We've all been there. You open the fridge and find a smell you don't recognize. Is it Sunday's leftover pad thai? Half an onion from last week? Something a roommate promised they'd clean up? You close the door, vow that you'll clean it this weekend, and open a browser tab looking for a quicker fix.
There's never a shortage of shortcuts. One particularly surprising suggestion comes from a food safety guide about cleaning and sanitizing the kitchen. According to a University of Illinois article , you can soak a cotton swab in vanilla and leave it inside your refrigerator or freezer with the door closed for 24 hours to help eliminate unwanted odors. It's easy and, compared to sniffing around the fridge while holding your breath, a downright pleasant task. But the guide goes into far more detail about what's really going on in the fridge that's causing the smell, so let's see what the experts say, and what your sweet-smelling fridge can't promise you.
Vanilla is one option on a longer list
The guide lists vanilla as the final entry in a set of four odor-removal options. As per the University of Illinois article, the other three are wiping the appliance with equal parts vinegar and water to destroy mildew, leaving rolled-up newspapers inside the appliance with the door closed for several days before attempting to clean, and leaving a large, shallow container of fresh coffee grounds or baking soda inside the fridge. The swab is only the garnish.
