Mom shares her simple hack to cut back on both dirty dishes and waste in the kitchen

It is extremely hard to maintain a household with multiple kids and a never-ending supply of dirty plates. But this hack by mom Hadlee Daines (@hadleebreedaines) promises to make life simpler for all the homemakers out there through a technique that will cut back on wastage, reports Scary Mommy. Daines has described this hack in a video that has since gone viral on TikTok, attracting almost 20 million views.

In the video, Daines at first shows some red plates and parchment paper placed beside it. Then it cuts to the arrangement of food on the plate with parchment paper. Daines' trick is to change the utensils kids eat in, in order to reduce the number of dirty plates that need to be washed. She suggests using options like reusable food baskets and covering their surface with parchment paper sheets. This hack ensures that no matter how greasy and cheesy the food item is, it does not leave marks on the utensils.

The cleaning process is much easier as the majority of the splatter gets formed on the protective paper which can be thrown away in the dustbin and does not require any cleaning, whatsoever. This hack is also great if one wants to get their children involved in the process as children of any age can easily stack the baskets after they are done eating, and the whole process of cleaning utensils ends then and there with no further rinsing required.

The types of equipment involved in the hack are also extremely affordable with reusable food baskets available for $1.25 for a pack of four at Dollar Tree and parchment paper sheets available at $17.99 for 240 on Amazon. The video has garnered a lot of appreciation because of the hack being simple, cheap and downright genius. The fact that this hack is also used by restaurants adds credibility to it, proving its cost and labor efficiency.

The reaction to the hack has been divided. While some people have appreciated it for the ease it can provide to homemakers, some were offended by the harm it was doing to the environment. @groovybels appreciated the technique and commented, "Quite ashamed I never thought of this sooner." @idil7006, on the other hand, is bringing to attention the devastating impact this hack would have on the environment by writing, "The planet is crying because of your actions."

Though the hack might be controversial for some it is a great way for overburdened mamas all over the world to easily tick off a chore from their huge list. Moreover, it also has the ability to create wonderful wholesome moments with children by using the props to transform their play area into a burger joint. This is not a new hack by any means and nor is it the only one. Some other ways in which homemakers can reduce the mess in the kitchen are by using toothpicks instead of forks, focussing on food that doesn't require utensils, serving non-finger food on a stick, minimizing the use of Tupperware and enhancing the sense of responsibility within the kids by assigning them particular cutleries.