DEBORAH CROMBIE:I recently read an article proposing there are only two sides to the post-meal dishwashing debate–you are either a clean-as-you-go person or a throw-everything-in-the-sink-and-deal- with-it-later person. Period. Apparently, taking sides on this issue is a thing on the Internet--who knew?
I am definitely in the deal-with-it-later camp but my spouse cannot stand to see an unwashed dish in the sink even temporarily. He can't understand why I don't clean as I go, but I don't want to interrupt my flow, and I am also almost always in a hurry--especially on week nights when I've worked too late, so it's a time-management issue. I'm not going to stop in between steps to wash a pot or a pan. If there is a natural break in the cooking process, I will tidy what I can, but otherwise, forget it. In my defense, I'm an organized prepper, and a very organized cleaner-upper AFTER a meal–the kitchen will be spotless when I'm finished. There's a place for everything (kind of essential when you have glass-fronted cupboards...)
This split carries over to entertaining, too. Some hosts like to have everything spic-and-span before guests even arrive or they can't enjoy the meal. Others, like me, are happy to sit at the table with another glass of wine while the dishes have their own little party in the kitchen. I'll see the guests out the door, turn on some music, and get to it.
How about it, REDS? What's your side of the great divide? Or do you think there's a middle ground? Are there opposing camps in your house?
JENN McKINLAY: Hub cooks and I do cleanup. I am a "get to it when I feel like it" sort and he doesn’t mind, so we’re very compatible in our kitchen messes. When entertaining, we team up and tackle the cooking and the cleaning together so no one quits. LOL.
RHYS BOWEN: When I cook I like to clean up as much as possible as I go along. Nothing depresses me more after we’ve had guests to dinner than all that washing up. Luckily John is good about doing the cleanup (even if he insists on pre-washing everything before it goes in the dishwasher.)
On the other hand, when he cooks he uses every pan, bowl, utensil in the house and I have to clean them up! So his cooking is a mixed blessing.
LUCY BURDETTE: Debs, I’m just like you. If I can, I clean as I go. Otherwise John is very good at the clean-up and rarely complains about the mess. If we’ve had a big dinner with company, I definitely stay and help him. And he’s a good chopper and jar-opener if my hands are cramping from writing!
HALLIE EPHRON: Jerry and I had it divided. I cooked, he washed up after… and if the dishes sat in the sink until morning, it was fine with me. We did however have many discussions about what constituted “Men’s work” and what constituted “Lady’s work.” Lawn mowing, barbecuing, garbage put-outing was considered manly. Grocery shopping and cooking was Lady’s. Neither of us wanted to vacuum so, to save our marriage, I do have a wonderful person who housecleans for us every other week. Diaper changing was shared, and I learned early on to ask, “Do you feel like changing it or shall I?” About half the time he’d let me do it.
JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: I’m a “modified clean-as-you-go” person; I like to put ingredients back in the pantry or fridge as I go along, and I pop bowls and pans in the sink and run some water as they get dirty. I don’t actually wash dishes or sling them in the dishwasher until after the meal - and sometimes not until the end of the evening - but I do like to wipe down the counters asap.
I have to share a funny story about being TOO religious on cleaning right away. When we were young marrieds, Ross and I were invited to another young couple’s for dinner. They had a very stylish late eighties condo, converted from a former marine warehouse, with one very large space for the living room, dining room and kitchen. We had a lovely meal for four, with lots of great conversation. When we were finished, our host and hostess excused themselves, took everything to the kitchen, and proceeded to wash, dry and put away everything they had used making and serving the dinner. For, I do not kid you, forty minutes. Keep in mind, this was a large space, so while Ross and I could see the busy beavers, we were too far away to converse without shouting.
We talked about that for years. What were they thinking? At least it made us better hosts - when we had dinner guests, everything stayed in the (mercifully out of sight) kitchen until everyone had said “goodnight.”
DEBS: Julia, this was one of the scenarios I wondered about! There are many times when I'm glad that my kitchen is separate from the dining room (this old house....), but even if it weren't, I can't imagine getting up and tackling dishes while leaving guests sitting at the table.
Readers, are you in the clean-as-you-go camp when you cook, or the leave-it-till-later side? And what do you suppose our choices say about our overall personalities? I'm sure there are some deep psychological implications here!
