It’s been a fortnight since we entered 2026, but some of us are still hobbling along, trying to recover from the chaos of Christmas festivities. If you had the joy—or misfortune—of having to play host to one of your family gatherings, the odds are you are still finding bits and bobs of wrapping paper, bright-coloured cellophane, and loose glitter from the Christmas tree ornaments.
My own personal kitchen has yet to recover from hosting both the Christmas Eve dinner (hello, Hispanic households!) and Christmas breakfast and lunch. All that copious food haunted us until we had to come to terms that no, we wouldn’t eat two-week-old cake, no matter how delicious it had been when paired with a good glass of eggnog.
I must be honest… I have been avoiding eye contact with my oven. Ever since the rise in popularity of air fryers, we had abandoned this household appliance until we had to feed more than two people at once. Now my poor oven is sporting some battle scars: grease stains from the roast drippings, some charred flour in the corner from that cake… If Martha Steward were to walk into my kitchen right now, I would only pray “Earth, swallow me up!”
I know I’m not alone in this—or at least, I want to delude myself into thinking this kind of cleaning procrastination is remotely acceptable in an adult. But there is a why to undo all this, using cleaning ingredients you probably have at home already.
How to clean your oven with a natural method
Real self-cleaning ovens rely on extremely high heat—between 500 and 900 degrees Fahrenheit—to turn leftover food into ash. However, if you calculate how much money you will be spending on the utility bill if you do turn that program on, you might want to consider a less aggressive method.
You can use vinegar and baking soda for small messes or if you just don’t want to run the full cleaning cycle. Choose the method that best fits what you are trying to achieve.
Here is when the baking soda and vinegar combination makes sense. It works well for minor spills, splashes, or grease on the door and inside walls, as long as the mess hasn’t turned into hard, burnt carbon.
It is also a good choice if you want to skip the self-clean mode to avoid smoke, bad smells, issues for sensitive family members, or potential damage to nearby plastic items. Finally, use it for washing the racks, since most brands tell you to take them out before running the high-heat cycle.
Step-by-step tutorial
- First, take the racks off carefully and sweep up any loose residue.
- Give the racks a spa day in hot, soapy water or the dishwasher, far away from the mess you are about to make.
- Mix one cup of baking soda with just enough water to create a paste until it gets a granulated frosting consistency.
- Slather the paste all over the interior, avoiding the heating coils and the door seal.
- Now for the best part: walk away and do absolutely nothing for 12 to 24 hours while the paste fights the grease for you. Let that soaking time do the heavy lifting for you!
- Return to the scene of the crime and wipe away the gunk with a damp cloth or plastic scraper.
- Spray white vinegar on any stubborn spots.
- Rinse everything thoroughly and let it dry completely.
- Finally, put the racks back inside.
Now that I have written that out, I’m gonna head to the kitchen, don some gloves, and apply some elbow grease to my own oven. God forbid I turn into one of those “Do as I say, not as I do” writers!