How to Get the Smell Out of Chef Clothes (and Other Laundry)

I will never forget when my chef/husband was promoted from the pantry station to the broiler station.  Of course any promotion is exciting, but the reason I remember it might not be what you think.

(Oh, before I forget, If you’re new to my site, start here and then come back and read the rest of the post.)

Besides the new types of stains on his chef coats which were more difficult to remove (see tips on how to get stains out of chef coats here), the smell of his chef clothes changed DRASTICALLY!!  Ugh!  We lived in a small apartment and he had to leave the dirty chef clothes in the other room each night, or the smell permeated our bedroom!

Stop laughing at me.  I know you’ve had the same problem.  Chef clothes just stink!

For a while, a good wash took care of the smell.  But after a while, the chef pants, chef coats and even the aprons started to keep part of the oily, grimy, kitchen smell.  When that happens, you have to either try another method of cleaning them or have a bonfire in the backyard with them.

So after my successful quest to find the best way to clean white chef coats, I decided to tackle the smelly chef aprons that I could never seem to get the smell out of! (more…)

How to Clean a Chef Coat

If you’re new to my site, start here.

My husband is an amazing chef.  I love to learn from him and enjoy all the food he makes, but I really dislike washing chef coats.   And when I say dislike, I really mean hate.  

I really have nothing nice to say about chef coats.  They are big and bulky and stains stick to them like super glue.

With each restaurant change (and there have been quite a few as my husband has moved up in his career), come new chef coats and the task of finding what cleaning treatment will work the best for that specific coat.

If you are like me, you have googled, “How to clean a chef coat” on numerous occasions as you struggle to get out those stains that somehow made it past the apron.

You might have also wondered why in the world chef coats are white. (You can read more about that here.)

Below are some suggestions on how to clean a chef coat, compiled by myself and other chefs and their wives/significant others.  (Thanks for the help guys!)

(Also, make sure not to miss my post on how to get the smell out of chef clothes.)

(more…)

It’s Time for a Giveaway

Giveaway, giveaway, giveaway . . . everyone says I should have a giveaway on my blog.  But what in the world do you offer a group of chefs, their spouses or significant others and some of my AMAZING friends who just read my blog because they love me?

A cookbook or secret recipe? (Because we need another one of those like we need a hole in the head.)

A crock pot? (Because we all need MORE things in our kitchen)

A knife? (That might actually be OK, since many of our chefs keep their best knives at work.)

As I thought about those suggestions from others, none of them seemed like the perfect giveaway.

But you know what is? (more…)

You Know Your Dad’s a Chef When . . . Part 3

To all my children’s friends and their parents (current and future), please consider this a warning and an apology.

You know your Dad’s a chef when. . . you use dish towels to wipe up everything in the kitchen.

Emulsified Family

I jokingly wrote a while back that I can hardly remember using cute dish towels since I’m married to a chef.  I gave up on them a long time ago since my husband uses them for EVERYTHING in the kitchen.  We use white flour sack dish towels because they are cheap and we can bleach them.  We go through a few each day (unless my chef/husband is home cooking and then we go through most of them in the drawer.) (more…)

The Chef’s Wife and her Love for Chef Coats

I just love washing chef coats.  It is absolutely, without a doubt, my favorite part about having a chef for a husband.

(Obviously I’m kidding!)

I really don’t like it at all.  They are a pain to clean and stains stick to them like super glue!

Also, have you ever wondered why chef coats are white?  The other day I was actually thinking, “What brilliant person thought white would be a good idea for a chef coat??  Why in the world would you put a cloth buttons on a chef coat?”

So I did what everyone else does when they have a question.  I Googled it.

Turns out, there are actually a few good reasons.  Who knew?  (OK, maybe you did.  But I didn’t.) (more…)