All you need is three ingredients to cut through tough oven grease and grime – and you can find all of them in the kitchen
Cleaning appliances can be a laborious task, especially as they’re often overlooked and neglected. However, cleaning them can help keep the oven working efficiently and make the kitchen look sparkling clean.
If you’re in need of a tough cleaning solution, cleaning guru and TikTok creator Chantel Mila, better known as Mama Mila, has the answer. All you need is a few kitchen items to make a simple DIY paste.
In a bowl, combine one cup of baking soda, half a cup of washing up liquid and a splash of water. These three ingredients will create a “powerful” cleaning paste that’s incredibly versatile.
The paste can be used on a range of surfaces in both the kitchen and bathroom. It cuts through tough grease on ovens, hobs, sinks, and even shower glass.
Apply a thin layer of the paste to ovens with a sponge, then let it soak and break down any stains, spills, and food splatters. To make sure you get all the grease and grime off, Chantel uses a scraper tool to lift the paste and stubborn remnants. Clean off any excess paste with water, and then buff the oven glass with a microfibre cloth.
The reason this paste works so effectively is that baking soda is an effective grease remover due to its alkaline nature. This helps neutralise the acid in grease, making it easier to lift during cleaning.
As baking soda is a mild abrasive, it also helps to lift any stubborn grease or food particles without damaging surfaces.
By pairing it with washing up liquid, it makes the cleaning process a lot smoother. As washing-up liquid acts as an emulsifier, it helps to bind with grease and oil stains, allowing them to be rinsed away with water.
Washing up liquid contains surfactants that are both hydrophilic – attract water – and hydrophobic – repel water and bind to oil. These surfactants attach to the grease, allowing oil and water to mix and form a stable emulsion that can then be washed away.
If your oven is in a particularly tough spot, you can leave the paste on overnight. Follow with a cloth and wipe down the oven.
Should stubborn marks persist, use some white vinegar to spray onto the stains. Wipe away any remaining residue with a cloth.
