Kitchen Tips How To Cleaning How to Spring-Clean Your Kitchen Like a Pro Everyone's going to think you hired a housekeeper. By Nichole Aksamit Nichole Aksamit Nichole is a skilled editor, writer, and leader with nearly 25 years of journalism experience—most of it in food media—and a passion for cooking, eating, and all things food. She has served as a professional restaurant critic and food writer at a major metropolitan newspaper, an instructor at an accredited culinary school, a cookbook editor for one of the world's largest media companies, and the editor in chief of Allrecipes magazine. Allrecipes' editorial guidelines Updated on December 3, 2020 Close Photo: Getty Images Spring Cleaning Smarts Work from top to bottom — and from dry to wet — to get your kitchen squeaky clean in no time. 1. Remove and launder the soft stuff: curtains, towels, rugs, and other linens. While they’re in the wash… 2. Remove all items (including small appliances) from counters, open shelving, and floors. Remove racks from oven and set oven to self-cleaning mode. While it cleans… 3. Dry-dust all surfaces with a dust cloth, broom, or vacuum, working from the top (ceiling, light fixtures, walls, upper cabinets, shelves, and countertops) all the way down to lower cabinets and the floor. Getty Images 4. Make separate cleaning (hot water with dish detergent or Borax) and rinse (hot water) basins, rinse your cloth well before sudsing up, and wash all surfaces — again starting from the top and working your way down. Don’t forget appliances, cabinet fronts, handles, knobs, counter edges, light fixtures, switches, or the undersides of shelves and vent hoods. 5. Wipe down all windows, mirrors, and glass surfaces with window cleaner (or a fresh batch of sudsy water, followed by clean water and a microfiber cloth), and shine up all stainless-steel surfaces with an oil-based cleaner. 6. Mop the floor with a cleaner appropriate for its type (wood, linoleum, tile, etc.). Getty Images While it dries… 7. Wipe down and return desired items to counters, open shelving, and floors. (Be sure to empty the crumb catcher on the toaster first!) When the cleaning cycle is done and the oven has cooled, wipe it out, then clean and return the racks. 8. Scrub the sink and faucet thoroughly with an appropriate cleanser (scouring powders such as Bar Keepers Friend work well on porcelain and stainless steel). Scrub the underside of the flap on the garbage disposal with a soapy brush, then run the disposal with a cleaning tablet or a cut-up lemon and lots of water. Getty Images 9. Empty the food trap in the dishwasher. Run the machine, empty, for a full cycle with a dishwasher cleaner. 10. Rehang clean curtains, rugs, and other linens. Set out fresh sponges. Then take a step back and admire your sparkling kitchen. This article originally appeared in the February/March 2020 issue of Allrecipes Magazine. Related How to Clean Your Oven the Easy Way How to Clean a Dutch Oven—Cast Iron vs. Enameled Cast Iron How to Clean a Cast Iron Pan How to Clean Dirty Sheet Pans 15 Simple Ways to Handle Kitchen Mess in Just Minutes Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit