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How to Remove Fish Smell in Cooler or Freezer

Written by Matthew Goudge

Topic: Business OpportunitiesPublished March 8, 2012
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Removing fish smell can be a bit challenging especially if the fishy odor comes from the cooler or the refrigerator. Fish can be very fickle. It can decompose fast and it smells bad if not cooked immediately. Unfortunately, restaurants do not always have the luxury to get fresh fish. Often, they have to resort to storing frozen catch in the cooler for days. Unfortunately, this creates bad smell in your cooler or freezer. As a steward, you need to learn how to remove fish smell in cooler or freezer. Step-by-Step Procedure on Removing Fish Smell
  1. Get a bucket and fill it with warm water.
  2. Pour soap or dishwasher soap into the bucket and mix well.
  3. Grab ¼ cup of baking soda and pour it into the bucket of water. Stir well. You’ve probably read our previous article on the baking soda’s amazing cleaning qualities. Baking soda or sodium bicarbonate helps neutralizes base odors and it restores the normal PH balance of the cooler or freezer. If you have a fairly large cooler or freezer, you should use ¾ cup of baking soda instead.
  4. Before you attempt removing fish smell, you need to first remove all the contents of your freezer or cooler. Make sure you check the content and remove food items that are past their expiration date. They can also cause bad smell if they are stored far longer than they should be.
  5. Make sure to remove drawers that can be removed. Sometimes, drips are stuck in these drawers and they can cause the awful fishy odor. Soak these drawers in the sink to clean them or to thaw food items that are frozen to them.
  6. Grab a sponge and begin rubbing the freezer or cooler surfaces with the solution you prepared. Make sure to squeeze the baking soda mixture onto spots that are hard to clean. Make sure to use gloves when cleaning.
  7. Leave the solution for a few minutes while you continue to clean the top and sides of the cooler or freezer. Continue to scrub other areas using the sponge. Ideally, you should use one that has an abrasive side, so you could easily clean surface areas with hard to clean stains. Make sure to dry extremely wet surfaces.
  8. Finish the task by applying vanilla extract on a paper towel and rubbing the towel over surfaces where you normally store fish.
  9. Allow your freezer or cooler to dry while you clean the drawers in the sink.
  10. Place the drawers back into your freezer or cooler.
You need to learn how to remove fish smell in freezer. The fishy odor can affect other food items and your kitchen and restaurant as a whole. Make sure to clean the freezer or cooler regularly. If you have other tips on how to remove fish smell from your cooler or freezer, why not leave us a comment? Or you could start a topic in our forum.

Article author

About the Author

Chef Matt G is the guy behind the Stewarding Department, he is a well seasoned all rounder when it comes to all things kitchen related as well is a mad keen blogger in all aspects of the term.

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