with a damp towel. It sparkles!
No heat, no smoke, no chemicals, no fumes, and just a tiny bit of elbow grease. The key is dry baking soda. Best part, it only took 1 ingredient and 5 minutes for a natural DIY oven cleaner.
Want more natural DIY cleaning products for your home? (yes, the answer is yes!)
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I am excited to try this for myself. I’m dealing with my smoke alarm doing it’s nuisance sound when the oven door is opened. My cue to clean the oven–but I dread the canned cleaners. My husband jokingly laughs and says dinner must be good, really good, or excellent depending on how many smoke alarms I’ve set off. But I’d rather get the oven clean. I’ll have to let you know how well it worked for me too. Thanks. And I love ideas that are simple too.
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I will add water to a pan on the stove bring to a boil then add baking soda, maybe some dawn if really greasy stuff. The pan is cleaned and I only need to wipe it out with rag and rinse.. No scrubbing.. Great for cleaning out the slow cooker too.
I will add water to a pan on the stove bring to a boil then add baking soda, maybe some dawn if really greasy stuff. The pan is cleaned and I only need to wipe it out with rag and rinse.. No scrubbing.. Great for cleaning out the slow cooker too.
Bev,
Excellent tip. I only use cast iron pans, so I use a salt scrub to clean them out, but I’ll try it for the slow cooker.