Kitchen accidents are inevitable, but here are a few suggestions to cut down on these occupational hazards. In my line of work, oven burns and paper cuts are my most common hazards. These ideas won't reduce the paper cuts, but some of them might reduce the chance of burns.
[1] Tired of nicking your fingers on graters and zesters in the drawer? Store the dangerous end in an empty paper-towel tube. Same goes for loose knives. I've received a pretty nasty cut from grapefruit knives, which could have been avoided if they were housed in a paper towel tue.
[2] Like your immersion blender but hate cleaning it? Fill a coffee cup with hot, soapy water and place it in the sink. Place the immersion blender inside and whirl away the stuck-on food. Rinse with clear hot water, pat dry carefully, and store. This is much safer than trying to clean the blades by hand.
[3] Mixing bowl traveling around the countertop? Chasing the mixing bowl with your portable mixer isn't fun, so place the bowl on top of a silicone baking sheet or a rubbery place mat or a damp towel to hold it in place while you blend ingredients.
[4] No rack for your roaster? Instead, place metal cookie cutters on the bottom of your roasting pan and coat them with cooking spray. They will keep your roast up and out of the juices. Another trick that I often use is to place a layer of cut vegetables, perhaps lots of onions, on the bottom of the roaster. The vegetables add delicious flavor to the juices and stabilize the roast so it doesn't slip around in the pan.
[5] Always turn the pot handle away from the edge of the stove when cooking. You won't be as inclined to accidentally bump it and small children can't reach it.
[6] Always use hot pads or mitts and watch out for steam. One of my most severe burns was the result of steam escaping from a turkey roasting pan as I lifted the lid to take a peek. If I had been wearing the long-glove mitts lying in the nearby drawer, I could have been spared this misery. Today, I use hot pads or mitts all the time. Unlike TV chefs, I don't use dish towels because I have never mastered the art of using them successfully.
[7] Keep grease from building up on the stove and surrounding areas. I was once at a luncheon and the hostess's teapot caught on fire, due to a heavy buildup of grease. A quick-thinking guest doused the fire, and saved the day.
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