Today’s Tip: Clean and Inspect Your Oven Mitts and Pot Holders

Oven mitts and pot holders can collect crumbs, grease, and splashes while their heat-protective layers slowly wear with use. Today’s focused reset cleans these kitchen helpers according to their care labels and checks that they are still safe to handle hot cookware.

Your step-by-step oven-mitt reset

1. Gather the mitts and pot holders only after they are completely cool and away from an active stove or oven. Read every care label and separate machine-washable fabric items from silicone, leather, specialty-coated, or spot-clean-only pieces.
2. Shake loose crumbs into the trash, then use a soft brush or dry cloth to remove debris from seams, hanging loops, thumb areas, and textured silicone surfaces. Do not use a sharp tool to dig into stitching or protective layers.
3. Inspect each item in good light. Check both sides and the inside for holes, thinning, separated layers, loose stitching, melted or scorched areas, stiffness, cracking, or exposed filling. Set damaged items aside instead of washing them for continued use.
4. Wash each usable item only by the method on its label. Use the recommended cycle, water temperature, and detergent for washable fabric pieces. Hand-wash or wipe silicone and specialty materials only when their instructions permit it, paying attention to grooves and gripping surfaces.
5. Rinse or wipe away cleaning residue as directed. Reshape fabric mitts gently without twisting or wringing protective padding, and keep nonwashable insulation, leather, and specialty coatings from becoming saturated.
6. Dry every item completely using the labeled method, including the inner lining, seams, and folds. Confirm that no damp or cool-feeling area remains, then store mitts and pot holders in a clean, dry place away from burners and oven vents.

Keep heat protection ready to use

Address fresh food splashes after the mitt or holder has cooled, and rotate a clean spare into use while washed pieces dry. Store heat-protective items where they are easy to reach without leaning across a hot surface. Replace them whenever their protective condition is uncertain rather than waiting for visible damage to worsen.

Safety note

Never use a damp, wet, scorched, melted, torn, thin, or otherwise damaged mitt or pot holder on hot cookware; moisture and damaged insulation can allow heat to reach your skin. Follow the manufacturer’s heat-use limits and care instructions, and remember that ordinary towels are not a substitute for intact heat protection. Never mix cleaning chemicals or use bleach, solvents, fabric softener, or another product unless the care label permits it. Keep mitts away from open flames, heating elements, burners, and hot oven surfaces. Do not try to repair burned or compromised protective layers for continued heat use—replace the item. Keep small parts, removed debris, and cleaning products away from children and pets.