9 Kitchen Hacks to Make Your Morning Brighter

Very useful kitchen tips to save your time! I am sure these little tricks will help you make your breakfasts a bit more pleasant. Discover these 9 handy kitchen tips and tricks for anyone who wants to simplify their morning routine in the kitchen. 

1. Mess-Free Coffee Percolator

If you hate the messy chore of cleaning damp coffee grounds out of the plastic basket of your coffee percolator, here’s a way to make cleanup easier.

1. Snip a small hole in the center of a small (4- to 6-cup) basket-style coffee filter.

2. Fit the filter over the percolator tube and into the basket. Fill the filter-lined basket with ground coffee and brew as directed.

3. When it’s time to clean up, just dump out the filter with the grounds.

2. Puddle-free coffee making

The poorly designed spouts of most modern coffee carafes make it difficult to pour water into the coffee-maker reservoir without splashing the countertop. To prevent puddles, try filling the reservoir directly from the sink using the spray hose, avoiding the wet mess while also saving a step.

3. Take the stress out of cleaning a French press

French presses are hard to clean; the spent grounds cling to the bottom of the carafe and collect between the plates and screen of the plunger. Here are two tricks to make cleanup easier.

A. To easily get rid of the grounds without any going down the disposal (usually considered inadvisable), fill the carafe with water, pour its contents into a fine-mesh strainer over the sink, and dump the grounds into the trash.

B. To clean the whole press if you find anything left behind, fill the empty carafe halfway with soapy water. Then insert the plunger and rapidly move it up and down a few times. The force of the water dislodges any stuck grounds—and scrubs the sides of the carafe.

4. Stabilizing coffee filters

When using a manual drip coffee maker, the grounds can spill down into the pot because the paper filter folds over on itself when the water is poured into it. To avoid this problem, dampen the paper filter just a little bit and press it against the sides of the plastic cone. When you add the coffee and pour the water through, the filter adheres to the cone.

5. Removing coffee stains

If you’re unable to adequately scrub the inside of your thermal coffee carafe, try this clever trick.

1. Fill a carafe with a handful of rice and a cup of hot water.

2. Cover, then swirl and shake the carafe vigorously. Once the inside is clean, discard the rice and water. Rinse several times with hot water to remove any remaining residue.

6. Cleaning tough tea stains

If you brew a fresh pot of tea every morning, you know that tannin stains build up quickly on ceramics. Here’s an easy way to remove them: fill the stained teapot, teacup, or any tainted piece of ceramic with water and drop in a denture cleansing tablet. Let soak for 2 or 3 hours, then wash with dishwashing liquid and hot water. Light stains will disappear, leaving the cup or pot looking as good as new. Heavier stains may need several treatments followed by a scrubbing with hot, soapy water. Another option for cleaning tea- and coffee-stained ceramics is to try cutting a fresh lemon in quarters and using the fruit as a scrubber, gently squeezing its juice into a stained coffee mug or teapot. For extra cleaning power, first dip the lemon in kosher salt, which acts as an abrasive. Follow with a wash in hot, soapy water.

7. Muffin-tin shields

Tired of scrubbing off the burnt batter from your muffin tins? Try this tip to avoid spills and simplify cleanup.

1. Cover the muffin tin tightly with aluminum foil. Cut slits in each hole and press the foil into each indentation.

2. Drop paper or foil liners into each hole and fill with your favorite muffin batter. After removing the muffins, simply peel off the dirty foil.

8. Splatter screen test

Splatter screens prevent hot grease from making a mess of the stovetop while you’re frying bacon, and the perforated flat surfaces can double as platters to hold cooked slices. After removing the screen to retrieve cooked bacon from the pan, replace it and lay the strips on top while other slices finish cooking. The cooked bacon not only sheds excess fat (blot it further before serving, if desired) but also stays warm.

9. Down the tube

Hot bacon grease can be poured into a container and thrown away, but bacon grease that has cooled in the pan and adhered to the sides is harder to remove. Try using the end of an empty paper towel roll to scoop out the leftover grease. The hollow tube offers a channel for the grease to collect in and allows you to remove every last bit without dirtying your hands.

I hope, these quick and effective kitchen hacks will make your mornings just a little bit happier! Have a great day!