The Fragrance Hack That Hides Cooking Odors During The Holidays

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Whether it's a turkey dinner with all the fixings or a succulent winter roast, few things beat cold-weather cooking — and the holidays, specifically, are the perfect time to whip up your favorite cozy meals. Yet, while the savory smell of onions, garlic, and butter sautéing with herbs and spices can smell amazing in the moment, especially when mingling with the smoky scent of roasting meat, it starts to lose its magic once the dishes are cleaned and the meal is digested. If you're going to cook up a storm during the holidays but don't want your house to smell like a restaurant's kitchen for days on end, there are a few things you can do to cover up the lingering scents of rich foods and make your home smell better immediately. Well, maybe not "better," but certainly back to normal.

You can actually do this by using other equally beloved holiday fragrances. According to the appropriately named fragrance evolution specialist Caitlyn Grubb, the trick to covering up holiday cooking smells is to avoid trying to mask them with scents that totally clash with the holiday food. "The easiest way to do that is to lean into fragrances that naturally complement food," she explained in an interview with Homes & Gardens, noting cinnamon and clove as some of her favorites to reach for. "They feel homey and festive, and because they have a subtle savory edge, they pair beautifully with both sweet and savory dishes."

There are plenty of ways you can use spices like cinnamon to make your home smell better than ever, with lighting a scented candle among the obvious ones. Luckily, seasonal candles aren't hard to find this time of year — and this Yankee Candle in Sparkling Cinnamon from Walmart, which promises up to 150 hours of burn time, should certainly do the trick. If you prefer essential oils or have a diffuser you've been neglecting, another option would be to try a festive oil like H.E.A.L.'s Holiday Spice Essential Oil Blend from Amazon, which combines notes of nutmeg, cinnamon, and clove.

If you want to put a little extra love and care into making your home smell like a festive oasis, you could also consider baking something to fill your kitchen with feel-good aromas. To avoid clashing with the scents of your cooking, you wouldn't want to bake anything overly sweet. Instead, things like gingerbread cookies or cardamom buns would offer a warm, spiced scent that will not only help mask lingering smells but also taste delicious.

Alternatively, you could try out a few simmer pot recipes to give your house an olfactory refresh. All you have to do is fill a pot with water and let it gently simmer with ingredients like cinnamon sticks, cloves, orange slices, and lemon, and voila — in just a few minutes, you'll have a wonderfully scented kitchen while also erasing the odorous memories of your old meals.