To think it's disgusting to wash up without rinsing?

[olimpia]

Just that really!
I really can't understand how seemingly clean people lather their dirty dishes and just put them to dry without rinsing the foam off. All the germs and soap residue are left on the plates surely?

Yuk. Revolting!

it's probably more important to dry after washing than to rinse from a germ perspective

Standard professional kitchen and food hygiene advice is to leave to air dry - or if drying is required, use disposable/paper towels.

PatronSaint that dominant plumbing pattern is an embarrassment to our nation. When we bought our house I moaned constantly about it bored even myself until we could makeover our bathroom and have proper mixer taps which you can wash under easily.

I "need" to rinse? I don't think so. You for some bizarre reason would like me to rinse maybe. I don't give a monkeys how other people wash up but see no advantage to rinsing. I also suspect people who airdry everything hardly ever cook or just cook for 1 person. After a big meal all the pots wouldn't fit on our dishrack, and that's with using the washing up machine for some stuff.

I also suspect people who airdry everything hardly ever cook or just cook for 1 person. After a big meal all the pots wouldn't fit on our dishrack, and that's with using the washing up machine for some stuff.

I agree - it's fine in a catering kitchen, but not practical in most family homes

I do use copious numbers (dozens) of tea-towels every day though, which I soak in Milton overnight along with the dish brush and sponge) before running them through the machine. I would prefer not to bleach them, but the alternative is washing the load at 90C which takes ages and costs a bomb to do every day!

Thank fuck for my dishwasher!!!

Extra hot + rinse + dry = happy rinser

Another foreigner here. Have NEVER seen this in ANY other country and frankly I struggle to use crockery or cutlery (never mind glasses) that haven't been rinsed properly.

I find the "I do it and it didn't kill me" argument really ridiculous - showering once a month only doesn't kill you either; would you do that??

I still think its a disgusting waste of water!

JennerOSity, thanks! I do feel a bit embarrassed going on about this, but it is a subject of morbid fascination for us foreigners. We come to the UK with a picture of the Beatles sitting atop a ruined abbey in beefeater hats sipping cups of tea, and then we discover the TAPS.

Dozens of tea towels a day?

Maybe if you rinsed you wouldn't get through so many

Patron I can imagine - I feel similar and grew up with it! It is a hang over from our victorian times, we are slow to change!

I am baffled why two separate taps are still sold in DIY shops and think it is just that people like what they know and don't like change.

"Yes there would. Washing up liquid dissolves the grease for a start and holds it in suspension in the water so it doesn't coat the dishes."

Yes but the greasy water and suds are still ON the dishes when you put them in the rack without rinsing, surely?

Actually since so many keen washer uppers are present at this thread. May I ask a question which has always puzzled me and to which I have never got an answer....

To those people who have a plastic bowl within the bowl of the sink itself. why?

I just about understand if you have a sink which marks easily, but if you have a standard steel sink why would you put another smaller bowl inside that which reduces the space you have to work with, is ugly and then requires cleaning itself?

The have been to so many houses who have it and if you lift it and look underneath it is often manky as anything - what does it achieve?

I have a plastic bowl in my sink so that I can empty cups and glasses down the side before putting them in the water.

A bowl in the sink means that you can pour away dregs of tea (or have a running tap under which you rinse)

If you just put a plug in the sink, there's nowhere pour away a half-drunk cup of tea.

Poppy Can you explain how kitchens in other countries are set out in terms of space, and the cost/availability of water and water-heating facilities?

For me, this is a practical/cost/environmental issue as much as anything else - if it is standard practice in other countries, do these issues not apply, perhaps?

"Yes but the greasy water and suds are still ON the dishes when you put them in the rack without rinsing, surely?"

No, honestly they aren't.

"To those people who have a plastic bowl within the bowl of the sink itself. why?"

I don't have a stainless steel sink and would probably end up with a lot of broken glass.

I've always used a bowl when I've had a single sink so I can rinsel/pour out half filled cups etc.

I am a total slattern and couldn't give a toss about germs but I always rinse because I've heard bad things about the chemicals in detergents from people who know...

Hmmm, interesting. Thanks for the replies. So the bowl is for dealing with unfinished drinks. Doesn't it annoy you that you have another thing to clean daily though? Could you pour your drinks away when you put them by the sink and dispense with the need for the bowl and save yourself some bother?

Honestly, other countries have the exact same sinks, space, water availability. This is a cultural issue, definitely.

It's also so that I can do the rinsing - if I tried to rinse stuff while having everything just in the sink with the plug in it'd be full right up to the overflow.

Okay I am actually even more confused about the bowl thing now.

Agree about the cultural thing.

I rinse, but start with water very low so the rinsing doesn't cause overflow though no bowl.

At least I can see the point now, though think I'll stick to no bowl myself!

Dishwasher and life!!!!

NotaDisneyMum, as many people mentioned up thread they were taught to this at school, their grandparents and parents did it this way, so this practice seems to be ingrained in the UK.

Others claimed they "just can't be bothered", others don't rinse but still wash under running water.

If British people have been doing it for generations and/or still use running water to wash the dishes anyway the Eco argument is pretty much shot isn't it?

I honestly don't think it has much to do with cost/availability of water - I lived in countries like Australia and Israel (who IMPORT water) and have never seen this practice before.