Why You Should Let Your Dishes Soak Before Washing Them

Procrastinators will be delighted to learn that leaving dirty dishes in the sink to soak is actually a good dishwashing technique. Soaking, or "pre-washing," your dishes before getting out the sponge allows the dish soap to work its magic and start breaking down any food or residue. Soap has the power to clean grime from dishes because it contains molecules that can mix with both water and oil. Once the soap molecules have had time to trap the grease, it's easy to rinse it all off with water. But unfortunately, you can't just put the dishes in the sink to soak and forget about them. Most dishes only need five to 10 minutes of soaking before they are ready to be hand-washed, and soaking dishes for too long can be damaging to the material.

When soaking your dishes, it's best to use a large bowl or tub so that you don't take up precious sink space. Fill the container with warm water and dish soap, and let the dishes soak for anywhere from five minutes to one hour, depending on what is on them. If food is really stuck on there, like rice, eggs, sauce, or cheese, the dishes will likely need a longer soaking time.

Soaking your dishes first makes washing them easier. You won't have to break out the steel wool and risk scratching nice dishes while putting your whole back into scrubbing them spotless. Leaving dishes to soak is especially helpful when it's a stainless steel pan or other dish that does not have a nonstick coating. This pre-washing method is typically only necessary for handwashing dishes, but it can help ensure your dishes come out of the dishwasher as clean as possible. Some dishwashers don't have the power to wash off crusts of food, and require a little help from prewashing.  

When soaking a cast iron pot or pan, use caution and set a timer.  Submerging cast iron in water will cause it to rust, but short soaks are okay.