School and Home Cooking | Page 6

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[Illustration: FIGURE 3--UTENSILS FOR DISH WASHING
A, soap-holder, B, C bottle-brushes, D, dish-mop, E F, wire dish-cloths G plate scraper]
Utensils used in cooking can generally be washed with greater efficiency if they are soaked before washing. Fill each dish or pan with water, using cold water for all utensils which have held milk, cream, eggs, flour, or starch, and hot water for all dishes having contained sugar or sirup.
ARRANGING DISHES.--Arrange dishes and all the requisite dish-washing utensils in convenient order for washing, placing all of one kind of dishes together. Also place the dishes to be washed at the right of the dish-pan. Wash them and place the washed dishes at the left of the pan. A dish-washer invariably holds a dish that is being washed in her left hand and the dish-cloth or mop in her right hand. That there may be no unnecessary motions, the dishes should be placed to drain after washing at the left of the dish-pan. In this way there is no crossing of the left hand over the right arm as there would be if the washed dishes were placed at the right of the dish-pan. A cupboard located above the draining board at the left makes the storing of dishes an efficient process (see Figure 2).
WASHING AND SCOURING DISHES AND UTENSILS.--Fill the dish-pan about two thirds full of hot water. "Soap" the water before placing the dishes in the pan; use soap-powder, a soap-holder, or a bar of soap. If the latter is used, do not allow it to remain in the water. Fill another pan about two thirds full of hot water for rinsing the dishes. A wire basket may be placed in the rinsing pan.
Place the dishes, a few at a time, in the dish-pan. Wash the cleanest dishes first, usually in the following order: glasses, silverware, cups, saucers, plates, large dishes, platters, cooking utensils, then the soapdish and dish-pan. In washing decorated china, use soap sparingly. Do not wash glassware in very hot water. Use slices of potato, finely torn bits of blotting paper, or egg shells to clean the inside of water bottles or vinegar cruets. Wooden-handled utensils or the cogs of the Dover egg beater should not soak in water.
If the cogs of the egg beater are soiled, wipe them with a damp cloth. Change the dish-water occasionally, not allowing it to become cold or greasy.
[Illustration: FIGURE 4.--DISH-DRAINER.]
Wash steel knives and forks and place them without rinsing on a tin pan to scour. With a cork apply powdered bath brick or other scouring material to the steel. Again wash the scoured utensils, rinse, and dry. If there are any stains on tin, iron, or enamel ware, remove with scouring soap. Apply the latter with a cork, or wring out the dish-cloth as dry as possible, rub scouring soap on it, and apply to the utensils. Scrub meat, pastry or bread boards, wooden rolling pins, and wooden table tops with cold water and scouring soap. Then rinse and wipe the scoured wood with a cloth which is free from grease. If it is not necessary to scrub meat, pastry, or bread boards on both sides, they should be rinsed on the clean side to prevent warping.
[Illustration: FIGURE 5.--DISH-DRAINER.]
RINSING AND DRAINING DISHES.--Place the washed dishes in wire baskets (see Figures 4 and 5) or in dish-racks (see Figures 6, 7, and 8). If the former has been placed in the rinsing pan, the basket may be lifted out of the water to drain the dishes. In case the washed dishes are placed in dishracks, rinse them by pouring hot water over them and let them drain again.
[Illustration: FIGURE 6--DISH-RACK.]
DRYING DISHES AND UTENSILS.--If such dishes as plates, platters, and saucers are placed upright to drain and are rinsed with very hot water, no towel-drying is required. Glassware and silver should be dried with a soft towel. Towels made from flour sacks or from glass toweling are good for this purpose.
Coarser towels may be used to dry cooking utensils. To prevent rusting, dry tin, iron, and steel utensils most thoroughly. After using a towel on these wares it is well to place them on the back of the range or in the warming oven. Woodenware should be allowed to dry thoroughly in the open air. Stand boards on end until dry.
[Illustration: FIGURE 7.--DISH-RACK.]
CARE OF DISH-TOWELS AND CLOTHS.--Use dish-towels and cloths for no other purpose than washing and drying dishes. It is a matter of much importance to keep dish-towels and cloths clean. To clean the towels and cloths soak them in cold water. Then wash in hot soapy water and rinse them well. Wring, stretch, and hang to dry on a rack, or preferably in the sun. At least once a week boil the towels. First soak, wash, and rinse them as