A Unexpected Culture Difference: How Do You Wash The Dishes?

 

 How Do You Wash The Dishes?

Western and Korean’’s methods of washing dishes are very different. In fact, for many Koreans, Western-style dishwashing is pretty shocking. There is one episode in a Dutch pub when I was in the Netherlands. I ordered a glass of beer as usual. It was a pretty busy bar and the waiters looked really busy. As I was waiting for the beer I ordered, I was really shocked to see their way of dishwashing. They soaked a glass in water with detergent and then just took it out without rinsing at all and poured beer. “No matter how busy they are...” that’s what I thought that time. It was just so ridiculous. Anyways, I just drank it without complaining, but I felt it tastes like detergent. Actually, it was a cultural difference as I found out later. Usually, the order of washing dishes in Korea is to wash the dishes with detergent and then rinse them perfectly with water. Rinsing the detergent is the most important step in Korea. Detergent is just for cleaning all the dirty stuff on the plates. Also, Korean usually don’t care about drying plates. They just let them dry naturally instead of using a dishcloth. In Western countries, however, after soaking the dishes in water with a detergent, taking them out without rinsing and wiping with a dishcloth. As I’ve heard from my friends, wiping part is the most important for Western countries. So Why? Why don’t they rinse the detergent? I still don’t know the exact reasons, but some people say that it’s because of hard water which causes chalky white residue. If they don’t dry it, white stuff will come out later. Overall, it’s an unexpected culture difference that made me really shocked. By the way is it really true that Western do not rinse off bubble or toothpaste after taking a bubble bath or brushing their teeth? Tell me the truth through the comment below!