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Before You Cook

© Donna Smith

Safety and cleanliness in the kitchen are very important. Here are a few things you should know before you begin cooking.

Wash your hands! Get into the habit of washing your hands before you begin cooking. Washing your hands removes germs and bacteria that can containment the food you touch. If you had a cold and made a ham sandwich for your friend without washing first, you could give your friend your cold. I don't think your friend would appreciate that very much, do you?

Put on an apron! Mom and Dad spend a lot of money to make sure you look nice. Take care of your clothes by putting on an apron before you start cooking. Many things can stain your clothes and are very hard to get out. Some stains are impossible to remove. Show mom and dad you appreciate the clothes they buy you by covering them up! And, many stores sell really cool aprons. I've even seen some that light up!

Pull your hair back! This is mainly for girls, but I have seen some boys that this rule would apply to. Secure long hair back with a ponytail holder or hair clip. Long hair can accidentally dip down into food. There's nothing worse than finding a hair in your food. Yuck!

Range Top Safety

When cooking on top of the stove, always make sure you turn pot handles toward the back of the stove. This will prevent someone from bumping into them and getting burned. This is especially important if you have little brothers or sisters. Some toddlers will try to grab for the handles of pots. This can be very dangerous.

Don't leave spoons in the pot while cooking. Stainless steel spoons will get very hot and can burn you. Always lay your spoon when not in use on a spoon holder. Besides keeping the spoon cool, you'll save on clean up time by not getting the counter tops dirty.

Oven Safety

Always use hot pads when removing something from the oven. If you don't, serious burns can occur. Oven mitts are the best for this. They cover your hands up completely, so you're less likely to accidentally touch a hot part of the oven. Stores sell really cool oven mitts, too. Get two that you really like, and use them!

After you remove a dish from the oven, always put the hot dish on a trivet of on a hot pad. Never set anything right out of the oven directly onto a counter top or table. This can result in damage to the table or the counter top.