I have a "how to wash pots" question.

This may seem trivial, but I am volunteering to work
in a hospice (i.e. home for people about to die), and will
be washing dishes.


We have a big metal pot (I think its aluminum). Sometimes
I have noticed on pots that little pieces of food, like
dried meat for instance, or maybe part of a speck of a dried
bean, will be clinging to the pot.

Even after washing it in hot water, and scrubbing very
virgorously.

My question is, how dangerous is this? I remember my uncle
always telling me at home "make sure there are no specks left!"
because everybody will get sick he said.

Yes, this may seem trivial, but people that have cancer and
have been through chemo really don't need any more health
issues.

As anyone who has ever washed dishes will tell you, some
specks of dried stuff are harder to get off than others.

I thought about, after washing the dishes, to fill the pots
and pans up with water, and boil that sucker for about an
hour. I tried this, and some of the specks were still left.
But is it safer now that I have boiled it?

Any input would be appreciated. I know nothing about the
"proper" way to wash dishes, other than what I learned at home.

I had a very hard time, believe it or not, trying to find
information about this on the internet.

Also, one last question, is the purpose of those chef's hats,
like the french chefs wear, is that to keep out germs, kind of
like hair netting? just curious.

Please post your reply publicly.


Thankyou.

"barb28" > wrote in message
om...
> I have a "how to wash pots" question.
>
> This may seem trivial, but I am volunteering to work
> in a hospice (i.e. home for people about to die), and will
> be washing dishes.
>
>
> We have a big metal pot (I think its aluminum). Sometimes
> I have noticed on pots that little pieces of food, like
> dried meat for instance, or maybe part of a speck of a dried
> bean, will be clinging to the pot.

I see no reason for food to be left on dishes. I use a stiff nylon brush to
scrub dishes. If that doesn't work, I let them soak and then scrub again.
You can use a cleanser like Barkeeper's Friend. If the pot is not aluminum,
you can use Dawn Power Dissolver or even oven cleaner. Prevention is the
easiest approach, so try modifying cooking techniques to avoid having the
food stick. Maybe the cook cranks up the heat too high.

"barb28" > wrote in message

> We have a big metal pot (I think its aluminum). Sometimes
> I have noticed on pots that little pieces of food, like
> dried meat for instance, or maybe part of a speck of a dried
> bean, will be clinging to the pot.
>
> Even after washing it in hot water, and scrubbing very
> virgorously.
>
> My question is, how dangerous is this? I remember my uncle
> always telling me at home "make sure there are no specks left!"
> because everybody will get sick he said.

The work hospice people do is well worth the effort.

Vox suggested modifying cooking technique to avoid foots burning and
sticking. Good idea, but sometimes you still get some gunk.

What I like to do is immediately put some water in the pot so it can soak
while we are eating dinner. A little liquid soap helps it loosen also. A
half hour to an hour soak makes a lot of gunk come right off.

SOS pads work well, as does the green scrubbie things with liquid dish soap
or cleanser if needed. As for contamination, I don't see any reason the pot
should not be spotless when you are done. I've gotten some nasty stuff off
over the years.
Ed

http://pages.cthome.net/edhome

"Edwin Pawlowski" > wrote in message
...
>
> "barb28" > wrote in message
>
> > We have a big metal pot (I think its aluminum). Sometimes
> > I have noticed on pots that little pieces of food, like
> > dried meat for instance, or maybe part of a speck of a dried
> > bean, will be clinging to the pot.
> >
> > Even after washing it in hot water, and scrubbing very
> > virgorously.
> >
> > My question is, how dangerous is this? I remember my uncle
> > always telling me at home "make sure there are no specks left!"
> > because everybody will get sick he said.
>
> The work hospice people do is well worth the effort.
>
> Vox suggested modifying cooking technique to avoid foots burning and
> sticking. Good idea, but sometimes you still get some gunk.
>
> What I like to do is immediately put some water in the pot so it can soak
> while we are eating dinner. A little liquid soap helps it loosen also. A
> half hour to an hour soak makes a lot of gunk come right off.
>
> SOS pads work well, as does the green scrubbie things with liquid dish
soap
> or cleanser if needed. As for contamination, I don't see any reason the
pot
> should not be spotless when you are done. I've gotten some nasty stuff
off
> over the years.
> Ed

Another suggestion might be to replace the cookware. I find that my
stainless cookware is relatively non-stick and easy to clean. If the
cookware in question is aluminum and has been abused, it might be so
scratched and pitted that food sticking to it is inevitable. Maybe a
restaurant supply house would be willing to donate some new cookware to the
organization.