The Restaurant Salt Trick To Clean Up Uncooked Egg Splatters

Whether you're a beginner in the kitchen, an avid cook, or a professional chef, egg spills are more than common and a real pet peeve to clean up. From the residual drips of whites that seep through the slits after cracking your egg to tragically dropping a whole egg and struggling to clean up the gooey whites and slimy yolk that are difficult to grip, the struggle is real regardless of how big the mess is.

Fortunately, there is a method that many restaurant cooks use to quickly wipe up egg spills when in the rush of service. And it involves one fundamental ingredient that all kitchens use: salt. That's right, a sprinkling of salt is the perfect solution to cleaning up your next egg spill with ease. The next time you drop an egg and need to make quick work of the clean-up, simply sprinkle salt all over the mess — and watch as the stubborn substance magically clings to your paper towel.

When taking a paper towel, dish rag, or sponge to a raw egg on a flat surface, the egg is more likely to cling to the surface rather than the thing you're holding. Why is that? Well, egg whites are already slimy and slippery, often resembling an interconnected slab of goo, making them difficult to grip in dire times of cleaning. Furthermore, if left unattended, it could lead to someone slipping and falling. This runs a huge risk in restaurant kitchens.

A sprinkling of salt actually helps the egg cling to something other than the surface it's on, which allows you to wipe it up in one fell swoop. This is due to the salt drawing out the liquid in the egg, known as osmosis, which solidifies the entire spill and allows you to scoop the egg up with ease. However, it's important to let the salt sit on the spill for a few minutes before going in for the cleaning. This will give it time to do its magic and congeal into one.

Egg spills are hard enough as is, but when found on a rug or carpet, you've got yourself a real doozy. The worst part? Raw eggs promote bacterial growth and should be cleaned as soon as possible. While salt works well for flat, hard surfaces, the slimy whites and yolk getting intertwined into the crevices and fibers in the carpet can be a much more tedious task.

Instead of sprinkling salt, try discarding as much of the egg as you can, and pour club soda on the remainder of the spill. After letting it sit, dab the area with a sponge or paper towel, making subtle strokes, until the raw egg is removed. This fizzy solution will thoroughly get into the depths of the carpet without damaging or staining. However, be careful not to add too much and only cover what needs to be cleaned.

When you're in the zone of cracking several eggs onto the corners of your counters for a Sunday brunch scramble, busy transporting your soaked bread from the custard to the pan for French toast, or caught up in taking your chicken from one dredging station to the next, it's only common to have residual strands of raw egg that have slipped through the cracks and made themselves at home.

If you're finding these after the fact, when they've already hardened, it can be difficult to break them free — even with a hard-bristled brush or sponge. A great trick for loosening up these pesky spills is to use a kitchen towel. Once the stove has cooled completely, wet a kitchen towel and place it on the mess for at least 10 minutes. After that, the hardened bits will soften and allow you to wipe them away with ease, making your kitchen sparkling clean again.