Putting The Peels Of This Fruit In Your Dishwater Helps Dissolve Stuck-On Gunk

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You may very well feel this more acutely around the holidays when you're washing even more dishes than usual, but stubborn food residue is a problem year-round. Not being able to get all the build-up off of plates, bowls, utensils, and cookware is frustrating, unappetizing, and even unsafe in terms of potential bacteria growth if there are old food bits hanging around that you didn't notice. Furthermore, this kind of gunk can accumulate in your dishwasher, which in turn sabotages the appliance's ability to fully clean. So, how can you combat residue once and for all? The answer is simple, free, and even sustainable, and it doesn't require cleaning for hours, using harsh chemicals, or scrubbing dishes before even loading them into the dishwasher, which can just cause it to run less effectively. It's citrus peels.

That's right, don't just toss those fruit peels into the trash; repurpose them into cleaning solutions instead. This can be any citrus fruit, like oranges, lemons, and grapefruit. You can pop peels right into the dishwasher's utensil compartment to clean the appliance and help it clean dishes, or you can make a peel-infused dishwasher guaranteed to eliminate even the most stubborn gunk in a snap. Instagram user Barbara "Babs" Costello advises placing citrus peels into hot water in a basin and adding a sprinkle of baking soda, then letting dishes soak in that. It's something you can even do with dinner plates while you eat dessert, then load everything into the dishwasher and count on spotless results.

Citrus peels have a natural acidity that can cut right through grease and residue. They have antibacterial properties ideal for cleaning dishes, and gorgeous aromatic oils that leave dishes smelling fresh and clean. You can use citrus peels for all kinds of eco-friendly, free, and effective cleaning purposes — put orange peels to work washing your kitchen floor, for example. Employ them to cut through stubborn gunk and grease that's on any other surface, like your stovetop, oven interior, or countertops. They'll freshen garbage disposals and the inside of your refrigerator. You can even get rid of build-up in the microwave in a way that works similarly to that of the dishwasher method: Place peels in a bowl of water and heat them for a minute. This will create a citrus-scented steam — gunk is no match for the heat plus the peels' acids and oils. 

If you run a cycle on your dishwasher with citrus peels inside, you'll find a cleaner interior that smells naturally lovely. And the dish water soak with citrus peels is an effortless step that promises spotless dishes and utensils — you'll never go back. While any basin works, this is an example of why restaurant-style bus bins are so useful in home kitchens. Grab a Rubbermaid standard bus bin for around $20; it will take just a couple of minutes to clear even the busiest table, and then let those dishes soak with those game-changing citrus peels.