8 Items You Should Never Store in Your Oven Drawer
An oven drawer is a type of drawer found under an oven. It can be used for purposes such as storing, warming, and proving food. Many people know that oven drawers are only designed to store food. But drawer ovens can also function as broiler drawers, which can be used to turn the top food brown.
Items You Should Never Store in Your Oven Drawer
Flammable Items
Keep flammable items such as potholders, dish towels, or paper towels away from an oven drawer. Over time, the heat generated by the oven can get them hot, which can lead to a possible ignition of fire.
Oven-safe cookware items include roasting pans, baking sheets, and other heat-resistant cookware.
Plastic Kitchenware
Store away plastic kitchenware items such as spatulas, plastic trays, and mixing bowls from inside an oven drawer. These plastics tend to melt or warp in the presence of heat. This can lead to a potential fire safety risk due to melting and warping.
The Taste of Home states that if something can not go into the oven, it should not be kept in the oven drawer, as it is likely to catch fire.
Non-Oven-Safe Bakeware
Non-oven-safe bakeware may not be directly exposed to the oven’s heat, but the drawer will eventually get warmer from the residual heat generated. This can potentially warp or melt the plastic and other non-heat-resistant materials in the bakeware, leading to a potential fire breakout.
For instance, putting a frying pan in the oven might result in the melting of the pan -handle, which may entirely destroy the frying pan, causing you to buy a new one.
Food
Storing leftover meals and packaged snacks in an oven drawer accelerates the food’s spoiling rate. The drawer eventually becomes very hot, spoiling the food and melting plastic containers and causing them to catch fire.
Instead, refrigerators and storage containers should be designed to keep food safe.
Cleaning Supplies
Heat stimulates chemical reactions in cleaning products, sometimes making them volatile and dangerous. Some cleaning products, such as rubbing alcohol, are highly flammable because they contain flammable chemicals.
Heating these products also results in the production and emission of toxic fumes that pollute the environment.
Utensils with Wooden Handles
According to Yahoo, exposing wooden handles to high oven temperatures transforms the wood, splits it, and even warps its shape. Keep wooden-handled pans away from the oven, as they can sometimes ignite higher boiling temperatures, leading to a possible fire breakout.
Extra Pots and Pans
Extra pots and pans, such as large saucepans and frying pans, can arc and melt when exposed to high heat temperatures, especially if they have a plastic wooden handle.
Electronics
Electronics stored in an oven drawer are at a higher risk of a fire breakout if they overheat or short circuit due to the heat generated by the oven. When left on, the oven drawer slowly heats up, melting the plastic parts, warping the metal components, and eventually damaging the internal circuits of electronics.
What to Safely Store in the Oven Drawer
The things you can store in your drawer depend on your oven drawer type. You can store items like oven-safe pans or metal trays as long as they are heat-resistant.
