Pesach Cleaning in Minutes: Week 3
THE KITCHEN
We’re up to the kitchen and we’re getting hungry! Who has the time or place to prepare a decent meal? Stock up on some of these suggestions so that you’ll have a variety of foods to offer hungry family members.
Large size pasta — I use the big ziti noodles. They are crumb-less, filling, and eaten by even finicky eaters. If a noodle gets stuck to someone’s hands or clothes, you’ll see it. If the kitchen is already off limits, you can plug a portable electric burner into any outlet.
Frozen pita sandwiches — Pitas make significantly fewer crumbs than bread. Prepare a whole bunch with the filling of your choice (cheese, tuna, peanut butter, etc.), double wrap, and freeze. At mealtime, set up a sandwich toaster in your designated chometzdig spot. Carefully unwrap the frozen pita sandwiches, warm them, and serve.
Processed/canned/instant/frozen foods — Try adding some of these to your menu: canned veggies, baked beans, pickles, fruit cocktail, frozen fries, hot dogs (fleishig and pareve), instant mashed potatoes, instant meals in a cup, yogurts, cheeses, corn-based cereals, and rice cake sandwiches.
15
minutes
One small kitchen appliance (suggestions: hand mixer, food processor, flour sifter, bread machine)
- Shake out from crumbs.
- Clean well with sponge and cleaner; clean anything washable in sink.
- Use a toothpick or a toothbrush dipped in cleaner to clean narrow crevices.
Stain Be Gone!
Rub some cooking oil on the plastic parts of the food processor to remove carrot or other vegetable stains. Wash oil off with dish soap.
30
minutes
One kitchen cabinet
- Remove contents.
- Vacuum out crumbs, and wipe down dirt and residue with rag and cleaner. Pay attention to inner walls and inside of cabinet door.
- Brush hinges and tracks with a toothbrush or rag dipped in cleaner. Dry immediately to avoid rusting.
- Return to cabinet only the items which belong. Relocate or trash the rest.
45
minutes
Pantry
- Separate chometz from non-chometz items in pantry. Put the chometz in a box to be finished/donated/sold. Don’t forget products which may have chometz as one of their ingredients.
- Remove all products from shelves.
- Vacuum out crumbs, and wipe down dirt and residue with rag and cleaner.
- Brush hinges and tracks with a toothbrush or rag dipped in cleaner. Dry immediately to avoid rusting.
- Pack away all non-Pesachdig items.
Freshen Your Formica
The Magic Sponge works wonders on Formica and most smooth surfaces. Wet sponge entirely before use. Spots come off like magic without any cleaning solution! For heavy stains on formica, apply a thick amount of dishwashing detergent and let it sit for a few hours to absorb.
60
minutes
Freezer section of fridge
- Transfer all food from freezer to fridge or an extra freezer.
- Remove shelves, and soak in bathtub in mixture of cleaning solution and water.
- Clean and vacuum out all crumbs and food from the bottom of the freezer
- Dampen a cloth with very warm soapy water and loosen hardened dirt from walls, floor, and door of freezer
- Gently scrub all crevices of freezer shelves with a toothbrush and sponge and rinse off shelves.
- Scrub down freezer interior with a sponge and warm soapy water. Gently scrub crevices with a toothbrush.
- Dry all parts of freezer with a clean, dry rag. Return shelves to freezer.
- Return only non–chometzdig items to freezer. Close and wrap everything well so that no spills occur.
Portable Pesach Kitchen
Avoid lining shelves from year to year by creating a Pesach cabinet within reasonable reach in your kitchen. If you can’t afford to give up a cabinet, buy a plastic or “do it yourself” cabinet on wheels and turn it into your Pesach kitchen center. Store it during the year in your basement/garage with all your Pesach supplies in it. Simply wheel it into your kitchen when you’ve turned over!
(Originally featured in Family First Issue 387)
Yael Wiesner is a Home Management Consultant, lecturer, and author of “How Does SHE Manage?” (Feldheim 2011)
Oops! We could not locate your form.
