Your Kitchen Odor Problem Might Start With This Sneaky Appliance

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When dealing with foul odors in the kitchen, you naturally look to the usual suspects like the garbage can or forgotten leftovers first. If your initial search fails to turn up any clues, the next place to check is your oven, which can be a surprising source of unpleasant smells. While the appliance may not rank among the grossest things in your kitchen — like garbage disposals and refrigerator drawers, ovens can become quite stinky for a few reasons. 

A common cause of oven stench is burned food debris stuck to the racks or bottom of the appliance. This stuck-on food will emit intense acrid odors every time the oven is used, putting a damper on homecooked meals. Grease splatters can cause similar odors and pose a risk of fire should they ignite when exposed to high temperatures. Fortunately, you can combat smells and fire risks with proper oven maintenance. 

While not a food-based odor, new ovens can give off a chemical, scorched plastic smell when used for the first time. While these odors aren't hazardous, they can be unpleasant, so it's recommended that you clean the appliance and follow burn-in instructions in the user's manual to get the most out of your oven. 

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Regularly cleaning your oven is the best way to avoid a stinky kitchen. You should clean the appliance every three months or so, but you can increase or decrease the frequency depending on how much you cook. In any case, greasy oven doors indicate that the appliance needs thorough cleaning. While convenient, it's best to avoid your oven's self-cleaning function, as it can worsen nasty kitchen smells. Oven cleaners are effective, but their strong chemical fumes aren't for everyone. 

You can explore natural cleansers and deodorizers instead. Baking soda can remove food debris and eliminate bad smells when applied as a paste and left to sit overnight. When cleaning the remaining baking soda the next day, vinegar can help break down tough spots of paste. The racks can typically be tackled with dish detergent, hot water, and a kitchen sponge. Fully submerging racks can be challenging in most sinks due to size, so some people recommend using the bathtub. If you don't have one at home (or find the idea of washing items in your bathroom off-putting), you can immerse the racks in a new plastic trash bag. As for deodorizers, baking vanilla extract or lemon zest in the oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for an hour or so will infuse the appliance with a wonderful scent.