Do you rinse?

[The Cold Water Kid]

Several years ago I was working in an African American home. The wife was hand-washing dishes and I noticed she didn't rinse them; she put them on the drying rack immediately after removing them from the soapy water. Today it came to my attention that the British, Irish, Australians and New Zealanders wash dishes the same way. Does anyone know why they do this? I would say the vast majority of Americans rinse their dishes after washing them, so the practice seems odd to me, but maybe there is a good reason not to rinse??

[Backseat Radio]

I personally rinse the dishes cause the whole idea of soap flavored food just isn't appealing.

[Scott]

Never heard of that.....

[SippinTea]

I've never heard of that either. Can't speak for the rest of them, but I've been in Britain and have an aunt in New Zealand. Nic could tell you about Australians...

[MelodyB]

Ewwwww. That is nasty.

[Melody]

Several years ago I was working in an African American home. The wife was hand-washing dishes and I noticed she didn't rinse them; she put them on the drying rack immediately after removing them from the soapy water. Today it came to my attention that the British, Irish, Australians and New Zealanders wash dishes the same way.

How did this come to your attention?  I would question how valid the stereotype is.

[The Purple Fuzzy]

I most definitely rinse.

[nicolejoy]

My dad's side of the family don't always rinse. They wash in HOT HOT water with a bit of detergent but not too much so it's not that soapy - but instead the heat does most of the washing part of things so no need for LOTS of detergent anyway... then they dry the dishes straight after they come out of the water so they're taking off the detergent water with the dish towel rather than draining/letting them air dry which would concentrate the soap more. There's no detergent left on at all (or VERY VERY VERY little - definitely not enough to taste or anything!!) and the dishes are sparkling clean.

In my family though we wash with cooler water and a lot more detergent. I don't fill the sink when I wash up - I just get a really soapy cloth and wash like that. Washing that way you NEEEEDDD to rinse - it'd be gross not to. But the way my dad's family do it, it really isn't necessary.

[The Cold Water Kid]

How did this come to your attention?  I would question how valid the stereotype is.

I wouldn't call it a stereotype; it's not a ubiquitous practice among any nationality as far as I can tell. And besides, "stereotype" carries a negative connotation; the non-rinse method might actually be the better way to wash dishes. There are a handful of forums where the issue has been discussed, but it's usually just an "We do/ We don't" conversation without an explanation of the pros and cons.

They wash in HOT HOT water with a bit of detergent but not too much so it's not that soapy...and the dishes are sparkling clean.

Do they boil water for the washing, or just keep their water heaters turned up? Would you say dishes accumulate less soap scum and/or mineral deposits the non-rinse way? Could the surface tension of soapy versus plain water have something to do with it?

In older homes you sometimes see a kitchen sink that is one large basin rather than two smaller ones separated in the middle... maybe it was once common in American kitchens not to rinse? At one time people used the same detergent for washing clothes and dishes; there weren't separate cleaning products... sometimes what we believe to be essential is just clever marketing.  

[nicolejoy]

They don't boil the water - just hot water from the tap, but it's so hot that your hands can barely stand it. I actually think that the heat is more effective at washing the dishes than the extra detergent but I don't really know how/why in terms of surface tension etc. I know that the hot water is more effective at getting rid of the oil/grease and also it's better at getting crusty bits off too. My grandma's sink (Dad's mum) only had ONE basin and whenever we were there, we never rinsed. She had that house my entire life until she just moved maybe 2-3 months ago... no dish washer either.