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I’ve noticed that when most people I know say “my house is a mess” it’s usually because two main things feel out of whack – the laundry, clean or dirty, is overflowing and … the kitchen is dirty.
Since the kitchen is the heart of your home, it follows that cleaning your kitchen is going to make the entire house feel so much better! If the kitchen is clean, not only does the whole house feel better (obviously), but getting everything else clean seems so much more attainable.
I first wrote this post more than a decade ago. I feel more qualified to explain how to clean a kitchen after raising three daughters to adulthood and going through the process of teaching each of them how to clean the kitchen. They learned how to clean our family kitchen, so they’ve had no problem knowing what to do in their own kitchens in their college apartments.
After learning to live with roommates at school, they have verified that it is so much more fun and easy to cook in a CLEAN kitchen! Trying to do anything in a dirty kitchen just feels gross. Not knowing where you can set a plate down that won’t be sticky, or having to wash a dirty pot before you can start water boiling, or not having room to work without pushing aside a mess. None of that is fun.
Let’s talk about a “Normal” Kitchen Cleaning
The main point of this post “How To Clean Your Kitchen” is going through a regular semi-deep kitchen cleaning routine, not the daily cleaning tips. It’s important to build daily habits to keep the kitchen clean in between regular cleanings, and it’s also important to do a deep Spring Cleaning type of clean a couple times a year. But those involve a different kind of cleaning. I want to focus on how to do the regular cleaning every 1-2 weeks.
To learn more about daily habits and deep cleaning – here’s what I recommend.
4 Routines to an Always-Clean Kitchen
Deep Clean Your Kitchen! The Spring Cleaning Guide has all the deep cleaning checklists you need.
Now, let’s get to this “normal” cleaning.
How often should you give your kitchen a regular cleaning?
I think it’s sufficient to set aside time to really clean your kitchen every 1-2 weeks. If you follow this routine every week, it won’t get as dirty in between, which will make it much faster to clean. If you hired a housecleaner and they cleaned your kitchen every 2 weeks, this is the kind of clean you’d expect to receive. That’s why 1-2 weeks makes the most sense to me.
To keep up with a regular kitchen cleaning schedule, make it part of a Cleaning & Laundry Routine (< I teach you how to create a schedule that works for you).
Kitchen Cleaning Checklist
One big mystery I want to reveal is the order of what to clean. When you clean your Kitchen, order definitely matters! This checklist is in the order that makes the most sense to me. Of course you are not confined to this, but I created an order I just go by instead of having to think it through every time I clean my kitchen. I put on a podcast and clean on autopilot – it’s lovely.
As far as “how to clean” – most of this is self-explanatory if you know what you’re expected to clean and what order. I give more specific directions when needed, or links to tutorials in the bonus section. When in doubt on how to clean something, the correct answer is usually to spray with all-purpose spray and wipe clean. Feel free to ask questions in the comments!
- Start your Angry Mama microwave cleaner using water and a splash of lemon juice (or vinegar instead). Microwave for 3-4 minutes while you work on other things and keep the microwave door closed until you’re ready to clean appliances. The steam will make the microwave easy to wipe down.
- Wash pet dishes and clean pet eating areas.
- Wipe down inside of fridge.
- Quick tidy of pantry.
- Wash and put away dishes.
- Refill dishwasher rinse aid (like Jet Dry).
- Wipe down exterior of all appliances and microwave, inside and out.
- Clean stovetop.
- Wipe counters and table.
- Spot clean chairs and bar stools.
- Clean the sink. Start by cleaning the faucet and around the sink. Use a disposal freshening tab while running hot water. Then use a scrubbing cleaner, like Bon Ami, for scuffs. For my white sink, I finish off with a bleach rinse to keep it white and disinfect.
- Oil Butcher block and cutting boards. Use a food safe wood oil and wipe a thin layer onto the clean wood and let it soak into the wood. It’s that easy.
- Wipe trash can exterior.
- Vacuum and Mop the floor.
See my complete list of cleaner recommendations on Amazon! The list includes my favorite rags, and seriously they’re worth it.
Bonus Tips *
When you are creating your weekly menu and grocery list, I suggest cleaning out your fridge and giving your pantry a quick tidy at the same time. You’ll honestly save so much money and not waste so many expensive groceries!
Keep your Butcher Block counters and cutting boards maintained by oiling them on a regular basis. How To Maintain & Condition Butcher Block Counters (in 5 minutes or less)
How I Clean My Stainless Steel Appliances
So… that’s how to clean your kitchen on a regular basis. Please let let me know if you have questions!
From my home to yours,
Mary
~originally published January 15, 2015~
I love your detailed lists and how practical they are 🙂
I run the dishwasher 3 times a day. I guess that’s a ‘benefit’ to homeschooling 7 kids. Glad they are the ones operating it!
If you’ve got them operating it, you are already an expert! Good job!
This article reminds me to clean the doors of my refrigerator. I promise to to that every day and I just forgot at the end of the day because I am really tired after I got home. Thanks a lot for the article!
You probably don’t need to do it every day unless there is a reason it is getting very messy every day. Sometimes having unrealistic expectations back fires.
I love this! I hate a gross kitchen!! I clean up after every meal. Not immediately though, I do like to sit and relax a little after I eat, so I bring the dishes to the counter and set the kitchen timer for about 20 minutes. When it goes off, I have no choice but to go to the kitchen to turn it off, and then I rinse, load the dishwasher, do any hand washing, clean the counters & stove. I sweep the kitchen and dining room every night, when I’m done the after dinner cleanup. It’s just the 2 of us, so I run the dishwasher every 2 or 3 days.
Enjoying a nice break after a meal – that sounds delightful. 🙂 I use timers all the time too. This is a great use!
While tidying up the freezer, I needed to share an idea. Keep bags of frozen raspberries in your freezer. A good handful of them takes care of menstrual cramps within 10 -15 minutes. Seriously. I have four daughters and two are athletes. One of my sons gave some to his girlfriend and her sister. Raspberries make such a difference!
Good to know! Thanks for sharing!
Your blog is fantastic. Thanks for all the help you provide and for making our cleaning be much more organised.
Thank you!
Hi Mary. I need some advice on doing dishes. I do them by hand but I always have overflowing piles in the sink and I never totally finish doing them. I have 4 little ones who keep me so busy. Any suggestions. My dishwasher is broken and won’t be fixed anytime soon. Maybe I have too many dishes. My pots and pans are always piled up on top of the mess and I end up washing dishes to eat out of every meal. It’s frustrating. Help!
Hmmm … the too many dishes comment makes me think. How many dishes do you have? Maybe tuck some away for a while and only have enough for each person at a meal? One just widdle it down to one or two mutli-purpose pots? I’d say plan meals that use less dishes and do them after every single meal! No one leaves the room until the dishes are done. The 4 and 6 year old are helping clear and wipe and sweep while the 2 and baby are still buckled in (I just answered your last post, so I remember the ages of your kids … lol). Make it a habit and it won’t seem so bad anymore. My dishwasher was broken for a few months a couple of years ago when my baby was your baby’s age and that is how I made it work. Also, get a different colored cup per person or label your cups somehow so people are using one cup a day all day and you was that cup after dinner. Best of luck!!
Thank you! I will try it!
Maybe your planner already arrived? It was in the mail on Tuesday!
I got it and i love it! Thank you!
I used to hate doing dishes. When my kids were little, dishes were always piled up in the sink. In later years, and with grandkids, I decided that they have to be done, so I might as well just accept it and do them. Now, I don’t let myself tell myself that I hate them and dread it, I just do them and tell myself that it really doesn’t take that long, because it doesn’t if I do them daily. (Weekdays, I usually just cook one meal, sometimes 2 if I make breakfast.) I try to do them as I dirty them when possible, but if I’m cooking too many things at once, I’m not going to risk burning something to do them while I’m cooking. It just took a change in my attitude to fix it for me. Now, if I can do that with everything else, it’d be nice. LOL. My house might be a mess, but my dishes are done. I hope with this group, I can get caught up and use that same attitude with everything. the super tidy is great and helping a lot. Thanks for the help.
I love the new attitude. It really does make such a difference getting things done right away.
How would you clean a black granite sink?
Is it sealed? Does it feel slick or matte? I’d use Basic G to sanitize and Basic H to touch-up. 🙂
Don’t forget the light fixtures! I do house cleaning for others and their kitchen light fixtures can be gross, especially those over an island. Often I place a towel under the fixture then spray the glass shade or globe with Krud Kutter & watch the grease & grime drip onto the towel! Yuk! Then just wipe with a damp cloth. Good as new (and you can actually SEE!)
I definitely wash light fixtures when I deep clean, otherwise, dusting them when I dust keeps it maintained in between. 🙂 Thanks for the tips, though!