Spring-cleaning tips to spruce up your kitchen

Wash surfaces with hot, soapy water (dishwashing liquid is fine), and a nonabrasive sponge, working both with and against the grain to remove buildup. Dry with a towel. Don’t be alarmed if appliances look duller than usual, since you’ve just removed kitchen grease and residual cleaning products.

Apply a layer of stainless-steel polish, like Sheila Shine, which works as well as cream polish but requires much less elbow grease. Buff the polish into the surface with a towel, going along the grain, until the appliance shines and the towel comes away dry.

We recommend doing this 2 to 4 times a year.

Microwave
Here’s a Real Simple way to clean spills and splatters and deodorize at the same time. Do this once a month to avoid buildup.

• Fill a coffee mug with water and a few slices of lemon; put it in the middle of the microwave’s tray. Cook on high for about 3 minutes; then turn off the microwave.
• Leave the mug inside for another few minutes. The steam will soften food spills, and the lemon will get rid of odors.
• Open the door and take out the mug. Wipe down the walls with warm, soapy water to remove excess residue and food. Rinse and dry with a clean dishcloth.

Cabinets
Just because it’s behind closed doors doesn’t mean you don’t have to clean it. Unfortunately, those doors don’t keep dirt and dust out.

'TODAY' SPRING-CLEANING SERIES Spring-cleaning tips for your living rooms Spring-cleaning tips to spruce up your kitchen Spring-cleaning tips to brighten bed and bath

Empty cabinets of all pots, pans, utensils and cooking products. Wipe down the cabinet interiors with a microfiber cloth. Press into corners, under ridges and along door edges.

Dampen a sponge with a solution of dish soap and warm water, and clean the tops, bottoms and walls. Rinse the sponge in clean water as you go. Dry with a clean towel or rag as you work.

A Real Simple tip: Consider storing muffin tins, woks and other rarely used things in plastic bags, so you won’t have to rinse off the dust the next time you use them.

We recommend doing this once a season. It’s the perfect time to look at what’s stale and should be thrown out. Do the same with your fridge — pick a date when you get rid of all food in the fridge and start over. That way you always know a general date on how long things have been in there.

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