18 Common Food Stains and Ways to Get Rid Of Them

Remove solid food stains:

While eating different meals during the day, small accidents can cause food to spill, leaving stains on our clothes. The stained garment can be salvaged if cleaned on time:

1. Chocolate

Whether it's in spread or bar form, chocolate is widely loved by many people. This wonderful food can leave permanent stains, and to prevent this situation follow these directions:

• Mix some dish soap with cold water, and gently rub the stain until it disappears.
• Rub the stain with an ice cube until it hardens.
• If some of the stain remains, sprinkle a little cornflour on it to absorb the rest.

2. Peanut butter

As a healthy snack or as a sandwich spread, peanut butter is delicious at any time of the day. The oily nuts that it’s made from can cause persistent stains, however, they can still be easily removed:

• Don’t attempt to rub out the stain using a damp cloth, rather place the clothing in the freezer or go over it with an ice cube.
• Remove the garment from the freezer or stop rubbing the ice cube over it and scrape off the frozen peanut butter with a brush.
• Apply rubbing alcohol to the oily stain and then scrub it with a bar of soap.
• Rinse the stained area and repeat the process with the soap until the stain disappears.

3. Cheese

In pizzas, pies, Paninis and many other foods, cheese is what makes them especially tasty. However, if you find yourself with a cheesy stain on clothes or other fabrics, remove it as follows:

• Apply powder detergent to the stain and let it sit for 30 minutes.
• Remove the detergent and rinse the stained area with cold water.
• If the stain is on upholstery, mix soap with cold water, dip a cloth into the water and rub stained area until the stain disappears.

4. Tomato-based sauce

Tomato sauce poured over spaghetti is a favorite dish for children and adults alike, but on its way to our mouths, the pasta can easily fall on our clothes and stain them. These sauce stains can be easily removed as follows:

• Scrape as much of the sauce as possible using a blunt knife or spoon.
• Rinse the stain under cold running water.
• Apply powder detergent on the stain. Rinse in cold water and repeat the process until the stain is removed.

5. Mustard

Mustard is used to make a wide variety of sauces, sandwiches, and dishes, and it may leave a large stain on fabrics because of its vibrant color. To remove the mustard stains, proceed as follows:

• Use a cloth or paper towel to absorb as much of the stain as possible.
• Scrub the solid parts of the stain with a soft brush.
• Apply a professional stain remover to the stain, soak the garment in a whitening agent, that’s also meant for colored clothes, for a few minutes and rinse it under cold water.

6. Oil Stains

You can remove greasy stains from clothing, resulting from foods such as hamburgers, fries, and more if you work quickly using the following steps:

• Apply a powdered artificial sweetener to the stain.
• Remove the sweetener, mix some dish soap with warm water, and rub the stain with a cloth until it disappears.

7. Strawberries

Strawberries are a delicious fruit, but they can leave unpleasant stains when we or our children eat them. To effectively removing strawberry stains follow these steps:

• Place the garment into a large bowl and carefully and slowly pour boiling water over the stain.
• If the water doesn’t remove the stain, gently apply white vinegar and rinse in cold water before throwing it into the washing machine.

8. Baby food

Baby food can leave stains both when prepared and when eaten. To make sure you don’t have to keep replacing baby clothes we recommend remove baby food stains as follows:

• Remove the remaining food from the fabric and pour cold water over the stain.
• Apply some powder detergent on the stain and let sit for 20 minutes.
• Rinse again in cold water and wash as usual.

9. Raw meat

Cooking with raw meat can often leave us with awful red stains that seem somewhat incriminating, however,these too can also be removed easily:

• Gently pat the stain with a cloth to remove excess liquid.
• Soak the garment in cold water and occasionally rub the stain.
• If the stain doesn’t lift, re-soak the garment, but this time with a mixture of cold water and salt. Rinse in cold water and stain will disappear.

10. Gum

It’s never fun to sit down only to stand back up and find you have gum stuck to your pants. To remove the stubborn candy from clothes, do this:

• Rub an ice cube or put the garment in the freezer until the gum has hardened.
• Carefully scrape the gum with a blunt knife or spoon, and then rub the remaining stain with white vinegar.

Remove drink and liquid food stains:

Despite their liquid texture, even various drinks and non-solid foods can leave their share of stubborn stains. The following 8 common stains can be removed by simple methods which will leave your garment nice and clean again:

1. Salad dressings

They add a great flavor to a variety of foods, but salad sauces, especially those based on oil, can leave broad and unpleasant stains on the eye. When this happens, follow these steps and you can remove these stubborn stains as well:

• Apply a professional stain remover or dishwashing soap on the stain and wait for 20 minutes.
• Wash the stain with warm water.

2. Soy sauce

When cooking up stir-frys or eating sushi, soy sauce is a must. To remove any stains caused by it, follow these steps:

• Absorb as much of the stain as possible with a cloth or paper towel.
• Apply white vinegar to the stain and then hydrogen peroxide if the stain is particularly deep.
• Wash the stain with cold water.

3. Cranberry juice

Many people drink cranberry juice to prevent urinary tract infections and to treat many other problems, however, it can definitely leave stubborn stains. To remove them, do the following:

• Mix an equal amount of dish soap and white vinegar and rub the stain thoroughly.
• Wait 15 minutes and rinse the stain with warm water.

4. Beer

The addition of cool beer alongside a delicious meal is always welcome, but this drink can stain clothes easily. To remove the alcoholic drink stain, take the following simple steps:

• Rub an ice cube on the stain and wait for it to harden.
• Apply stain remover to the garment and wash as usual.

5. Baby formula

Baby formula may also leave stains, but you can remove them from your child's clothing:

• Mix dish soap, lukewarm water, and a little ammonia apply to the stain and wait 15 minutes.
• Flip the garment inside-out, rub the stain gently, turn it back and apply the solution you prepared beforehand to the stain letting it sit for another 15 minutes. Finally, wash as usual.

6. Maple syrup

On pancakes, waffles, yogurt or cakes, maple syrup has a unique and sweet taste and leaves stains that are super sticky. Here's how to remove maple syrup stains:

• Mix lukewarm water, dishwashing soap, and white vinegar in equal amounts and thoroughly apply to the stain.
• Let sit for about 15 minutes and rinse with lukewarm water.
• Apply rubbing alcohol using a sponge and rub the stain from the inside- out.

7. Chocolate milk

A cup of piping hot chocolate in the winter, or a cold refreshing cup of chocolate milk in the summer, is exactly what it takes to bring a smile to anyone’s face. However, that smile quickly disappears when said chocolate is spilled on to our clothing. To remove the stain do this:

• Mix a little liquid stain remover or dish soap with water and apply the solution to the stain.
• Wait 30 minutes, rinse in cold water and repeat the process if necessary.

8. Coffee with milk

Coffee is another beverage that is loved by many and may leave hard stains. Luckily, they too can easily be removed:

• Sprinkle stain remover liquid on the stain and rub it hard.
• Wash the garment at a high temperature, and if the stain isn’t removed, wash it with a bleach that does not harm colored fabric.