Let me be a chainmail scrubber evangelist. These things are fantastic, like steel wool that doesn’t fall apart. Safe for most things (though I wouldn’t use it on non-stick cause you’ll ruin the teflon). Easy as hell to wash, cause it’s stainless steel.
Don’t use it on glass or enameled cast iron either! Great for carbon steel and cast iron though.
Shoot us a link for a style you like! Had no idea this was a thing.
I'm over 40 and I'm just pissed I had to throw away the old one.
I cut them in half with an scissors to get two for the same price. Honestly I don't see how a smaller sponge differs from a bigger one.
Microwave it for about 15 seconds when you're done doing the dishes (after you've wrung it out) and it will take longer before it gets stinky.
Same! Those things get crappier and more expensive every year.
Everything falls apart so fast these days!
You can count on that
Trying to avoid microplastics. I have yet to find a scrub brush that isn't plastic bristles. So i use dishcloths.
Get you a stainless steel chainmail scrubber. Don’t use it on non-stick cause you’ll ruin the teflon coating, but on everything else it’s wonderful, like steel wool that doesn’t fall apart.
Something like this, although personally I prefer a more fine chain.
Also if you want to avoid plastic, get rid of the Teflon non-stick pans. Once you use stainless steel wool to clean, there isn't much of a downside to using stainless steel pots and pans anyways.
There's cooking tricks to get the stuck on stuff off while you're cooking, too, though I forget what it's called.
Edit: a comment further down had it: deglaze.
get rid of the Teflon non-stick pans
No, definitely don't. Teflon is completely safe, once it's already made. Keep that shit as long as you can. But avoid buying new Teflon, because the manufacturing process puts a lot of plastics into the environment.
Contact with anything will result in trace material being exchanged. It's not acutely dangerous but could be contributing to the buildup of microplastics inside us. I donated the ones I had rather than junk them so that someone who disagrees can still use them, plus I'm aware restaurants still use them, but at this point I'm trying to minimize the amount of plastics that contact my food. Which also involves avoiding plastic utensils while cooking. I've got a mix of metal and wooden utensils, avoiding teflon means I can use the metal ones whenever, too.
Sure, but the chemical structure of teflon itself is pretty safe and can be easily expelled by the body, which puts it in a whole different category in terms of safety compared to the far more dangerous so-called "forever chemicals" that are produced and released during the production of teflon.
I have one but I do find it a bit difficult. Maybe the fine chain ones would work better for me.
I've bought some reusable scourers recently, I figure not landfill is better than anything
I have some bamboo pot scrapers that I prefer over scouring. Sometimes I use baking soda with a damp rag as an abrasive when the scraper isn't working.
I also like to heat the pot back up, deglaze it with water, and scrape with my spatula. If there's still gunk stuck on, I'll add more water and bring it to a boil, then it comes right off. Even if the gunk is on the edge of the pot, the steam will loosen it. I could probably boil my plates too, now that I think about it, lol.
Dish brush gang here, with my cleaner and more hygienic washing up approach
Anyone else just use the plastic net that onions come in until it gets gross?
WELL I DO NOW
I also use a brush as much as possible. When replacement time comes, I will get bamboo brushes.
Brushes are the worst. If there's a residue on the plate you can see that a plastic bristle brush just draws lines through the residue
I didn't say I don't have scouring pads, just that the main tool is the brush.
did the same with steel wool spongey thingy 😌
People make fun of me bc I'll have like 3 at different stages, and my rule is first get the worst off a pot or pan or w/e with the oldest, clean with the middle and and finish off with the newest lol. I think I'm undiagnosed something or another.
It makes me depressed thinking about more plastic waste fungi are not likely to digest anytime soon due to all the antimicrobal additives that prevent kitchen soap from molding and, well, the sponge material chosen to slow down decomposition while it is in use. It also shreds into microplastics really easily.
I use loofahs for doing dishes. Anything it struggles with just needs another bathing in hot water with bicarb
Nice life pro tip! Thanks.
I've got some growing out back after my third year trying! I wanted the sponges but my wife is bugging me to chop them down to eat. "You people EAT those?!"
You can also get small dish brushes like these:
They're better at scrubbing stuff, and for the rest, you can use a normal washing cloth.
but the bristles on those are almost always plastic too, even more inert and probably heavier than sponge of equivalent efficiency.
You do have to look for ones made out of wood/bamboo and plant fibers, yeah. Wasn't too hard for me, but mileage probably varies, depending on where one lives.
Oh I need one of those
Auf Deutsch heißen sie oft "Topfbürste". Nur dann nicht beim Handwerksbedarf bedienen... 🫠
Don't understand how the same people that condemn sponges as unsanitary use a brush. Use a launderable cloth that can be regularly sterilized for crying out loud!
Pretty sure, I'm not the same people that condemned sponges as unsanitary...
I do think brushes are more sanitary (on average probably even more so than a launderable cloth), but hygiene isn't my problem with sponges.
gunk absolutely collects, even after thorough washing, at the base of the bristles. you cant keep using the same brush forever. The only thing id say is close to good for hygeine are any full metal scrubber
but not wire brushes which are a huge source of serious injuries when the fragments of bristles get swallowed.
You also have these with a soap reservoirs built in, you release soap by pressing a button on top of the handle. They're amazing!
To be fair, having a new sponge is actually really nice. The feeling when you take it out of its package and it touches your skin the first time. When you dip it into the water and it absorbs the water at an incredible speed. The look it has compared to the old sponge. Well, stuff like that gets me in a certain mood. But then again, I am 38 years old, so I am probably not unbiased
Change your sponges more often you cheap bastards.
They're literally a bacterial breeding ground that traps water and food by design.
I'm using a dish brush as much as possible now. If you must use scouring pads, use 3M scotch brand. They last way longer than other brands, so less waste.
...scotchbrite pads generally won't scuff aluminum cookware, but stainless steel mesh works well on steel, iron, and glass; in either case, sanitary-sponge rules apply...
don't.
use.
sponges.
...the f*ck is wrong with you people?!.if you must use a sponge: thoroughly wash, rinse, wring, and set it out somewhere well-ventilated to air-dry quickly and completely after each use...
...seriously, do wash your f*cking hair by dunking your head in a soiled toilet and flushing it a couple of times?..you eat off your dishes, man, practice some sanitary scullery!..
Most people have a cloth in their sink that I can smell from 10 feet away, I feel like sponges are the least of our worries
…same rules apply to dishcloths…
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