To wash your rice or not to wash your rice… that is the question. And while those who choose the latter are missing out on seriously fluffy rice, it turns out that you’re also missing out on making a completely free multi-purpose cleaner that really works.
Yes, as Ideal Home’s Cleaning Editor, I’ve tried and tested the best cleaning products out there, but my preference has always leaned more towards natural cleaning hacks that get the job done without adding any nasties into my home - and ideally without costing a fortune, too. So, when I learned that rice water has been used as a free natural cleaner in Asia for centuries, I was intrigued.
Often called ‘Ssal tteu mul’ in Korean and ‘Kome no togijiru’ in Japanese, the cloudy, starchy byproduct of washing uncooked rice is supposedly the ultimate degreaser and eco-friendly cleaner for various household cleaning tasks. But I never recommend cleaning hacks that I haven’t tried myself, so I spent the weekend cleaning with rice water to test it out.
The benefits of cleaning with rice water
For most people, washing uncooked rice before cooking is a menial task that they quickly tick off the to-do list before dinner. But instead of pouring it down the drain, we should be capturing and bottling it to take advantage of the natural starch, lipids and grime-busting minerals within the water.
Korean Blogger JinJoo Lee from Kimchimari has been cleaning with rice water for years, and has found that it’s particularly useful as a natural degreaser when cleaning a kitchen. She told me, ‘The starch in the water binds well to dirt and grease, breaking them up and preventing grease/fat from sticking together.’
Not only that, but the rice water can also clean food containers (and remove lingering odours) and even serve as a substitute for washing-up liquid.
‘My mother-in-law usually soaks her dishes in rice water and then cleans them with a cloth or sponge,’ JinJoo says. ‘She rarely uses dish soap unless dishes or pots still feel greasy afterwards, in which case she washes again with soap. I like to do the same.’
Its uses extend way beyond degreasing a kitchen, though. The mildly acidic and abrasive nature of rice water makes it a useful multi-purpose cleaner that can be used throughout the house - to clean your windows and mirrors, mop your floors, and even restore some brightness to the grout in your kitchen and bathroom.
JinJoo says, ‘Because the rice water contains tiny rice particles in addition to the starch floating in the cloudy rice water, it can also work well for cleaning glass windows and tiles.'
'Just wet some cleaning towels in rice water, then use them to wipe windows, mirrors, tiles and then wipe off with a dry cloth. For grout, you can soak it with some rice water before brushing it off. It won't be able to clean really bad grout, but because rice water also has a mild brightening power, it will help to brighten the colour a bit, too.’
There are limitations to this natural (and free) cleaning hack, though. Kelly Moore from Cleaning With Meaning explains, ‘It is not a replacement for heavy-duty degreasers, but for routine maintenance cleaning, it is a lovely, sustainable alternative.’
But even if you don’t want to use the leftover rice water for cleaning, you can still use it in a practical way. For example, you can use rice water as a natural plant fertiliser, and its micellar cleaning properties make it a hugely popular skincare product worldwide.
How I cleaned my home with rice water
To try cleaning my house with rice water, I first had to bottle some. So, I measured out enough white rice for two people using the KitchenCraft Glass Measuring Cup (£10.20 at Amazon) that I swear by, popped it into a colander, and gave it a very quick rinse to remove any lingering dust.
Then, I put the rice in a bowl and covered it with a 1:2 ratio of rice to water (so, double the amount of water) and let it sit for around 30 minutes. The result was a milky-white solution that I poured into a spray bottle.
As I love cleaning with essential oils, I also added a couple of drops of my favourite lemon essential oil to enhance the scent and boost its cleaning power. However, this is completely optional.
And as JinJoo raved about rice water’s natural degreasing properties, I decided to use it to clean my hob - and the white tiles behind it - first, and I was seriously impressed with its cleaning power. Although they weren’t filthy, some grease needed attention, and the rice water solution left both the hob and the tiles sparkling.
I then moved on to cleaning my kitchen worktops, and I must admit that I did have concerns that the starchy solution would leave them feeling sticky, but that wasn’t the case. They looked clean, and the solution didn’t leave any lingering residue.
And while I wouldn’t use it for my deeper cleans when I want a product with stronger antibacterial properties, it worked a treat for quick wipe-downs over the weekend.
Next, I popped the rice water cleaning solution into my mop bottle (I have the Joseph Joseph CleanTech 2-in-1 Spray Mop, £42 at Amazon, which allows you to use the cleaning solution of your choice while mopping) and gave my floors a clean before cleaning a mirror that had dirty fingerprints and dust all over it. By the time my cleaning session was over, both looked squeaky-clean.
I was particularly impressed by the streak-free shine it gave the mirror, and I’ll definitely be using the rice water to clean my windows when the weather perks up a bit. After all, this magic in a bottle is now going to be a staple in my cleaning caddy.
What you'll need
Of course, you'll need rice to make rice water - but you probably already have that in your cupboard. This is everything else I used to stock my cleaning cupboard with this bottled magic.
These are the glass bottles that I use when trying out DIY cleaning solutions, and I genuinely couldn't recommend them enough.
Lemon essential oil doesn't just smell delicious. It's also a natural degreaser, disinfectant, and deodoriser. So, it's the perfect companion to rice water solution.
I always use these cleaning cloths to clean my home, and it's always handy to have them around if you plan on trying this rice water cleaning hack yourself.
Why would you throw rice water down the drain when you could use it as a natural cleaner?! I’m officially converted.
