14 Ways To Keep Your Kitchen Spotless

Learn how to handle and store meat so it stays tasty for longer, and how to keep spices fresh with tips from the chefs behind Zooba and Chef's Market restaurants.

Tips from Chef Wesam Masoud, chef and partner at Chef’s Market Restaurant:

1 - Clean a wooden cutting board by sanding it down with medium grit sandpaper, then oil it down using an organic oil (like olive oil). Sanitize with a mix of vinegar, lemon juice and water.

2 - Clean plastic cutting boards by washing them with soap and water, then microwave them on high for one minute to blast away impurities.

3 - If you wear gloves when butchering meat or poultry, then use the gloves for only that item. Gloves shouldn’t be worn for more than 10 minutes. If you start sweating, change them.

4 - Wash your hands about every 10 minutes whether you need to or not.

5 - Wash up until your wrist, get underneath the nails. Spend at least 30 seconds washing your hands.

6 - Once meat is thawed, don’t refreeze it, for both hygiene and quality reasons.

7 - If you buy fresh meat, freeze it for no longer than three months.

8 - Write an expiration date on the item with a Sharpie pen.

Tips from Chef Moustafa El Refaey, partner and executive chef at Zooba:

9 - Store spices in airtight containers. Check the expiration dates.

10 - Normally spices and dried herbs last for two years, if they’re in a good container from a good supplier.

11 - Buy spices whole and grind them to order, so they stay fresh and have a good flavor and aroma.

12 - There are tablets available especially made for washing produce. Or use a mix of vinegar and tap water: leave the produce to soak in the mixture for 10 to 15 minutes, then rinse it again with fresh water.

13 - Store fresh herbs standing up or wrapped in a heavy-duty kitchen towel, not newspapers. Always store herbs at the bottom of the fridge, away from the fan.

14 - Don’t keep leftover basil and rosemary in the fridge. Dry it or freeze it in an airtight bag for later use.