What you need
Note: Depending on the severity of your microwave’s messiness, you might not need every item here. But these are all excellent items to have on hand for all kinds of housekeeping tasks.
White vinegar: AKA acetic acid, vinegar is helpful for breaking down all the nasty cooked-on food stuck inside your microwave.
Microfiber cloths: Paper towels will also work, but microber is better and reusable, so they’ll save you money too. These can be used on the inside of the microwave, as well as on the outside, and they won’t scratch stainless steel. Slightly dampen them to help break up food residue.
Microwaveable bowl: You can use any bowl for this, but Pyrex bowls work awesome and have a million other uses. Try to find one that can hold at least 2 cups of water.
Potholders or kitchen towels: After microwaving the bowl it will be extremely hot! You’ll need these to remove the bowl without burning your hands.
Dishwashing soap: Make sure to use nontoxic, fragrance free soap for this – you don’t want to risk using any detergents that might leave harmful chemicals.
Baking soda: Baking soda is another natural cleaning product that will help eliminate burn odors. Plus, the course texture of the baking soda is perfect for scrubbing food residue.
Sponge: The non abrasive kind. If you’ve got lots of burned on food to scrub off, use this together with the baking soda for scrubbing power.
Essential oil (optional): To minimize the vinegar odor and help get rid of burnt smells in your microwave, you can add two drops of your favorite essential oil.
How long this will take to clean
This should take about 20 to 30 minutes. You can do this.
Cleaning your microwave
To clean your microwave with vinegar, fill up a microwave-safe bowl with approximately two cups of water and two tablespoons of vinegar. The exact amount of vinegar isn’t super important, since natural vinegar is free of any nasty solvents and is completely safe on cooking surfaces.
Place the bowl full of vinegar water in the microwave, close the door, and microwave on high for 5 minutes. After it’s done, keep the door closed and let the bowl sit in the microwave for an additional 10 minutes. The idea is to let the acidic steam do all the hard work so it’s easier for you to wipe off all the gross crud in there.
After 10 minutes, carefully open the door to let the steam escape. Then use pot holders or kitchen towels to carefully remove the bowel to the sink or counter. Once it cools down, use a kitchen towel to move the glass microwave turntable to the sink. Wash it using dish soap and a sponge and then let it dry while you clean the microwave itself. You can also scrub with baking soda if there is stuck on food. Most glass turntables are also dishwasher safe, if you want to save yourself some elbow grease.
Next, fill a bowl with a little warm water and an equal amount of dish soap until you see some suds. Dampen one of your microfiber cloths slightly and use it to scrub the insides of the microwave and microwave door. After, you can clean the cloth with clean water and wring it out with your hands. Use this cloth (or a fresh one moistened with water) to wipe off the soap residue from the microwave.
If there are any stubborn stains or odors you can’t get rid of with the vinegar mixture, mix some baking soda with water in a bowl until it forms a thick paste. You can put the paste on the stains, let it sit for 5 minutes, and then scrub using a sponge or microfiber cloth. Use a clean microfiber moistened with a little water to wipe off any leftover baking soda. Leave the microwave door open until it’s totally dry.
Lastly, wipe the outside of the microwave clean with a dry microfiber cloth to make it nice and shiny. If there are heavy food spills on the outside, you can also use a little soap and water to clean it first. If it’s stainless steel, try to scrub in the direction of the steel texture to avoid visible scratches.
How to get burnt smell out of the microwave
Did you overcook your popcorn and need t get rid of the burn smell? Fear not. The vinegar should have helped a lot with the smell, but if it didn’t, consider repeating the process and adding a few drops of your favorite essential oils. Some of the best oils we’ve found for removing smells are lemon, peppermint, and eucalyptus.
What not to do
Don’t use vinegar on the outside of the microwave
Vinegar can corrode the stainless steel on the exterior of microwaves. To avoid this, only use it on the inside.
Don’t use ammonia or bleach
These can leave strong odors and can make plastic parts of the microwave brittle over time.
Don’t burn your hands
You don’t want to burn your hands. Please be careful with hot water.
Don’t shock yourself
If you’re wiping near the cord, be extra careful and unplug it first. Better safe than sorry.
Chris Gannon lives in Fort Lauderdale with his wife and 2 young daughters and is the Editor-in-Chief at Clean Finds. He enjoys helping readers learn more about living responsibly by writing primarily about conscious consumerism, green business trends, and environmental conservation.
