You put water and white vinegar in a bowl and microwave it. The steam will make it easier to clean and everything will smell of white vinegar overpowering any other odour.
⚠️ Edit: I think it’s worth mentioning that microwaving water can be dangerous and lead to serious burn injuries. There’s a U.S. FDA article about it here.
It is worth noting that you should be careful about heating water in the microwave. If you’re using filtered water, and the container you’re using is very smooth, it’s possible to heat it beyond the boiling point, at which point agitating it can cause it to essentially explode. Ann Reardon talks about it in this video here, and like she also mentions in the video the U.S. FDA has warnings about it on their website here.
I clean my microwave once a month by using a cloth I’ve rinsed in hot water, and wrung out. If it’s particularly grimy I use some mild soap too.
Wirecutter doesn’t specifically say boil but it uses the same time that all the other sources do, which is 5 minutes. In my experience, two cups of water will easily boil in 4.5 minutes in most microwaves (cheap potatoes), so there you go. Vinegar or lemon juice isn’t far from water’s boiling temperature.
I just use cleaning vinegar and a sponge (the cleaning style is a little stronger than the food grade), but I think the “vinegar trick” is filling a bowl or cup up with vinegar, microwaving it for about 5 minutes, and letting it stand. Supposedly the vapors coat the inside and make anything stuck-on easy to wipe off.
What’s the vinegar trick?
Its just cleaning with extra steps.
In the majority of cases wiping it out will be quicker.
You put water and white vinegar in a bowl and microwave it. The steam will make it easier to clean and everything will smell of white vinegar overpowering any other odour.
⚠️ Edit: I think it’s worth mentioning that microwaving water can be dangerous and lead to serious burn injuries. There’s a U.S. FDA article about it here.
Specifically, microwave it until it boils. In case that wasn’t obvious.
It is worth noting that you should be careful about heating water in the microwave. If you’re using filtered water, and the container you’re using is very smooth, it’s possible to heat it beyond the boiling point, at which point agitating it can cause it to essentially explode. Ann Reardon talks about it in this video here, and like she also mentions in the video the U.S. FDA has warnings about it on their website here.
I clean my microwave once a month by using a cloth I’ve rinsed in hot water, and wrung out. If it’s particularly grimy I use some mild soap too.
Boil? Just enough to steam.
Wait until you find out how steam works
I’m just going by 100% of the instructions online, which all say “until it boils.”
Southern Living, The Kitchn, The Spruce, Good Housekeeping all say “boil”
Wirecutter doesn’t specifically say boil but it uses the same time that all the other sources do, which is 5 minutes. In my experience, two cups of water will easily boil in 4.5 minutes in most microwaves (cheap potatoes), so there you go. Vinegar or lemon juice isn’t far from water’s boiling temperature.
You can use lemon water as well. Both white vinegar and lemon acidic and have antimicrobial properties.
Whatever it is, I bet maids hate them for it.
I just use cleaning vinegar and a sponge (the cleaning style is a little stronger than the food grade), but I think the “vinegar trick” is filling a bowl or cup up with vinegar, microwaving it for about 5 minutes, and letting it stand. Supposedly the vapors coat the inside and make anything stuck-on easy to wipe off.
Well, vinegar and water. The moisture is what softens the stuck on stuff and the vinegar helps with the smell.
It is like soaking dishes and it works extremely well for dried on/burnt foods.