The true test of the housekeeper in control of her — or, let’s be inclusive here, his — domain is to be found not through the living-room window where the cushions are plumped and a welcoming fire is burning, but through the glass screen of the oven.

Oven-cleaning has to be the most gruesome of domestic chores. Who, after a long, wearying day, feels like de-gunging the spills from a warming supper? Only the most scrupulous can bear to wipe down after each use, which is why most end up with blackened shelves and grill pans. If you’ve been at home over Christmas, it is likely that yours has now reached a gunk apogee. You don’t want to face it, but think how thrillingly virtuous you will feel going into the new year with an oven that sparkles like a Tiffany diamond.

It’s crucial to follow the manufacturer’s instructions, particularly if you have a pyrolytic self-clean oven. These clean by burning off residues at high temperatures (well worth the investment if you are buying new) but may be damaged by chemical cleaners. For ovens that demand elbow grease, bicarbonate of soda, sprinkled with water, rubbed in with fine steel wool and wiped off with a damp cloth is a non-chemical alternative.

Realistically, though, if your oven is seriously encrusted you will have to use heavy-duty products. The sprays that you can buy in supermarkets, which deposit a fizzing white foam, are easy to use but their toxic fumes tend to permeate the kitchen. You should open all windows and wear rubber gloves and possibly a face mask, particularly if you suffer from asthma.

Astonish’s Multi-Purpose Orange Cleaning Paste (www.astonishcleaners.com) is altogether more fragrant: it smells like a Terry’s Chocolate Orange. Apply it with a damp nylon scouring pad, rub well and rinse clean — but you’ll need to exert a fair amount of effort.

Lakeland’s Oven-Mate requires minimum toil: simply don the rubber gloves in the pack and paint on the gel-like substance with the dinky brush provided, then leave for anything from three minutes to three hours, depending on the depth of your crud.

For those who really did manage to cremate the turkey and burn the mince pies, there is one last resort. Betterware’s Carbon Remover (www.betterware.co.uk) is incredibly powerful (we used it to do our barbecue at the end of last summer) but also highly caustic. You can’t use it on painted or non-stick surfaces, and anyway it is a product best used outside if possible — maybe in the garage. Coat it over your metal racks and roasting trays, leave overnight and watch in wonder as you hose down in the morning, unveiling the glistening results.

Slog rating: 5/5

Satisfaction rating: 7/5 (really, you deserve it)

Do you have any desperate housekeeping tips? E-mail desperatehousekeeping@thetimes.co.uk or write to Desperate Housekeeping, times2, I Pennington Street, London E98 1TT

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