Image Credit: Marisa Vitale
by SHIFRAH COMBITHS
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It doesn’t matter how you divide the labor in your house — if you want a cleaner kitchen, put somebody on each of these 13 tasks.
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Here are some pre-dinner cleaning habits that help make mealtime seamless.
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Gather any dirty dishes that are sitting on the counters and pile them either in the sink or right next to it. Deal with any paper piles or other clutter.
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The goal is to start fresh in the kitchen before you cook. If you have any dirty dishes, wash them now.
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If you want to keep a good flow of clean-as-you-go while you’re preparing dinner, you don’t want anything to bottleneck.
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To ensure sanitary food prep, swipe the counters with a disinfecting wipe before cooking, especially when dealing with raw meat or unwashed produce.
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Make sure you have everything you need and that nothing has spoiled or expired. (This way there’s time to run to the store before you start cooking.)
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If you wash the pots, pans, utensils, and tools you used to cook with before you sit down to eat dinner, you’ll have so much less later.
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If someone’s able to get to these tasks right after the meal, you’ll be rewarded with a perpetually cleaner home.
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I put hand-wash items in there as we’re clearing the table and loading the dishwasher.
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As soon as everything is cleared off, wipe the table down. Then you don’t have to go back and do it later.
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The idea is that you’re gathering everything that’s dirty into an ever-narrowing area.
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After you’ve put everything in the dishwasher, wash your hand-wash items, including, of course, any items you weren’t able to get to before dinner.
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Make an initial swipe with a clean, damp rag. Next, spray a cleaner and wipe with a clean cloth. If disinfecting is necessary, use a wipe or a spray.
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Wipe everything while spills and splatters are still fresh and relatively easy to address.
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This is the topstone of a clean kitchen. Sprinkle some Bar Keeper’s Friend in a damp sink, scrub, and rinse.