Save Used Coffee Grounds And Easily Rid Your Hands Of That Garlicky Smell

The smell of garlic sautéing in oil is enough to make anyone ask, "What's for dinner?" And even the scent of freshly chopped garlic can transport you to an Italian kitchen. What's less pleasant, however, is spending your day with garlicky hands.

There are a few methods to remove garlic odors from your hands, but we like using coffee. Not only is it effective and fragrant, but it will also keep you from making the mistake of putting used coffee grounds down the garbage disposal.

Coffee grounds are commonly used for removing smells from the kitchen and other parts of the house, so why not your hands, too? Simply dampen your hands well and rub a spoonful of grounds between your palms and over any skin that touched the garlic. The combination of coffee's odor-removing properties and the exfoliation will leave your hands garlic-free. Just make sure you don't let the grounds go down the drain, as they can cause clogs; hold your hands over a flat paper towel or dish instead of directly over the sink. Scrubbing with coffee grounds alone will remove the garlic smell, but you might want to follow up with a regular wash with hand soap to remove any coffee residue.

If you've made a pot of coffee while cooking one of these garlic-heavy recipes, well, that's excellent timing. You can take a scoop of the damp coffee grounds and use them to scrub away the smell. However, the more likely scenario is that after chopping garlic, you'll go to wash your hands and find that the used coffee grounds have long been tipped into the trash.

Keeping a stash of used coffee grounds on hand for cleaning or deodorizing your fridge just requires a little prep. Adding them directly to a container while they're damp is going to result in moldy and not-so-pleasant-smelling coffee grounds. The quickest option is to spread the used coffee grounds on an unlined baking sheet and dry in the oven at 200 degrees Fahrenheit (or as low as your oven will go). Bake for around 20-30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes to ensure the grounds dry evenly.

The more energy-efficient option is to air-dry the used coffee grounds. Simply spread them in a thin, even layer on a baking tray and leave it in a well-ventilated area for 2-3 days, stirring occasionally. Once the grounds are completely dry, place them inside an airtight container, where they will last up to a year. If you find you don't need them often for washing your hands, simply remove the lid and leave the open container of coffee grounds in the garage or anywhere else that needs freshening up.