Coffee Is Your Friend When It Comes To Cleaning The Microwave

The microwave is a longtime kitchen appliance champion. The limits of what can be microwaved safely are constantly being pushed, but sometimes the results are ... stinky, to say the least. Try to recall the smell of burnt popcorn, overcooked fish, or lingering odors from spills and minor food explosions. Don't fear, the stink doesn't need to stick around and contaminate any future microwaved foods. Leftover coffee grounds are a great way to banish kitchen odors.

Using coffee grounds to eliminate unwanted smells is one of the best ways to easily clean your grimy microwave. The first step is to scrub the entire inside of your microwave, or you won't find much success with odor elimination. Once you've got a squeaky clean interior, place about a cup of dry coffee grounds in a shallow, open container and set it in the microwave. Leave the grounds inside undisturbed for several hours — overnight might be best if you use your microwave often. Coffee grounds will absorb some odors, and the strong, pleasant scent basically acts as an air freshener. After they have sat, discard them in the trash or compost (don't wash coffee grounds down the drain), and the next time you use your microwave, it will smell as good as new.

Don't have a microwave that needs cleaning? There are other ways to use coffee grounds beyond just your morning cup of joe that you'll be glad to know. They can be used to tenderize meat when applied a couple of hours before cooking — mix them with salt, pepper, paprika, chili powder, and a little cocoa for a boldly flavored dry rub that's perfect for steak.

Coffee grounds are also a great soil replacement to grow your own mushrooms. You'll need to procure your own spores, but you can use the grounds to begin the process of growing a delicious side dish to enjoy with your steak. Once you've explored using coffee grounds to tenderize a steak and started down your path as a mushroom farmer, any remaining coffee grounds can be used as a cleaning scrub. The texture of the grounds makes them an excellent abrasive cleaner for lifting up stubborn residue on pots and pans, though they shouldn't be used on any surfaces that are porous or prone to stains.