You’d be surprised by how many uses of baking soda in the kitchen there are! From getting rid of stubborn grease to making your potatoes extra crispy (I know!) – these hacks will convince you to keep a big jar of baking soda in your kitchen at all times.
A little (baking soda) goes a long way. Just a few tablespoons of this kitchen compound are enough to deep clean surfaces, tenderise meat and thoroughly clean fresh produce.
The list really does go on and on when it comes to all the uses of baking soda around the kitchen, and I’ve consolidated them here as my top baking soda hacks that you must know.
Cleaning and Shining
A thick paste made of baking soda and water can go a LONG way when it comes to cleaning and shining your kitchen.
All you have to do is spread the baking soda across the surface, (and in the case of stubborn messes, leave the paste on overnight), scrub with a sponge or a kitchen brush and then wash off with warm water. Use this for cleaning your:
- Sinks
- Tiles
- Countertops
- Microwave
- Refrigerator
- Freezer
- Stainless steel cookware
- Copper cookware
1. Cutting through grease:
Baking soda can dissolve grease just like (if not better) than soap? All you have to do is sprinkle some on a damp sponge and scrub off any grease. Its alkaline properties do all the magic here.
2. Removing stains from cutting boards:
Stained cutting boards can look as good as new with baking soda. Make a paste with a few tbsps of baking soda and water and apply it all over the cutting board. Leave overnight and wash it off in the morning. For very stubborn stains, you can also use a little vinegar.
3. Cleaning your oven:
Ditch those expensive chemical oven cleaners and instead cover the inside of your oven with baking soda and spritz it with vinegar until it’s evenly moist. Let it sit for an hour or two, scrub out with an old sponge or kitchen brush and then wipe out with hot, soapy water to fully clean through.
4. Cleaning and unclogging drains:
Pour ½ cup baking soda into the drain followed with a cup of vinegar. The substances will have a fizzy reaction once combined – this is normal. Let this sit for 10-15 mins, then rinse out with a generous amount of hot water.
5. Removing raw smells from hands:
It’s tough to get out the raw smell that’s left on your hands after cutting onions and garlic or handling fish – soap doesn’t do the trick on its own. But if you scrub your hands with both soap and baking soda paste and then rinse and dry, the smell will be completely gone.
6. Deodorizing anything:
Sprinkling a little baking soda on anything from your cat’s litter box to the bottom of the kitchen trash can or even your tennis shoes can reduce unpleasant odors. For best results, spread the baking soda in a thin layer across the surface.
With your food
7. Tenderizing meat:
Baking soda makes for a great meat tenderizer! Thin slices of meat can be tenderized with a slurry marinade made using baking soda and water. 1 teaspoon of baking soda to ½ cup of water is a good ratio for small meat slices (around 350g) – and you can do ¼ teaspoon of baking soda when tenderizing ground meat. Just mix the meat pieces with the slurry and let sit in the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes. Then wash the meat and use as required.
For larger pieces of meat, you can directly sprinkle baking soda on the piece, rub and let sit for 2-3 hours or overnight. 1 ½ teaspoon per kg of meat is a good reference amount. Make sure to wash thoroughly before cooking as usual.
8. Cleaning your produce:
Mix 2-3 tbsps of baking soda with cold water and then use that solution to wash your fruits and vegetables to make sure all your produce is thoroughly clean. Rinse with water before consuming!
9. Fluff up your omelets:
This is one of my favourite tricks. Just like how you add baking soda to fluff up baked desserts, you can do the same with your omelets. Just add ½ teaspoon of baking soda for every 3 eggs per omelette, whisk up and then cook as usual. The baking soda will help create more volume in the eggs.
10. Parboiling potatoes:
Adding baking soda to water raises the pH which affects the pectin in potatoes when parboiling. This makes their surfaces extra-starchy, which increases their crispness significantly. Use ½ teaspoon of baking soda per 2L of boiling water. Who doesn’t love a crispy potato? This is the best hack!
I could go on and on! But these are definitely some of my favourite tips and tricks to keep that kitchen sparkling, veggies fresh, and so much more.
I’ll be posting a lot more tips and essentials based blog-posts (similar to all the fun stuff I share with my email subscribers) so be on the lookout for more! But for now, swap out the small baking soda packet for a BIG jar – because trust me, it’ll come in handy!
Arshwee says
Very informative, i should try this hack in my kitchen.