A few months ago, I was on talking on the phone with my younger sister, LeAnn, about the usual—you know, life, work, and our hopes and dreams. We do this pretty regularly, talking while doing the most mundane things, like getting ready for work or sweeping our apartments. In this particular case, LeAnn was washing dishes and declared, without any prompting, "There are two kinds of people in this world: Those who wash the bottom of their dishes and those who don't."
Suddenly everything made sense. Why hadn't I been washing the bottoms of my dishes before? What kind of monster was I? And a few days later, while I was washing my dishes, I told my sister that in my constant quest to be the kind of older sister she can look up to, I'd begun washing the bottoms of all my dishes. But it goes beyond that.
On the practical side, it can be said that most of us—unless we have an insanely large kitchen or never cook at home—are stacking our dishes one on top of the other, both in the sink and in the cabinet. And if the bottom of one dish, say a bowl, is going to make prolonged contact with the eating surface of another dish, you want that to be clean. Otherwise, what's the point of cleaning at all? A few days later when you're eating your One-Pot Baked Pasta with Sausage and Broccoli Rabe or Pork and Bok Choy Stir-Fry, just remember your bowl or plate isn't totally clean. It carries the germs and dried food crust that was on the bottom of bowl or plate above it. Ew.
If that doesn't convince you—maybe you think of germs as your friends or something like that—then let's look at this from a moral standpoint. I, for one, consider myself a completist. I don't like to leave anything unfinished or halfway done. (That's why, much to my chagrin, I've seen all seven seasons of Californication.) And not washing the bottom of your dishes is the first step on a slippery slope toward half-assery. First, you stop washing the bottoms of your dishes, then you're showing up to work an hour late. Next thing you know, you've been fired from your job and your car has been repossessed and your house is in foreclosure. And your parents, friends, significant other, and dog want nothing to do with your lazy ass and they've all abandoned you. And now you're wandering the streets of your city at twilight, thinking, If only I'd washed the bottom of that pan.
So, make the right choice. Once you've removed all the crud and grease from the inside of your bowl or pan or Dutch oven, turn it over and give the bottom—and all the nooks and crannies—a good scrub. (And please, for God's sake, wash the handles of your utensils.) You'll not only feel better knowing that your dishes are totally and completely clean, but you'll rest easy knowing that you are a Bottom Of The Dish Washer and no one can take that from you.
And if you have a dishwasher, then move along. Nothing to see here.