TikToker Taryn Renee (@taryne_renee) successfully used a viral hack to rid plastic containers of pasta stains. However, she was left astounded by how the process works.
In a viral clip that’s garnered over 3.3 million views, she demonstrates the method’s potency. Furthermore, she asks other users on the app if they can explain to her why it works so well.
“I need someone with a science-y brain to talk to me like I’m five years old. I’ll never understand how this works. I just microwaved some pasta,” she says, holding up a piece of plastic Tupperware.
Her issues with the Tupperware are readily apparent to anyone who’s ever put tomato-based sauce in a container. The familiar orange leftover hue looks as if it’s embedded into the very makeup of the Tupperware.
“It’s like tinted orange. This is already one wash with my scrubber brush and soap, will not come off,” she says. Next, she blasts the water from her sink’s faucet and tries rinsing the Tupperware. “Will not come off. It’s permanently on here, right?”
What is this paper towel dish soap trick?
Following this, she grabs a paper towel from off-screen and begins folding it in front of the camera lens. “I saw this on TikTok. Paper towel, wet it…” she says as she splashes the sheet with water from the faucet. “And put some dish soap on it. And then I’ll do this all in one because I did not believe it at first either.”
After spritzing some soap onto the sheet, she then drops it into the plastic container. “Then you take it, and you just stick it inside there…I don’t know if I got that wet enough. Put the lid on. Think I need to flip it this way, maybe?” She reverses the position of the paper towel inside of the container before sealing the lid back on it.
“Then you literally shake it. OK?” Then, she starts shaking the wet, soap-soaked paper towel inside the container for several seconds. She stops briefly after a few shakes, and it seems the trick is already working. The orange pasta stains look like they’re being absorbed by the paper inside the Tupperware.
“I don’t know if I got the paper towel wet enough,” she says, shaking the container around more.
However, she notices that the sheet has removed the pasta stains. Now, they’ve been transferred into the paper towel sheet instead of the Tupperware’s plastic composition.
Does this trick really work?
Upon seeing how the trick works, Renee expresses her disbelief over its efficacy.
“How?!” she exclaims, before following up with more shakes. “Like how does a bristle brush with soap on it…but then do you this paper towel thing. And then watch…” the TikToker says, undoing the lid and extricating the crumpled, stained sheet.
After, she shows the newly cleaned Tupperware is now devoid of the stubborn pasta residue. All that remains are some soap suds, which she rinses in the sink.
“It like soaks it all up. Again, not freaking…how?! How?!” she says, shaking the Tupperware in her hands, while showing it off to the audience. “I have lost sleep over this. How does that work? I need someone…I need like I’m five, go.”
Tasting Table is one of several outlets that corroborates that this trick is indeed effective at removing pasta sauce stains.
How does it work?
According to Tasting Table, it’s due to the absorbent nature of paper towels. This trait, coupled with the dish soap’s efficacy at loosening oil, is what’s responsible for the method’s success.
Furthermore, “shaking the box by hand is key,” the outlet reports. That’s because the singular, dedicated motion ensures the grease is being broken up by the soap. Conversely, a dish brush, while effective at separating the grease, just further spreads it around the Tupperware. Since there’s no absorption mechanism, such as the paper towel, it has nowhere to go. This is why it persists in Renee’s and other people’s plastic containers.
@taryne_renee no seriously hoooow??? 🤯 #science #lifehack #dishes ♬ original sound – Taryne Renee
‘The sauce thinks the towel is pasta.’
Responses to Renee’s video also provided further explanations as to why the “hack” works wonders.
One person wrote, “The oil basically gets into the ‘pores’ of the plastic. Scrubber just pushes it in further. Soap releases it and the paper towel, being more ‘porous’ than the plastic, absorbs it.”
Someone else broke it down differently. “The sauce thinks the towel is pasta so it sticks to it,” they joked.
“It’s absorbing the oil. The brush just spreads it. That’s the science,” another said.
One person lamented over all of the Tupperware pieces they’ve lost due to obstinate stains. “I’m just thinking about all the plastic bowls I’ve thrown away when I could’ve just done this,” they said.
The Daily Dot has reached out to Renee via TikTok comment for further information.
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