I'm an incredibly obsessive person and it carries over to the kitchen too.
It's necessary to use a lot of soap, it's necessary to use very hot water, it's necessary to feel all over the dish to ensure there's nothing stuck to it and that it feels squeaky clean, etc.
But...
When you cook with butter or other kinds of greasy materials, you HAVE to obsessively wash the dishes to get them PERFECTLY clean. Even the best effort at a first cleaning sometimes isn't good enough.
Therefore...
I smell the dishes before I put the food on them.
If they don't smell perfectly clean, I wash/dry and repeat the process until they're perfectly clean.
I used to just look at them from every angle in the light before using them, but now...
I just absolutely cannot put food or drink in the dishes until I've smelled them and I know they're not only visually clean, but acceptable to the other senses as well.
And for anyone who is wondering...
Dishwashers don't necessarily eliminate the need for this depth of inspection. In fact I'd say I trust dishes washed in a dishwasher even less than dishes cleaned by hand.
It's necessary to use a lot of soap, it's necessary to use very hot water, it's necessary to feel all over the dish to ensure there's nothing stuck to it and that it feels squeaky clean, etc.
But...
When you cook with butter or other kinds of greasy materials, you HAVE to obsessively wash the dishes to get them PERFECTLY clean. Even the best effort at a first cleaning sometimes isn't good enough.
Therefore...
I smell the dishes before I put the food on them.
If they don't smell perfectly clean, I wash/dry and repeat the process until they're perfectly clean.
I used to just look at them from every angle in the light before using them, but now...
I just absolutely cannot put food or drink in the dishes until I've smelled them and I know they're not only visually clean, but acceptable to the other senses as well.
And for anyone who is wondering...
Dishwashers don't necessarily eliminate the need for this depth of inspection. In fact I'd say I trust dishes washed in a dishwasher even less than dishes cleaned by hand.
