Just like many of my household chores, I wash dishes just like my mom did. Fill the sink with soapy water, add dishes, lift out one dish at a time, wipe with a sponge (or dishcloth), then rinse. That’s how I learned to do dishes, and I frankly never gave a thought to my method. It’s how all of my friends do their dishes, give or take a minor deviance. Doing dishes certainly seemed like a pretty universal chore. (Note: our house does not have a dishwasher - gasp!)
Well, last week I had another family over to teach them how to bake bread. As part of the day, one of the older girls helped to clean up and taught me how to do dishes her way. She is of Japanese descent and apparently the Japanese way of doing dishes is quite different than the method we typically use in America. (Annie? Is this so in Japan? Or is this one Japanese family’s quirk?)
The funny thing is, after seeing her wash dishes this way and then trying it myself, it makes SO much more sense!
This is what my sink looks like using this method:
To use this method, rinse and stack dishes on the counter and pick them up one by one. Dip the sponge into the bowl of soapy water and use it to sponge the dish clean. Rinse the dish under running water and then set aside to dry. If you are washing utensils, you can set them in the sink and then rinse a number of them at a time.
Washing dishes this way seems to take less water, less soap, and is cleaner. There are no bits of food floating in the “clean” dish water, and all of the dirty water goes down the drain. The bowl of soapy water stays clean, so the soap lasts longer. I’m definitely liking it!
Told you it would be a weird post.
February 22, 2007 @ 3:58 pm
Okat, *that* is cool. It makes more sense, and I like it.
Frankly, my method of: pile dishes in sink, fill with hot water, go away while water cools, come back to cold water, drain sink and refill - just wasn’t ever working for me.
(we have a dishwasher and teenagers)