Cleaning an oven is a job that many people put off as long as possible.  Baked on grease, difficult to reach corners.  Yuk.

The traditional way is to use strong toxic chemicals, but they are so unpleasant and you have to be sure to cover everything around because those chemicals will melt just about anything.

Steam is the way forward.  Grease softens under heat and steam is strong enough to loosen even the toughest grime. The other advantage is that a blast of steam will chase out grease from every corner and joint.  No more fiddling with an old toothbrush to try to remove dirt.

Here are my steps to a sparkling clean oven that will look as good as new. Remember safety first at all times.  You are going to be using very hot steam under pressure.  You will also be working in a fairly confined space.  Always use good cleaning gloves - I actually use a clean pair of leather gardening gloves as they offer some protection against the heat.

Firstly gather together all of your equipment.  You are going to need a good steam cleaner with a scrubbing attachment, clean dry cloths, tough cleaning gloves, a bucket of water, a vacuum cleaner or dust-pan and white vinegar.

Remove all wire racks and soak them in a solution of white vinegar and hot water.  You should use half water and half vinegar and just cover the racks, leaving them to soak while you get on with the main oven.

Remove crumbs and loose bits of food using your dust-pan or vacuum cleaner.

Use a scrubbing attachment to your cleaner or a separate scrubbing brush.  Steam and scour at the same time.  The heat will loosen even burnt on grease so you shouldn't need too much effort.  Regularly wipe away the loosened grime and rinse your cloth.  It is best to work systematically from the front to the back.  Wear gloves fro protection and take care.

Use a squeegee attachment to clean the glass in the door, a small nozzle will chase dirt out of joints. You can also use a small nozzle to blast dirt off the top of your stove.  Again wipe loosened dirt away regularly.

The time you have used to steam the oven should have loosened the grease on your racks.  The vinegar will have done most of the work, so you should be able to wipe the grime away.  Any stubborn dirt can be treated to a blast of steam.

Once you have reassembled your oven all there is to do is sit back and enjoy your sparkling, good as new, oven.   What are you going to tackle next?