One pour of tomato-based sauce into a clear plastic Tupperware container quickly results in a container that’s permanently stained red, and no amount of washing seems to help, not even changing soaps or cleaning methods.
But TikTok user Pressie (@shpresseyyy) claims to have uncovered the secret. In a video that has been viewed more than 5.4 million times, she shows people a trick she claims to teach them “how to easily remove grease stains from Tupperware.”
The grease goes away
“If you have yellow stains in your Tupperware that just won’t come out no matter how hard you scrub, I’ve got a quick trick for you,” Pressey says at the beginning of the video.
She then goes on to detail the steps you need to take when cleaning Tupperware. In the clip, she holds the plastic container up to the camera.
“You’re gonna need some water, you’re gonna need some soap, and you’re gonna need some paper towels,” she says, “Just throw the paper towels in there and spritz them with soap.”
She places a dry paper towel in the bottom of the container with a little bit of water and then squirts it with liquid soap a few times.
“It’s really simple. Okay, put the lid on,” she said as she closed the container, “Now, get some paper towels, soap, and water, and then put the lid on right away.”
Then Pressey starts shaking the container. “I literally just shake it,” she says, reacting momentarily to the water leaking from the Tupperware.
Shake it, shake it
“But you just shake it hard. But you can see it already, look,” Pressey says. “You can see it disappearing already.”
She claims it’s the paper towels that clean the stains.
Plessy then holds the bottom of the Tupperware container up to the camera, allowing the soapy water to pass through and the paper towels to appear to soak up some of the stain.
“There’s a lot of grease stains on it. Let me see. Wash it off. In fact, I’m pouring it all in here just to show everyone that I’m not lying,” she said, bringing the bowl into the frame.
“I pour it all in here,” she says, placing the Tupperware over a big white bowl, “and then I literally rinse it off. Look at the final result.”
She then gets out another cup of water and starts removing the soap from the Tupperware.
“Look at this final surprise,” she says, showing us the newly cleaned container. “It’s so perfect that you don’t have to scrub for 40 hours to get it clean with a sponge.”
@shpresseyyy Easy way to remove grease stains from Tupperware #tupperware #grease #clean #hack #cleaninghacks ♬ original sound – Pressie
How does it work?
TikTok user @facesbyadi also went viral after sharing this same dirty Tupperware trick in 2020. Other media outlets were also stunned by the hack, and NowThis Impact posted the video to its YouTube page. The video has been viewed 327,000 times on TikTok and a whopping 4.5 million times on TikTok.
@facesbyadi This hack has saved so many of my Tupperware friends. Try it out!!!! #fyp #cookingvideos #cookinghacks #lifehacks #hacks #stainremover #foryou #foryoupage ♬ Original Sound – FacesByAdi
Tasting Table also has a pretty convincing explanation for why this hack works better than others: Due to the nature of grease and its reluctance to mix with water, traditional cleaning methods are largely ineffective. But those torn-up paper towels seem to be the key factor: simply mixing the pieces with soapy water and shaking them is enough to remove the grease. And because paper towels are porous, they attract the loose grease stains, so the stains stick to the towel and your Tupperware is clean and clear again.
TikTok users were impressed
One user agreed with the above explanation of the role of paper towels in this cleaning technique.
“Soap draws grease to the surface and paper towels are the last surface the grease will stick to. Sponges and rags just push the grease away. Paper towels are highly absorbent,” they write.
But there were plenty of people who believed in the power of wet paper towels.
“The paper towels will absorb the oil and the soap will help get the oil off the container. Same for oily soups, just put a paper towel over it,” one person said.
Another person agreed: “The tissues soak up the oil and grease so when you don’t use tissues the grease has nowhere to stick to!”
When it comes to long-term stains, some were skeptical of the effectiveness of the trick: “But what about spaghetti sauce stains that are five years old?” one person asked.
Others were simply happy to have discovered this knowledge. “Now I’m going to teach my mother how to wash Tupperware. It’s my turn,” they said.
The Daily Dot reached out to Plessy through TikTok comments for more information.
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