How to Remove Tomato Stains from Plastic Food Containers

Get rid of the orange tint once and for all.

Containers filled with homemade fried tomato sauce, for preserves. On white wooden background. — Credit:
Getty Images

While making a big batch of homemade marinara sauce or chili fills your fridge and freezer with delicious home-cooked meals, it can leave your plastic containers and lids a little worse for wear. Trying to clean tomato stains from your plastic food containers can seem like an impossible task that no amount of soap and scrubbing can get out. We talked with cleaning experts to learn their tried-and-true method for removing these pesky stains and keeping your containers in good shape for years to come.

Becky Rapinchuck of the blog Clean Mama
Stephanie Olinski, Director of Production at W&P

How to Remove Tomato Stains

A combination of baking soda, dish soap, and water is the trick to removing those pesky tomato stains from your plastic containers and Tupperware, according to Becky Rapinchuck of the blog Clean Mama.

To make the baking soda-based solution, mix together two tablespoons baking soda, one teaspoon water, and ¼ teaspoon dish soap. Mix up the paste in the stained food container, scrub, and let sit for at least 15 minutes. Scrub and rinse and repeat if necessary. Stephanie Olinski, Director of Production at W&P, agrees. "For our Porter Plastic Bowls, the best way to remove sauce stains, especially from tomato-based products, is through the tried-and-true baking soda method."

To enhance the effectiveness of the cleaning paste, try adding a few drops of lemon juice to the mixture. The citric acid can help break down the stains further, providing an extra boost to the baking soda's natural abrasiveness.

Why Tomato Sauce Stains Plastic

Rapinchuck says that plastic containers can absorb an acidic red sauce if the food is poured into it while hot or if the product containing tomato-based food is heated in a microwave. Always cool your food down before storing, and remove plastic lids from food containers when reheating in the microwave to try to prevent stains.

How to Prevent Tomato Stains

To prevent tomato stains on your plastic food containers, store anything made with marinara sauce, tomato paste, or tomatoes of any kind in a glass or ceramic container. If you have a glass container but a plastic lid, leave enough space between the sauce and the lid to prevent staining. Try washing and reusing old tomato sauce jars for an eco-friendly solution that's a breeze to wash.