For many years, I’ve always washed dishes in the same order. It makes complete sense, though. Who would want to wash a drinking glass in the greasy dish water that remains after washing pots and pans? As a bonus, if you’ve made mashed potatoes (and I hate washing mashed potato pots) or other foods that seem to stick like super glue, you can fill the pots with hot water to soak and loosen the food while you wash everything else. It’s also kind to the person who might be helping to dry dishes and put them away. They’re handling things that probably go back to the same cabinet or drawer in a large batch, so it’s a bit more efficient. Efficiency means less time, and who doesn’t want to spend less time doing dishes?
How to wash your dishes:
- Glasses
- Silverware/Flatware (forks, knives, spoons, serving utensils)
- Plates
- Serving pieces (casserole dishes, vegetable bowls, etc.)
- Greasy pots and pans
Washing and putting away your dishes can make a big difference in how your kitchen looks, but there are a few more things to do that will reset your kitchen to be ready for the next meal. Depending on the kind of mess that you make when cooking, this could be a post-meal checklist or just a once-daily checklist. Of course, you will still need to do a periodic deeper cleaning, but this will keep the mess down and make that deeper cleaning just a little bit easier.
Daily Kitchen Maintenance:
- Wash and dry all the dishes
- Put away the dishes
- Wipe up all spills with a wet rag or sponge (if you didn’t clean as you cooked, or you noticed the splatter afterwards)
- Clean off all countertops with a wet rag or sponge
- Sweep the floor
- Mop the floor, if needed
Now you’re ready and reset for the next meal. Doesn’t that feel good?
Do you already do something similar, or did you learn something different growing up?
