Silicone mats are often one of the most used tools in the kitchen. Whether you are baking your favorite cookies or trying out a new chicken, steak, turkey, vegetables, meat, roast recipe cooking by oven or microwave oven, these Silicone mats come handy in almost everything that you need to cook and bake.
These extremely versatile mats are the best cooking aids for all that needs to be baked. These mats reduce waste and are easy to store and use. But with everything that you can do with them, they would definitely need a little bit of care and upkeep too.
One would argue, they are anyway washed after every use before they are rolled and stored, so what’s the need of any special care?
These silicon mats get too dirty and if you did not know how read through.
Table of Contents
How To Care For Silicone Baking Mats At Your Home
Why Do Silicone Mats Get Dirty?
This could be understood from the way they are made. Your Silicone Baking Mats are made to provide a no-stick baking surface to your food.
So, when you use them and the food gets heated, the molecules in the silicone mats expand and absorbs the extra oils, fats from chicken, fish oil and grease from other meat, butter from your cookies, etc.
Over time they can get greasy due to all the secretions that come out from the things you bake.
As such, it is important to take care of the mats and keep them ready for use. For instance, say you baked some chicken and you need to bake cookies immediately after it.
How do you go about making the silicone mat ready for the next job? The answer is simple – Clean it properly.
But The Question Is – How To Go About Cleaning The Silicone Baking Mats?
Now, there are quite a number of ways of doing it. Let us list some of them with the steps involved in the cleaning and upkeep.
Cleaning The Silicone Baking Mats – The Options
Based on the usage and the extent of the dirt and grease deposited on your mats you can choose which method to follow. Here we will list all your options.
Option # 1 – Dishwasher
Yes, you can use the tried and tested way of doing it, i.e, the dishwasher. Follow these steps to clean the mats in the dishwasher:
- Roll your baking mats and place them on the top rack of your dishwasher
- Fill the rack up with other dishes and stuff you intend to clean.
- Run a usual dishwashing cycle
Once done, the baking mats will feel comparatively less oily and grease-free than before or may even get completely oil-free. If you want, you may repeat another cycle for better results or try any of the other options.
Option # 2 – Lemon Juice
Lemon juice is known to be one of the strongest dirt removers and is a constituent in many dishwashing soaps, bars, and detergents. Follow the below steps to get an oil-free and clean baking mat:
- Soak your mats in hot water in a way that they are all submerged.
- Squeeze fresh lemon juice in the water and wait for 10 minutes.
- Wear your kitchen gloves and scrub them clean underwater with a towel or a sponge.
- Wipe the water using a towel and place it on the drying rack for drying.
- Repeat if necessary.
What you get as a result are oil-free and clean silicone baking mats ready for your next baking adventure.
Option # 3 – Baking Soda
Baking Soda is yet another commonly available compound that works like magic when it comes to cleaning your baking mats. Follow the following steps to clean using baking soda:
- First, wet the baking mats under running tap water.
- Gently sprinkle the baking soda powder over the baking mats.
- Wear your kitchen gloves and rub the powder over the mats to form a paste-like substance.
- Concentrate and create these pastes on the stubborn stains on the mats.
- Keep the paste on the stains for about 20 mins.
- Rinse the baking mats clean using hot water.
- Put the baking mats on the drying rack or towel.
Repeat these steps if required and for clean and oil-free baking mats.
Option # 4 – Very Hot Water & Grease Removing Dish Soap
This is one of the most common methods to use when you have to clean your silicone baking mats.
This is a method that is usually used by most housewives and homeowners. Follow the following steps to clean the mats using this method:
- Soak the mats in extremely hot water.
- Squirt and spray some grease-fighting dish wash soap on these mats.
- Wear your kitchen gloves and scrub the mats underwater with a towel or a sponge.
- Repeat the process if required.
- Dry the mats in a drying rack.
For bad and stubborn stains that do not relent, you may have to repeat these steps again.
Option # 5 – Oven
This is one method that many people are not aware of but this one really helps as well. It involves the following steps:
- Place the mats in an oven and heat up to 350F for about 10 mins.
- Place the mats in hot water.
- Add some dish soap if required.
- Wear your gloves and scrub clean the mats.
- Rinse under running water.
- Pat dry with a towel or sponge and let them dry on a drying rack.
This method is particularly useful to get rid of strong odors and stench that otherwise cannot be removed using other methods.
The heat loosens the molecules and breaks down the materials absorbed by the silicone mats that get easier to clean.
How To Use Silicone Baking Trays In Your Lovely Kitchen
The Conclusion
To conclude we can say that like you clean and maintain all your kitchen tools, the silicone baking mats need some cleaning and caring too.
With the tried and tested options on how to take care of baking mats properly that we have listed above, you will certainly not be disappointed.
So, continue with your culinary adventures and use these tips to keep your silicone baking mats oven ready.
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