The beauty of bicarb: 13 fabulous uses for baking soda

Turns out, as well as making delicious cakes, the cheap white powdery stuff is pretty miraculous.

In the kitchen it can be used to:

1) Unclog gas stoves and de-grease pots and pans

2) Clean inside the oven, when you mix four tablespoons with a quart of warm water

3) Get rid of smells from cool boxes and drinks bottles

4) Remove food that’s been burned on to pans, by soaking them in a baking soda solution for 10 minutes before washing

5) Clean the fridge

6) Polish stainless steel and chrome, if you make it into a paste by adding a small amount of water

7) Take crayons and scratches off vinyl floors and walls

8) Increase the impact of ordinary washing detergent by sprinkling a handful of bicarb on dirty clothes before doing the laundry

9) Make marble-topped furniture sparkle when adding a quart of warm water to three tablespoons of baking soda

10) Make dishes come out of the dishwasher cleaner, by putting a spoonful into the machine

11) Banish smells from washing up cloths by soaking them in bicarb and water

12) Absorb fridge odour by putting bicarb in an open bowl inside the fridge

13) Sweeten the scent in the room, by mixing it with perfumed bath salts and storing in a small sachet bag