The Pre-Oven Cleaning Step You Won't Want To Skip

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Your oven often seems to develop a life of its own the moment you turn your back. One day, it's sparkling clean, and the next, it's collecting those mysterious bits of lasagna that somehow survived last week's dinner. We spend so much time worrying about fancy baking techniques and temperatures, yet overlook the very foundation of clean cooking: starting with a dirty oven. For one, a dirty oven compromises the taste of your food, and worse, creates an environment for bacteria to thrive. And while there are plenty of ways to scrub your way to a clean oven, the one pre-cleaning step you absolutely shouldn't skip is vacuuming.

This step matters because spritzing a cleaning solution straight onto burnt crumbs is like throwing gasoline on a grease fire. You'll only move the residue around, which will make the whole tidying job take twice as long. Vacuuming first is one of the best ways to clean your oven because it helps you get rid of all the loose crumbs. Once you do this, your cleaning solution can penetrate where it needs to, and every wipe can glide like butter. This keeps leftover bits from burning and ruining the taste of your food during your next bake.

To begin with, let your oven cool down completely. We get it, it's tempting to start cleaning your oven right after whipping up a batch of something delicious, but a hot oven poses a safety hazard. Besides singeing your fingers, it can also wreak havoc on your vacuum — electronics and extreme heat don't exactly mix. And whatever you do, steer clear of a wet vacuum here. You're only dealing with dry crumbs and dust, and adding moisture will create a smeared mess that's much harder to lift. You also run the risk of short-circuiting your oven thanks to the moisture and cleaning chemicals.

Before vacuuming, gently scrape off any stuck-on spills to make cleaning your oven much easier. A vacuum does the trick, but it won't magically lift chunks that have glued themselves to the oven's surface. A tool like the 4every Stainless Steel Metal Scraper comes in handy here. Once you're done scraping, pull out the oven drawer to reveal all those hidden crumbs.

Now, grab your vacuum hose and methodically vacuum both inside the oven and underneath where you've removed the drawer. If your vacuum has attachments, a crevice tool can help reach corners where bits of debris love to lurk. Note that upright vacuums can be a bit unwieldy here, so if it feels like you're wrestling with it, switch to a handheld one. Once the crumbs are gone, you're ready for your deep cleaning session.