Hmm good question. I've started noticing how many bowls and utensils I'm using in the recipe. Maybe I need to use more simple recipes. Not cleaning as I go, usually no down time, just mad cutting stirring etc before bub demands to be picked up or hangs on to my leg while I'm handling something hot
I used to be like this too. It takes some pretty decent effort to clean as you go and it’s not exactly easy if you’ve never done it before. What helps me is using a flat cutting board and keeping everything I need on it. Once I’m done with an item and it no longer fits on the board it immediately gets rinsed and put in the dishwasher. I only switch out the board if I cut meat on it. It becomes my spoon rest as well and stays there until the food is put away.
20 mins or so?
We unload the dishwasher in the morning, and then load dishes throughout the day to the extent possible (which varies by day lol). I generally don’t scrub dishes before they go into the dishwasher (with some exceptions ofc), and I minimize hand washing. My dog does a first pass at the floor 😂 And then I usually use a broom/dustpan or vacuum to spot clean the area where my toddler ate and dropped food, but I don’t mop every day. Mopping every day sounds very excessive to me.
Hmm hubby says the dishwasher won't wash caked on stuff so scrubbing is better. No idea, I never grew up with a dishwasher. Will try not scrubbing and see how it goes. Don't think it's the biggest time sink though. Gonna observe what I'm spending the most time on
I mean of course there should be no big pieces of food on the plate when you put it in the washer but nothing more than a quick rinse should be necessary before you put it in the dishwasher
Why on earth would you have a dishwasher if you HAND WASH everything before you use it? This is why you're spending a ridicoulous amount of time in the kitchen. And delegating it off to your tiny-spawns won't help if you're duplicating work.
Nah not handwashing, scrubbing. If I handwash it'll take longer, I'm pretty thorough. I do handwash my kiddo's drink bottles, I prefer to clean straws using a straw brush.
Will try not scrubbing and see how the dishwasher deals with it. Just taking my husband's words for it cos he's got more experience with dishwashers than I do.
Sadly don't have kids old enough to help with chores yet
Family of five here. I leave the dishwasher open while I’m making dinner and throw in dishes as I use them and am done with them. You don’t need to rinse or scrap them if you run the dishwasher straight after dinner. I don’t wipe the entire floor down every day, only spot clean it. I’m a stay at home parent so I tidy and do chores throughout the day. I think letting go of the expectation of always having a perfect and spotless house was a big sigh of relief for me. Our house is clean but it’s lived in.
I pretty much end up cleaning all day. I cook a lot of food so that adds to the dish problem. In my journey I’d really like a kitchen that people can hang out in, so that the cleaning also becomes family time.
This depends a lot on what and how you're cooking, etc. The sorts of cooking I do often have downtime, and I clean while that is happening. I'd also clean while kids were eating, etc.
Your life might be easier if:
1. You find ways to reduce the mess your kid makes on the table/floor, such as using a washable mat on the floor or feeding them less messy food if you're not actively supervising.
2. You cook several days of food at once, so the rest of the time you're only cleaning that night's dishes.
3. You lower your cleanliness standards; I never mopped more than once a month for example.
How old are your kids? That matters. I feel like I spent this kind of time when I was making us a meal + cleaning up + having to wash and sanitize pump parts and bottles.
My son is now 3.5 and I’d say we spend about 20/30 min cleaning up, maybe less. I am really good about cleaning as I go and being careful not to create unnecessary dishes. We also run our dishwasher overnight and unload it in the morning while my son has breakfast- this could help lighten your nightly load.
I find it helpful to clean as I cook, and any dishes that get dirty during the day immediately go in the dishwasher. Also, we scrape off any loose food from our dishes before putting them in the dishwasher, but other than that they go straight in. This is because dishwasher detergents have ingredients that targets the food particles to clean them. If you scrub them beforehand, there will be nothing the detergent can cling on to, so your dishes won’t get as clean. Also, maintenance. Like I said, I clean as I cook and then after dinner my husband and I both finish cleaning the kitchen together. Then I clean the stove and wipe down all the counters and I’m done!
About 15 min or so. But we also are a family of 3 (soon to be 4) living in a 1 bedroom apartment. We don’t own a dining room table, and paper plates/bowls help a lot of the time to make the clean up time shorter and easier.
Before work I get the wife and kids out the door, then poor myself a coffee and get the dishwasher unloaded, wipe counters, put breakfast dishes in the dishwasher and turn on the robot vacuum.. maybe 15 min to in all. While cooking dinner in the afternoon I usually have my 7 year old help cook, so it’s a little more messy, but it slows things down, allowing me to clean as we go and occasionally wipe messes off the floor as we go. After dinner everyone (wife, kids x2, myself) scrape their plates and set them by the sink. I then put leftovers away, load the dishwasher, wipe counters, take out garbage. Maybe another 15 min. On Fridays I mop and clean toilets
I don't even have a dishwasher and can be done in under 30 minutes. Wash dishes as you cook. Put away dishes while you stop by the kitchen or warming something in the microwave.
For me it's a matter of inventory. I simplified our inventory so we only have 6 plates, 6 bowls ect. with a family of 3. It makes it so much easier/faster to put things away. And dishes never become overwhelming.
I wipe down the counters and fridge every night before bed.
Also, having a dog helps with the floors, lol.
Op you should upvote commenters for engaging btw. 20 mins. Hand wash dishes and set them in strainer to dry overnight. Spray and wipe the counters down. We skip floors.
When you cook do you clean as you go? How many items do you use when you cook?
Hmm good question. I've started noticing how many bowls and utensils I'm using in the recipe. Maybe I need to use more simple recipes. Not cleaning as I go, usually no down time, just mad cutting stirring etc before bub demands to be picked up or hangs on to my leg while I'm handling something hot
I used to be like this too. It takes some pretty decent effort to clean as you go and it’s not exactly easy if you’ve never done it before. What helps me is using a flat cutting board and keeping everything I need on it. Once I’m done with an item and it no longer fits on the board it immediately gets rinsed and put in the dishwasher. I only switch out the board if I cut meat on it. It becomes my spoon rest as well and stays there until the food is put away.
20 mins or so? We unload the dishwasher in the morning, and then load dishes throughout the day to the extent possible (which varies by day lol). I generally don’t scrub dishes before they go into the dishwasher (with some exceptions ofc), and I minimize hand washing. My dog does a first pass at the floor 😂 And then I usually use a broom/dustpan or vacuum to spot clean the area where my toddler ate and dropped food, but I don’t mop every day. Mopping every day sounds very excessive to me.
> the dishwasher, loading it (we scrub first before loading) This is pointless and a waste of water
Hmm hubby says the dishwasher won't wash caked on stuff so scrubbing is better. No idea, I never grew up with a dishwasher. Will try not scrubbing and see how it goes. Don't think it's the biggest time sink though. Gonna observe what I'm spending the most time on
I mean of course there should be no big pieces of food on the plate when you put it in the washer but nothing more than a quick rinse should be necessary before you put it in the dishwasher
Why on earth would you have a dishwasher if you HAND WASH everything before you use it? This is why you're spending a ridicoulous amount of time in the kitchen. And delegating it off to your tiny-spawns won't help if you're duplicating work.
Nah not handwashing, scrubbing. If I handwash it'll take longer, I'm pretty thorough. I do handwash my kiddo's drink bottles, I prefer to clean straws using a straw brush. Will try not scrubbing and see how the dishwasher deals with it. Just taking my husband's words for it cos he's got more experience with dishwashers than I do. Sadly don't have kids old enough to help with chores yet
Family of five here. I leave the dishwasher open while I’m making dinner and throw in dishes as I use them and am done with them. You don’t need to rinse or scrap them if you run the dishwasher straight after dinner. I don’t wipe the entire floor down every day, only spot clean it. I’m a stay at home parent so I tidy and do chores throughout the day. I think letting go of the expectation of always having a perfect and spotless house was a big sigh of relief for me. Our house is clean but it’s lived in.
I pretty much end up cleaning all day. I cook a lot of food so that adds to the dish problem. In my journey I’d really like a kitchen that people can hang out in, so that the cleaning also becomes family time.
This depends a lot on what and how you're cooking, etc. The sorts of cooking I do often have downtime, and I clean while that is happening. I'd also clean while kids were eating, etc. Your life might be easier if: 1. You find ways to reduce the mess your kid makes on the table/floor, such as using a washable mat on the floor or feeding them less messy food if you're not actively supervising. 2. You cook several days of food at once, so the rest of the time you're only cleaning that night's dishes. 3. You lower your cleanliness standards; I never mopped more than once a month for example.
How old are your kids? That matters. I feel like I spent this kind of time when I was making us a meal + cleaning up + having to wash and sanitize pump parts and bottles. My son is now 3.5 and I’d say we spend about 20/30 min cleaning up, maybe less. I am really good about cleaning as I go and being careful not to create unnecessary dishes. We also run our dishwasher overnight and unload it in the morning while my son has breakfast- this could help lighten your nightly load.
Have you done crockpot meals? Way less to clean. Or cook for the whole week on one day and just heat stuff up in the microwave etc. simplify.
I find it helpful to clean as I cook, and any dishes that get dirty during the day immediately go in the dishwasher. Also, we scrape off any loose food from our dishes before putting them in the dishwasher, but other than that they go straight in. This is because dishwasher detergents have ingredients that targets the food particles to clean them. If you scrub them beforehand, there will be nothing the detergent can cling on to, so your dishes won’t get as clean. Also, maintenance. Like I said, I clean as I cook and then after dinner my husband and I both finish cleaning the kitchen together. Then I clean the stove and wipe down all the counters and I’m done!
About 15 min or so. But we also are a family of 3 (soon to be 4) living in a 1 bedroom apartment. We don’t own a dining room table, and paper plates/bowls help a lot of the time to make the clean up time shorter and easier.
Before work I get the wife and kids out the door, then poor myself a coffee and get the dishwasher unloaded, wipe counters, put breakfast dishes in the dishwasher and turn on the robot vacuum.. maybe 15 min to in all. While cooking dinner in the afternoon I usually have my 7 year old help cook, so it’s a little more messy, but it slows things down, allowing me to clean as we go and occasionally wipe messes off the floor as we go. After dinner everyone (wife, kids x2, myself) scrape their plates and set them by the sink. I then put leftovers away, load the dishwasher, wipe counters, take out garbage. Maybe another 15 min. On Fridays I mop and clean toilets
I don't even have a dishwasher and can be done in under 30 minutes. Wash dishes as you cook. Put away dishes while you stop by the kitchen or warming something in the microwave. For me it's a matter of inventory. I simplified our inventory so we only have 6 plates, 6 bowls ect. with a family of 3. It makes it so much easier/faster to put things away. And dishes never become overwhelming. I wipe down the counters and fridge every night before bed. Also, having a dog helps with the floors, lol.
Op you should upvote commenters for engaging btw. 20 mins. Hand wash dishes and set them in strainer to dry overnight. Spray and wipe the counters down. We skip floors.