How To Clean Baked-on Grease In Your Oven

After months of baking and roasting, your new oven might get relatively grimy and dirty. Burned food and accumulated grease build up and become carbon, thus leading to a strong burning odour when cooking. If you don’t clean this layer properly, it can end up tainting your food and cause a fire hazard in the kitchen. With that in mind, here’s a step-by-step guide on cleaning baked-on grease in oven and keeping it in the best condition.

 What you’ll need:

• A soft sponge
• Lukewarm water
• A kitchen cleaning product
• Vinegar
• Baking soda
• A dustpan
• A small brush

Cleaning baked on grease in oven

Steps 1: Determine the type of your oven

There are some standard oven models, and each requires slightly different methods of cleaning. These include:

• Continuous cleaning or textured ovens come with a porcelain layer which is engineered to burn spilt ingredients while baking.
• Self-cleaning ovens allow you to burn grease and food to ash under high temperatures.
• Regular ovens don’t have these cleaning functions and must be cleaned by hand on a regular basis.

Step 2: Prepare the space

It’s advisable to clean your oven at a time when the kitchen is least active to prevent pets and kids from being burned due to high temperatures. Open all windows to keep the kitchen ventilated and removing the smells during the cleaning process.

Step 3: Clean the oven racks

Remove all racks in the oven and soak them in a sink which is full of lukewarm water mixed with a dishwashing liquid. Scrub them carefully with a soft sponge, then rinse off with clean water. Use a clean cloth dry them thoroughly.

Step 4: Clean the oven door

Open the door, then use a dustpan and small brush to sweep out any ash. After that, wipe it clean with a damp rag soaked with a cleaning product. A solution of water and vinegar can also be used instead.

Step 5: Mix the cleaning solution

Put five tablespoons of baking soda into a 38-ounce spray bottle, then fill it with water. Keep in mind to shake the bottle thoroughly to dissolve and moisten the baking soda.

Step 6: Spray cleaning solution on the oven

Spray cleaning solution on the interior of your oven. Focus on the baked-on grease and charred areas until you see the carbon gets saturated completely. For tough messes, add more baking soda to the solution to enhance the effect.

Let the cleaning solution soak in at least 1 or 2 hours until the baked-on parts get loosened. If it is still hard, douse it again and wait for another hour.

Step 7: Get rid of loosened carbon

Once the charred or baked-on parts get loosed, eliminate them with a scraper. You can use the kind of scraper which you often use to chip snow and ice off the windshield. Keep in mind to wear a pair of rubber gloves to keep your hands from getting black due to the soot. Consider spraying these areas with baking soda solution to make the task simpler. Lastly, use a dustpan and brush to sweep out all debris.

Step 8: Clean once more time

Make a solution of water and vinegar and wipe down the whole oven once again. This will get rid of all remaining baked-on grease and food. If these particles still exist, there are two alternative methods:

• Pour ammonia on the affected areas and wait for 30 minutes. After that, scrub and wipe away with a wet sponge.
• Apply an industrial-strength cleaner on these marks, then scrub and rinse off with clean water.

Step 9: Maintain the oven between cleanings

Once you’ve cleaned all burned food and baked-on grease in your oven, there are a few things to keep it clean.

If you cook something messy, keep in mind to put a baking sheet or cover below the rack to catch food and grease spills. When something bubbles over on the oven floor, it’s better to clean it up right away while you’re still cooking. This will prevent these ingredients from being burned and accumulated. For tough messes, consider using salt or water/vinegar solution or some of these popular best oven cleaners.