Five things you should never put in a toaster as hidden dangers explained

Toasters are a handy kitchen gadget, but as with any tool, they have their limitations.

This, of course, includes things which you should avoid putting into a toaster.

And before we start, no, we are not talking about parts of your body here; we are talking about things you might find in your kitchen.

If you think it's safe to stick your fingers or any other part of your anatomy into a toaster, then frankly, there's nothing I can do to help you.

However, there are lots of foods, as well as other common kitchen items, which are a big no-no when it comes to the toaster.

So, which things should you never insert into a toaster? Let's get into them.

Cheese

This does not belong in the toaster (HUIZENG HU/Getty)

Toasters toast by using heated elements, which work a bit like a grill; they produce a dry heat which gets that nice toasty finish.

But while these are great for cooking foods from a short distance away, things can go very wrong very quickly when something gets into direct contact.

This becomes even more problematic when the thing touching the white-hot element is fat, like cheese.

And while cheese starts solid, it has a habit of melting when exposed to heat, dripping onto the element and catching fire, because fat is flammable.

Bread with butter

The bread is fine, but not with the butter (Flavia Morlachetti/Getty)

While we're on the theme of fat - if you're going to butter your toast, make sure that you only ever do it after your bread has finished toasting.

Doing it before would be weird.

Hot melted butter plus a heating element is another recipe for toasting not just the bread, but also the toaster, and the kitchen.

So, just in case it wasn't clear: fat catches fire, especially when it's hot.

You might want to attempt a grilled cheese, but don't. If you want that, do it in a pan.

Bacon

Imagine all that fat dripping onto a hot element (Liliya Krueger/Getty)

But what about bacon? Bacon is delicious when it's done under the grill!

This is undoubtedly correct, but I would ask you what it is that makes bacon get so crispy and delicious?

That's right, it's the fat on the bacon.

But, you might think, the fat is solid on the bacon, and it just gets crispy! Wrong.

Heating bacon fat renders it - which means it melts - meaning it drips onto the heating elements.

You know what happens next.

Pastries

These could gum up your kitchen gadget (Alexander Spatari/Getty)

Now, these are a mixed bag, as there are some pastries, such as Pop-Tarts, which are specifically designed for the toaster - these are fine.

We're talking about the other kinds of pastries, which may come with icing, jam, and other sugars.

Sugar is also flammable, particularly in its powdered form, but even if it doesn't set your toaster on fire, melted jam or sugar on your heating elements is sure to thoroughly mess up your toaster.

So, unless it's specifically for toasters, no pastries.

Plastic

These need to stay out of the toaster (Jack Taylor/Stringer/Getty)

Do I really need to explain why this is a bad idea? Yes? Okay.

Plastics include chemicals that melt, releasing all kinds of horrible contaminants into the place where you're cooking food.

If you'd prefer not to have potentially toxic chemicals all over your toaster, not to mention foul-smelling plastic smoke in your kitchen, then keep the plastic fork out of the toaster, period.

Metal

Not unless you want to get zapped (Penpak Ngamsathain/Getty)

Surely metal is fine, though? After all, while that does melt, you'd need technology a lot more powerful than a toaster to melt most metals, so that's okay, right? Wrong.

While it's tempting to try and wheedle out a bit of stuck toast with a fork or knife, this is a very bad idea.

That's because the elements are heated using electricity.

If you touch that element with something which conducts electricity, then you should be ready for a nasty shock.