With most places on lockdown, getting our trusted products to clean our kitchen may be quite impossible at the moment. And when you do get to the supermarket, these essential items may already be out-of-stock.

Here I’d like to share with you three DIY cleaning formulations that can help you keep your kitchen spotless! All these can be found at your own home and they’re very easy to make – not to mention, effective and inexpensive, which means you can make a lot of it without a dent in your pocket.

1. Fragrant Citrus and Baking Soda All-Purpose Kitchen Cleaner

What you need:

• a deep container
• sponge
• 3 tbs baking soda
• 500ml water
• 8 tbsp vinegar
• citrus essential oil (optional)

Mix everything together. Shake. Now, you have an easy kitchen cleaner that you can use to remove compounded grime on stainless counters, kitchen appliances and the refrigerator. Let it sit for 10 -15 minutes before rinsing. Thanks to the baking soda, this mixture also acts as a deodorizer. If you want to mask the smell of vinegar, you may even add your favorite essential oils. Mine is citrus – this keeps the kitchen smelling zesty and clean!

• Related article: 4 Easy Peasy Ways To Keep Your Cooking Clean (And Germ-Free!)

2. Soapy Vinegar Kitchen Counter Disinfectant

What you need:

• 5 drops dishwashing soap/liquid
• 8 tbsp vinegar or 5 tbsp isopropyl alcohol 
• 500ml warm water

Mix the vinegar or alcohol with the dishwashing soap plus water and shake gently. Spray it on to counter-tops and let it sit for 5-10 minutes for the solution to do its job. Wipe it off with a clean cloth, I use microfibre for great absorption.

This mild mixture is very effective in disinfecting granite kitchen surfaces and does not harm its polish (but if you're using vinegar, don't clean over granite). 

• Related article: Anton's 4 Basic Ingredients For Healthy Filipino Meals At Home

3. Powerful Vinegar and Baking Soda Drain Cleaner

What you need: 

• ¼ cup vinegar
  
• ¼ cup baking soda
• 500ml boiling water

Pour ¼ cup of baking soda directly into the drain. Then, pour ¼ cup of vinegar immediately after the baking soda. Now, it's waiting time - let the solution sit for an hour and rinse with boiling water.

Try this mixture when you have a smelly drain, enough to tell you that there are accumulated dirt and germs deep down. It costs practically zero but trust me when I tell you that this does the trick! 

Well, all of the three DIY cleaners are easy to make and effective, and I've been using them a lot in my own kitchen these days. That’s very important now because you need more than hand-washing to keep yourself germ-free. As you might have already read on the news, the current coronavirus that's spreading around can live on glass for up to 96 hours, 72 hours on steel and 24 hours on cardboard. So be vigilant on surfaces - they could potentially be the next breeding ground of our invisible enemy!

Finally, in any competitive activity I do, I often hear that “the best defense is a good offense”, and I think it’s true even now - so let’s all act first to keep our kitchens safe and clean.

Anton Amoncio is a Filipino chef and restaurateur. Back in 2016, he won then Asian Food Channel's Food Hero Competition. Follow his culinary adventures on all socials @antonamoncio. 

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