Dishwashing
Encyclopedia
Dish-washing is the process of cleaning cooking utensils, dishes
, cutlery
and other items. This is either achieved by hand in a sink
or using dishwasher
and may take place in a kitchen
, utility room
, scullery
or elsewhere. There are cultural divisions over rinsing and drying after washing.
. Commonly used implements include cloths, sponges, brush
es or even steel wool
when tackling particularly intransigent stuck-on food particles. As fingernails are often more effective than soft implements like cloths at dislodging hard particles, washing simply with the hands is also done and can be effective as well. Dishwashing detergent (aka "washing up liquid") is also generally used, but in principle all that is required is water. Rubber gloves are sometimes worn when washing dishes by people who are sensitive to hot water or dish-washing liquids, or who simply don't want to touch the old food particles. Many people also wear aprons.
an countries, the dishes are generally washed in a separate tub placed inside the sink. This practice may have started as a matter of hygiene
, as the kitchen sink was the only sink available for all the household water. The clothes were washed in the sink; the water used to wash the floor went down the sink, and so it made sense to separate the dishwater from the sink. There were two other possible reasons: First, kitchen sinks tended to be very large in a time when heating water was considered to be a major household expense; a tub used less water. Second, kitchen sinks were usually made of hard ceramic
; any contact between the sink and plates was likely to cause chips, but a tub could be made of more forgiving material. Using a separate washing-up bowl in the sink also provides a place (down the gap between bowl and sink) to dispose of unfinished drink, soaking-water, etc. Unfortunately, using the gap for disposal of waste water requires extra vigilance to make sure food particles and other waste are not trapped under the bowl.
Where dishes are to be shared among many, such as in restaurants, sanitization is necessary and desirable in order to prevent spread of microorganisms.
Most institutions have a dish-washing machine
which sanitizes dishes by a final rinse in either very hot water or a chemical sanitizing solution such as dilute bleach solution (50-100 parts per million chlorine; about 2ml of 5% bleach per litre of water, approximately one capful bleach per gallon water). Dishes are placed on large trays and fed onto rollers through the machine.
While not environmentally friendly, the use of bleach is critical to sanitation when large groups are involved: it evaporates completely, it is cheap, and it kills most germs. Cabinets
, refrigerator
s, countertops, and anything else touched by people in a large group setting should be periodically wiped or sprayed with a dilute bleach solution after being washed with soapy water and rinsed in clean water.
However, bleach is less effective in the presence of organic debris, so a small amount of food residue can be enough to permit survival of e.g. Salmonella
bacteria. Scrubbing followed by soaking in bleach is effective at reducing Salmonella contamination, but even this method doesn't completely eliminate Salmonella bacteria.
In hand-washing, plastic brushes are recommended rather than washclothes or sponges, which can spread microorganisms. Use of soap or sanitizer is mandatory in hand-washing in public food facilities.
Washing dishes is considered the traditional punishment for being unable to pay a bill at a restaurant. However, evidence that this was actually practiced is anecdotal. In modern times, when most restaurants have automatic dishwashers, if a person is unable to pay a bill, the police are called.
National Dish Washer Appreciation Day is every June 3 of each year. The national association of dishwashers holds an annual break the plate dinner. Every dish washer is encouraged to break his plates and bowls after the banquet.
Dish (food)
A dish in gastronomy is a specific food preparation, a "distinct article or variety of food", with cooking finished, and ready to eat, or be served.A "dish" may be served on dishware, or may be eaten out of hand; but breads are generally not called "dishes"....
, cutlery
Cutlery
Cutlery refers to any hand implement used in preparing, serving, and especially eating food in the Western world. It is more usually known as silverware or flatware in the United States, where cutlery can have the more specific meaning of knives and other cutting instruments. This is probably the...
and other items. This is either achieved by hand in a sink
Sink
A sink is a bowl-shaped plumbing fixture used for washing hands, for dishwashing or other purposes. Sinks generally have taps that supply hot and cold water and may include a spray feature to be used for faster rinsing...
or using dishwasher
Dishwasher
A dishwasher is a mechanical device for cleaning dishes and eating utensils. Dishwashers can be found in restaurants and private homes.Unlike manual dishwashing, which relies largely on physical scrubbing to remove soiling, the mechanical dishwasher cleans by spraying hot water, typically between ...
and may take place in a kitchen
Kitchen
A kitchen is a room or part of a room used for cooking and food preparation.In the West, a modern residential kitchen is typically equipped with a stove, a sink with hot and cold running water, a refrigerator and kitchen cabinets arranged according to a modular design. Many households have a...
, utility room
Utility room
A utility room is a room within a house where equipment that are not used in day to day activities are kept. Utility refers to an item which is designed for usefulness or practical use, so in turn most of the items kept in this room have functional attributes...
, scullery
Scullery (room)
A scullery is a room in a house traditionally used for washing up dishes and laundering clothes, or as an overflow kitchen when the main kitchen is overloaded. Tasks performed in the scullery include cleaning dishes and cooking utensils , occasional kitchen work, ironing, boiling water for cooking...
or elsewhere. There are cultural divisions over rinsing and drying after washing.
Implements
Dish-washing is usually done using an implement for the washer to wield, unless done using an automated dishwasherDishwasher
A dishwasher is a mechanical device for cleaning dishes and eating utensils. Dishwashers can be found in restaurants and private homes.Unlike manual dishwashing, which relies largely on physical scrubbing to remove soiling, the mechanical dishwasher cleans by spraying hot water, typically between ...
. Commonly used implements include cloths, sponges, brush
Brush
A brush is a tool with bristles, wire or other filaments, used for cleaning, grooming hair, make up, painting, surface finishing and for many other purposes. It is one of the most basic and versatile tools known to mankind, and the average household may contain several dozen varieties...
es or even steel wool
Steel wool
Steel wool, also known as wire wool, is a bundle of strands of very fine soft steel filaments, used in finishing and repairing work to polish wood or metal objects, and for cleaning household cookware....
when tackling particularly intransigent stuck-on food particles. As fingernails are often more effective than soft implements like cloths at dislodging hard particles, washing simply with the hands is also done and can be effective as well. Dishwashing detergent (aka "washing up liquid") is also generally used, but in principle all that is required is water. Rubber gloves are sometimes worn when washing dishes by people who are sensitive to hot water or dish-washing liquids, or who simply don't want to touch the old food particles. Many people also wear aprons.
Running water or sink
A major variation in method is the temperature and state of the water. Asians and Latin Americans usually prefer running water because it is seen as being more hygienic as the water is not being reused, and usually use cold water. This is practical in environments where hot water is rarely available from the tap, and sinks are perceived as dirty surfaces (essentially a convenient drain). Westerners usually prefer standing hot water. This is practical in environments where hot water is cheaply and easily available, and sinks are perceived as clean surfaces (essentially a bowl with a convenient drainage device). In this method, the sink is usually first filled with dirty dishes (which may have already been rinsed and scraped to remove most food) and hot, soapy water. The detergent is added while the sink is filling with water, so a layer of suds forms at the top. Then the dishes are washed one by one and thoroughly rinsed to remove the grease dislodged by soap and mechanical action as well as the soap itself, then placed on a rack to begin drying, or dried and put away immediately by a second person. When the sink is empty, if there are more dishes to be washed they may be added to the same dishwater, or the sink may be drained and refilled if clean, hot dishwater is desired.Separate tub in the sink
In some EuropeEurope
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an countries, the dishes are generally washed in a separate tub placed inside the sink. This practice may have started as a matter of hygiene
Hygiene
Hygiene refers to the set of practices perceived by a community to be associated with the preservation of health and healthy living. While in modern medical sciences there is a set of standards of hygiene recommended for different situations, what is considered hygienic or not can vary between...
, as the kitchen sink was the only sink available for all the household water. The clothes were washed in the sink; the water used to wash the floor went down the sink, and so it made sense to separate the dishwater from the sink. There were two other possible reasons: First, kitchen sinks tended to be very large in a time when heating water was considered to be a major household expense; a tub used less water. Second, kitchen sinks were usually made of hard ceramic
Ceramic
A ceramic is an inorganic, nonmetallic solid prepared by the action of heat and subsequent cooling. Ceramic materials may have a crystalline or partly crystalline structure, or may be amorphous...
; any contact between the sink and plates was likely to cause chips, but a tub could be made of more forgiving material. Using a separate washing-up bowl in the sink also provides a place (down the gap between bowl and sink) to dispose of unfinished drink, soaking-water, etc. Unfortunately, using the gap for disposal of waste water requires extra vigilance to make sure food particles and other waste are not trapped under the bowl.
Sanitisation
Most institutions have a dish-washing machine
Dishwasher
A dishwasher is a mechanical device for cleaning dishes and eating utensils. Dishwashers can be found in restaurants and private homes.Unlike manual dishwashing, which relies largely on physical scrubbing to remove soiling, the mechanical dishwasher cleans by spraying hot water, typically between ...
which sanitizes dishes by a final rinse in either very hot water or a chemical sanitizing solution such as dilute bleach solution (50-100 parts per million chlorine; about 2ml of 5% bleach per litre of water, approximately one capful bleach per gallon water). Dishes are placed on large trays and fed onto rollers through the machine.
While not environmentally friendly, the use of bleach is critical to sanitation when large groups are involved: it evaporates completely, it is cheap, and it kills most germs. Cabinets
Cabinet (furniture)
A cabinet is usually a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors or drawers for storing miscellaneous items. Some cabinets stand alone while others are built into a wall or are attached to it like a medicine cabinet. Cabinets are typically made of wood or, now increasingly, of synthetic...
, refrigerator
Refrigerator
A refrigerator is a common household appliance that consists of a thermally insulated compartment and a heat pump that transfers heat from the inside of the fridge to its external environment so that the inside of the fridge is cooled to a temperature below the ambient temperature of the room...
s, countertops, and anything else touched by people in a large group setting should be periodically wiped or sprayed with a dilute bleach solution after being washed with soapy water and rinsed in clean water.
However, bleach is less effective in the presence of organic debris, so a small amount of food residue can be enough to permit survival of e.g. Salmonella
Salmonella
Salmonella is a genus of rod-shaped, Gram-negative, non-spore-forming, predominantly motile enterobacteria with diameters around 0.7 to 1.5 µm, lengths from 2 to 5 µm, and flagella which grade in all directions . They are chemoorganotrophs, obtaining their energy from oxidation and reduction...
bacteria. Scrubbing followed by soaking in bleach is effective at reducing Salmonella contamination, but even this method doesn't completely eliminate Salmonella bacteria.
In hand-washing, plastic brushes are recommended rather than washclothes or sponges, which can spread microorganisms. Use of soap or sanitizer is mandatory in hand-washing in public food facilities.
Restaurants
National Dish Washer Appreciation Day is every June 3 of each year. The national association of dishwashers holds an annual break the plate dinner. Every dish washer is encouraged to break his plates and bowls after the banquet.
Indonesia
Traditionally, dishwashing is done by scrubbing the utensils with wet fabric dipped in scrub ash (abu gosok) to scrub away the dirt. The utensils are then rinsed in clean water and hung to drip dry. Scrub ash is specially made by burning wood for dishwashing.In popular culture
- Dishwasher PeteDishwasher PeteDishwasher Pete is the pen name for Pete Jordan, narcissistic hobo and author of the Dishwasher zine as well as the book of the same title, whose goal was to wash dishes in every state in America...
, or Pete Jordan, is a fanzineFanzineA fanzine is a nonprofessional and nonofficial publication produced by fans of a particular cultural phenomenon for the pleasure of others who share their interest...
author whose goal was to wash dishes in every state in the United States. - The Dishwasher: Dead SamuraiThe Dishwasher: Dead SamuraiThe Dishwasher: Dead Samurai is a beat 'em up game developed by independent software developer James Silva for the Xbox 360's Xbox Live Arcade service.-Gameplay:...
is an upcoming Xbox Live ArcadeXbox Live ArcadeXbox Live Arcade is a type of video game download distribution available primarily in a section of the Xbox Live Marketplace, Microsoft's digital distribution network for the Xbox 360, that focuses on smaller downloadable games from both major publishers and independent game developers...
game in which the protagonist is an undead dishwasher. - Utada HikaruUtada Hikaru, known by her stage name Utada in America and Europe, is a Japanese-American singer, song writer, arranger, and producer. Since the release of her Japanese debut album First Love, which went on to become the best-selling album in Oricon history, Utada has had three of her Japanese studio albums...
can be seen washing dishes in the music video HikariHikari (song)is Hikaru Utada's 10th Japanese-language single , and is also her 3rd single on the Deep River album. Its release date was March 20, 2002...
. - DishdogzDishdogzDishdogz is a 2005 English language movie starring Luke Perry and Haylie Duff and directed by Mikey Hilb. The film received a PG-13 rating by the MPAA.-Plot summary:...
is a 2005 film about a boy who's working as a dishwasher during his summer break. - Dish DogsDish DogsDish Dogs is a direct-to-DVD romantic comedy film released in 2000. It stars Sean Astin and Matthew Lillard and was directed by Robert Kubilos. The film is about the relationship between two friends and when they find love they must both go their separate ways....
is a 2000 movie starring Sean AstinSean AstinSean Astin is an American film actor, director, voice artist, and producer better known for his film roles as Mikey Walsh in The Goonies, the title character of Rudy, and Samwise Gamgee in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. In television, he appeared as Lynn McGill in the fifth season of 24...
and Matthew LillardMatthew LillardMatthew Lyn Lillard is an American actor and producer. He is best known for his roles as Stu Macher in Scream, Stevo in SLC Punk , and Shaggy Rogers in the Scooby-Doo film series and the Animated reboot series.-Early life:Lillard was born in Lansing, Michigan, and grew up in Tustin, California...
as dishwashers.