Getting rid of smells and tastes!

stargirl73

Hello Old Stylers!

Having discovered the miracle that is StarClens from this site I've been busily cleaning everything in sight.

Have also learnt about making yoghurt in a flask which I've been doing for quite a while now.

But - the flask was starting to get a bit pongy so I thought "Aha! StarClens will fix that!" But now the flask smells of StarClens. :doh:

Any suggestions how I get rid of the smell?

And another thing!

I've had a really successful year at the allotment and had literally hundreds nay thousands of chillies. So I decided to make them into delicious chilli jelly -so I now have dozens of pots of the stuff which will be great for Christmas presents.

But I prepared all the chilies on my beech chopping board (I know, I know - but hindsight is a great thing!) and now despite vigorous scrubbings - EVERYTHING (including probably the Christmas cake!) tastes of chilli.

I personally don't mind and me and DH have sort of got used to it - but meals I've prepared for those with more delicate palates haven't gone down too well! (They were REALLY hot chillies by the way!:eek: )

So does anyone have any suggestions as to how I can get the taste out? It was months ago that I made the jelly and it appears to be showing no signs of waning!

I suppose I may have to replace the chopping board but it's a lovely piece of wood and I do like it - plus it was a rather expensive wedding present.

Any advice gratefully received!

Thanks in advance

mikeywills

Try lemon or lime juice, they make good cleaners anyway, but there is some suggestion that the acid in the lemon and lime counteract the alkaline of the chilli. Is also useful if you eat a chili that is too hot, some lemon juice or tomato juice calms it down.

Snaggles

For the flask - bung some bicarb in, seal it up and leave it a few days - should get rid of the smell/taste.

If all else fails with the chopping board, could it be sanded if it is solid wood? (Not sure exactly how you would go about this to ensure it is still suitable for food preparation - presume it would then need oiling or waxing or something?)