Planning, preparing and serving Thanksgiving dinner is a big job, but the real challenge comes after the turkey dinner has been eaten and everyone is stuffed. We’re talking about the clean-up and it’s basically the last thing you want to do when you’re heading into food coma mode, but those roasting pans aren’t going to wash themselves.
Want to get out of the kitchen and back to the couch sooner? These tips for Thanksgiving cleaning duty can make it easier and faster so you can get back to your loved ones.
- Get the right supplies- Microfiber towels are handy for drips and spills, plus putting a few around the perimeter of the carving board helps to keep it from slipping and catches the juices from the turkey. Contractor bags, or really heavy-duty garbage bags are helpful for containing trash when you have lots of stuff that pokes through, like bones and foil.
- Empty everything before the gathering- Take out the trash so the can is empty and ready to be filled, and empty the washing machine so it’s ready when you pop in those used microfiber towels. Make sure you start with an empty dishwasher and after the meal, run your first load with plates and cups, then move on to bulky serving dishes.
- Hand wash silverware before dessert- If you don’t have enough forks to get through dinner and dessert, make sure to wash some after the meal so people don’t have to wait to eat their pumpkin pie.
- Deglazing is a form of cleaning- To get that baked-on brown stuff off the bottom of the pan with ease, deglazing is the key. It sounds fancy, but it couldn’t be simpler. Just set the pan on a burner, crank up the heat to medium-high then add two cups of water. Let it get warm, then scraping the bits off should be much easier.
- Fill the sink with hot soapy water- Dump in all the things that need to be hand-washed or soak and make yourself a drink. Then wait for someone to offer to help and let them wash those dishes. And even if no one does, the suds will hide all the messy stuff in the sink and you can go relax.
Source: The Takeout
Photo: Getty Images