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Monday, March 26, 2012

Getting your kitchen ready for Pesach


Dishwasher: After you thoroughly clean the dishwasher, run it on a complete cycle without dishes but with detergent (For priceless information about a perfect cleaning for your dishwasher see THIS). Then the dishwasher becomes Kosher for Pesach. Rabbi Eliyahu Ben-Hayim (Shelita) recommends when possible to replace the dishwasher racks or to use an added base to cover the year round racks. In any case, you need to make sure that no Chametz residue got stuck in the dishwasher racks or elsewhere.
  
Oven: The oven should not be used for 24 hours. Then you must clean it thoroughly and, if it is a self-cleaning oven, you run one self-cleaning cycle and the oven is Kosher for Pesach. If it is not a self-cleaning oven, after you thoroughly clean it, let the oven run on the highest temperature setting for approximately one hour, including the racks, then the oven is Kosher for Pesach.

Microwave: Take a bowl of water, with some detergent or soap in it, and then let it boil in the microwave until the microwave walls are filled with its steam. The vapor penetrates the walls rendering the microwave Kosher for Pesach. If you can't do this and you need to use a year round microwave for Pesach, cover completely the food with a container or any other hermetic microwavable covers.

Refrigerator/freezer: Clean it and wash thoroughly each of its parts, making sure there are not chametz left-overs stored or stuck in its walls.

Sink and countertops: The sink, even when made of porcelain, clean and pour on it boiling water. Countertops clean and pour on them boiling water. If that is not possible they should be covered to use them for Pesach. For a regular table, after it is cleaned, just cover it with a new or a Pesach tablecloth.