The short answer: People have absolutely put potatoes in dishwashers as an internet “hack.” But if the question is how you should wash potatoes, the answer is much less exciting: rinse them under running tap water and scrub them with a clean produce brush. Do not use dishwasher detergent, dish soap or produce wash.
Can You Wash Potatoes in the Dishwasher?
Physically? Yes. A dishwasher contains water and potatoes are famously incapable of hiring attorneys.
But “the appliance can spray water at the vegetable” is a very low bar for a kitchen technique.
The FDA recommends washing fresh produce thoroughly under running water. For firm produce, the agency recommends rubbing it or using a clean produce brush.
USDA guidance specifically includes potatoes among the firm fruits and vegetables that can be scrubbed with a brush under running tap water.
Notice that neither instruction says, “Load the russets next to the cereal bowls and select Pots & Pans.”
Do Not Put Dishwasher Detergent on Potatoes
The old version of this article somehow wandered into recommending premium soap for potatoes.
No.
FDA says washing fruits and vegetables with soap, detergent or commercial produce wash is not recommended. Produce is porous, and soap or detergent can be absorbed even after rinsing.
Dishwasher detergent belongs on dishes.
The potato has already had a difficult enough journey.
Why Did the Dishwasher Potato Hack Go Viral?
Because it solves a problem that sounds enormous right before Thanksgiving: “I have a mountain of potatoes and I do not want to wash all of them.”
TikTok videos, grocery-brand posts and older articles have shown people running potatoes through detergent-free dishwasher cycles, usually when preparing a very large batch.
I understand the appeal. Put 20 potatoes in a machine, press a button, walk away and return feeling like you have industrialized mashed potatoes.
It is clever theater. It is just not the method federal food-safety guidance tells consumers to use.
What Is the Best Way to Wash Potatoes?
Keep it painfully simple:
- Rinse potatoes under running tap water.
- Rub them with your hands or scrub firm skins with a clean produce brush.
- Do not use soap, detergent or bleach.
- Cut away damaged or bruised areas before preparing them.
- Dry them with a clean towel if needed.
That is it.
No detergent pods. No rinse aid. No potato spa package.
The Dishwasher Hack Is a Great Example of Internet Kitchen Logic
The dishwasher-potato idea is one of my favorite genres of hack: a normal task gets moved into the wrong appliance, and suddenly everybody feels like civilization has advanced.
If you are washing a commercial quantity of potatoes with specialized equipment, that is a different conversation.
At home, the sink already has a potato-washing feature.
It is called the faucet.