The easiest way to save time, water, and money is not what you think it is

Don't Bother Pre-Rinsing Your Dishes Before Putting Them in the Dishwasher

The easiest way to save time, water, and money in the kitchen is to stop pre-rinsing your dishes before putting them in the dishwasher. It may cause a kerfuffle in the family so to settle any disputes just try it. You’ll discover that the dishwasher doesn’t need your help and that, in fact, you could be making matters worse by causing the built-in soil sensor to misread the amount of dirt in the water.

Actually, the best way to cut down on cost when it comes to cleaning dishes is to rinse them and Not use the dishwasher, ever. I do not ever wash them with a dishwasher or detergent. I simply make sure they are rinsed with hot water and air dried. Want to wash your silverware, take a large pot and place it on the stove (gas over electric) and bring the water to a rolling boil, then just place the silverware in the pot and take them out and air dry them or wipe dry with a cotton cloth.

I always leave a pot of boiling hot water on the stove while I am cooking and I leave my utensils in there until I am done, keeping them sanitized and clean, so I can use the same utensils for various dishes without contamination or flavor transfer issues. Want to clean those pots and pans you just made your dinner in, put water in them and let them heat up on the stove, take a spatula and a cloth towel and just wipe them down and rinse. You do not need soap or detergent to clean any dishes or pots and pans or utensils or silverware.

Also, drinking cups, coffee mugs and glasses can be done the same way, just handle them with cotton gloves, let them sit in boiling water for about 30 seconds and then let them air dry.

Not only is this the cheapest way and efficient way it is the Green Way. Any water used can be re-purposed for use a number of ways. The still very hot water can be used to clean the toilets or sinks in the house, the soiled water can be put in the compost garden or used to water the flowers (add a little sugar). You can use the left over boiling hot water to soak your dish rags after being used and sponges.

So, no, they are right about one thing in this article, don't bother pre-rinsing, but do not bother using your dishwasher either, just do like a said, rinse them before they get hardened with food residue and they will wash up quite easily without soap or detergent, all they need is boiling hot water with a temperature above 160, a rolling boil will be closer to 212, but 160 would do the trick.

As someone who has to worry about sterile environments( beer and cheese making). You must hold the boiling water for 15 minutes... 160 degrees for about half an hour. If you care about dangerous bacteria that may be on the surface. Granted... Raw meat and old food is your biggest worries.

originally posted by: Sillyosaurus
As someone who has to worry about sterile environments( beer and cheese making). You must hold the boiling water for 15 minutes... 160 degrees for about half an hour. If you care about dangerous bacteria that may be on the surface. Granted... Raw meat and old food is your biggest worries.

Nope, not to sterilize. You are mistaken. T.o kill bacteria and germs, maybe, but it takes time for those to accumulate, if you clean the food off a plate immediately after using it there is no bacteria present, germs maybe, but germs can be sterilized with hot boiling water quicker than bacteria.

People overuse soap and detergent when hot water is sufficient. Preparing food in a sterile environment for production is governed by health code, cleaning your dishes in your own kitchen, different totally.

a reply to: searcherfortruth

What is the difference between bacteria and "germs"? Do you mean viruses?

originally posted by: Atsbhct
What is the difference between bacteria and "germs"? Do you mean viruses?

In New Jersey we call them 'joyms' and you get them from going to Staten Island.

a reply to: searcherfortruth

I'm actually a health inspector. Literally, a health inspector, who goes into food service establishments to protect public health. You should stop giving advice. The fact that germs and bacteria are somehow different things to you is a clear indicator that you have no idea what you're talking about.

a reply to: Ksihkehe

HACCP.

I miss it.

originally posted by: AugustusMasonicus
a reply to: Ksihkehe

HACCP.

I miss it.

I'm in a tiny county now lol. No HACCP involved. It's actually been nice moving to a place where the restaurants all take food safety seriously. The worst I've seen here doesn't touch what I saw in Florida.

If you want to die from foodborne illness Florida would be a good place to start.

a reply to: searcherfortruth

You will never get your cutting plate clean by rinsing it with hot water only.
After you did that, you let it dry? Perfect condition for the bacteria to grow.
Hot/warm moist plate standing around...

Seriously, no offense, but your advice is not a good one.
At one point you are right. If you rinse your dish before you put it in the washer, you will save water. Because there is a sensor in it that measures the transparency of the water, if it´s still dirty, more water is used. So if you rinse away most of the dirt, your machine will use way less water. And it´s already using less water then you ever could with handwashing. The machine wins this battle, believe me. When it comes to cleanness..

Edit: Get some high grade alcohol (80/99%) and pour it on your plate. Touch it. If your plate gets warm, there are germs on it.
The same when you sanitize your hands at the hospital. If you have "dirty, germy" hands, the alcohol will react and they will heat up.
Do it again after 5 minutes (still clean..) there will be no heat.

if you pour your used water over your rags and sponges, you will spread and help them grow even more. That´s the reason why you do not place the lid on hot ham, if you want to place it in the fridge. Because that slows down temperature fall and keeps the food in the best zone for germs to grow, for hours.

a reply to: searcherfortruth

might be a minor point, might not....but heating water isn't free. and carries its own environmental issues. The main reason people started using soaps for dishes was to reduce the need to pay to heat water (which, in West Texas, can make your house unbearable) and remove grease.

ETA: speaking of grease....soap was likely "invented" by people who threw some ashes into a greasy cooking vessel, and realized that the "quick soap" did a better job of cleaning than sand or water alone. Although sand is a nice cleaning product if you need abrasiveness.

originally posted by: bigfatfurrytexan
Although sand is a nice cleaning product if you need abrasiveness.

Every one in awhile I'll swirl some sand in my cast iron skillets to give them a light scour since they never get soaped.

a reply to: AugustusMasonicus

I seem to remember from another thread that you prefer everything full of dirt and food-borne disease

Husband works in a level 2 and 3 bio-containment facility in quality control and does his part of maintain that environment and works sterile technique. The kitchen is mostly his baby in this house because he realizes at this stage of his career, it is a as close as he will likely get to regular lab work. When he says we can do this, I will accept it as good practice, but this is not the procedure he follows.

a reply to: ketsuko

They're probably wasting a lot of money at the bio-lab as well. Surely, if they could just keep a pot of boiling water around...

a reply to: bigfatfurrytexan

Totally offtopic but I always use ash and a wet cloth to clean the glas of the fireplace. Works like a charm, I once tried this stinking toxic cleaning foam, it was a mess and not clean either.

originally posted by: verschickter
a reply to: searcherfortruth

You will never get your cutting plate clean by rinsing it with hot water only.
After you did that, you let it dry? Perfect condition for the bacteria to grow.
Hot/warm moist plate standing around...

Seriously, no offense, but your advice is not a good one.
At one point you are right. If you rinse your dish before you put it in the washer, you will save water. Because there is a sensor in it that measures the transparency of the water, if it´s still dirty, more water is used. So if you rinse away most of the dirt, your machine will use way less water. And it´s already using less water then you ever could with handwashing. The machine wins this battle, believe me. When it comes to cleanness..

Edit: Get some high grade alcohol (80/99%) and pour it on your plate. Touch it. If your plate gets warm, there are germs on it.
The same when you sanitize your hands at the hospital. If you have "dirty, germy" hands, the alcohol will react and they will heat up.
Do it again after 5 minutes (still clean..) there will be no heat.

if you pour your used water over your rags and sponges, you will spread and help them grow even more. That´s the reason why you do not place the lid on hot ham, if you want to place it in the fridge. Because that slows down temperature fall and keeps the food in the best zone for germs to grow, for hours.

If it gets warm if there are germs on it? You gave mostly good advice, but then you made that comment.

It's astounding to me how ignorant people are... AND how willing they are to spread their ignorance.

a reply to: Ksihkehe
Then instead of playing the all knowing, how would it be to correct me then?
Instead of just calling me ignorant. Don´t you think?

Everytime I use ASEPTOMAN(r) my hands get warm. If I use it again, let´s say 5 minutes afterwards, my hands do not get warm.
I´m very sorry If my obeservations are ignorant, like you call it.

originally posted by: NarcolepticBuddha
I seem to remember from another thread that you prefer everything full of dirt and food-borne disease

Not true. I keep my Masonic Sex Dungeon sparkly fresh.

a reply to: AugustusMasonicus

But you don't wash your..hands

Ugh

a reply to: NarcolepticBuddha

me neither. but i prepare food with my feet, so its ok.