8 Things You Should Never Store in Your Oven Drawer
Find a new home for these items you might typically store under your oven.
By Halee Miller
Published on February 20, 2024
Almost every oven has a drawer beneath it. Many use it for storage, while some use it as a warming drawer or broiler. If you're not sure what your oven's drawer is intended for, the best way to tell is to check the appliance manual. However, if your oven doesn't have a button that reads "warming drawer" and the drawer doesn't appear to have any type of pan in it, it's likely meant for kitchen storage.
But first, it's important to consider what is being stored in this drawer due to the high temperatures it reaches when the oven is on. Storing the wrong items could not only damage them but potentially start a fire.
Before putting something in your oven drawer, ask: "Is this item oven-safe?" If the answer is yes, it should tolerate the high temperatures inside the drawer. If the answer is no, think about finding a new place to store the item. Basic cookware like pans, baking sheets, cast iron, and muffin tins should be safe.
1. Cooking Oils
It might seem logical to store your cooking oils underneath your oven so they're easy to reach when putting together a meal, but it's actually extremely dangerous to do so. Your favorite cooking oils (like canola, olive, and vegetable oil) are all highly flammable. You never know when a spark or high heat will reach the oil containers, so be sure to store them far away from your oven.
2. Wooden Cutting Boards
If you store your pots and pans in your oven drawer, you might also store your wooden cutting boards there—but you may want to rethink that organization strategy. Wooden cutting boards are susceptible to damage from high heat, including cracking or even burning. Keep any wooden boards and utensils in a cool, dry spot, and be sure to oil them when necessary.
3. Plastic Wrap
Plastic wrap (or anything plastic) should never be stored under the oven. Plastic wrap intended to be used for covering food or containers will easily warp, shrink, or melt when exposed to high temperatures. While plastic wrap can be used on foods directly in the oven at low temperatures, it's not worth the risk to store it directly under the oven where temperatures could get high enough to damage it.
4. Cleaning Products
Some of the most dangerous items when used or stored incorrectly are cleaning products. Rubbing alcohol, anything in an aerosol can, dish detergent, hand sanitizer, and many chemicals found in cleaning solutions are highly flammable. Store all of these items in a cool, dry area with good ventilation.
5. Hand Towels
Storing your hand towels under your oven might seem like a great idea, but this storage solution should be avoided for safety reasons. Kitchen towels often come into contact with grease and oil when cooking. Even after being washed and dried, the oil can still hide in the table linens—making them flammable when exposed to heat.
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6. Pantry Items
If you're tight on pantry storage, avoid looking to your oven drawer for extra space. Flour, sugar, potato chips, popcorn, and many other common household food items are capable of starting on fire in extreme heat conditions. It's important to keep these pantry staples in a cool, dry spot.
7. Liquor
Liquors, especially ones that contain a high alcohol volume, are extremely flammable and should never be stored in the oven drawer. Keeping distilled alcohol from getting too warm will prolong the quality and taste of it, so it's always best to store it in a cool place.
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8. Food Storage Containers
Since many food storage containers are made of plastic, they are not safe in an oven drawer due to the high heat. They could warp, melt, or even catch fire. Be careful with glass food storage containers as well, as they might have plastic lids or components.
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