This was one of Newshub's top stories of 2023. It was originally published on August 18.
There are a lot of stereotypes about New Zealanders: rugby-mad, outdoorsy, friendly-if-not-a-little-emotionally-repressed with a 'do it yourself, mate' mentality - and who could forget the pet sheep?
But that conventional image of your everyday 'Kiwi' now has another attribute, according to social media: a person who refuses to rinse their dishes.
Taking to the New Zealand forum on Reddit earlier this week, a user asked the community to weigh in on the generalisation that "New Zealanders don't rinse their dishes after washing them".
"I've heard someone say that 'New Zealanders don't rinse their dishes after washing them, they just leave them soapy'. How accurate is this statement?" the user asked, adding: "As a New Zealander I can confirm this statement."
The post quickly opened up an intense discussion on the validity of the statement, with hundreds of people weighing in on whether or not Kiwis have a proclivity for washing without rinsing.
It also prompted several foreign nationals to share their own experiences with the sudsy subject, with a few noting how the supposed habit had taken them by surprise upon arriving in the country.
"About 20 years ago we had a home stay from Japan. We were like 12-13 years old, [it] was a school exchange. They gave everyone a book like a yearbook but just for the stay period (was a couple of weeks). I remember reading through the comments and one said, 'In New Zealand they eat the bubbles'. That quote has stuck with me ever since. We do indeed," one shared.
"As a Canadian dual citizen that lived in New Zealand for 20 years… yeah, this is accurate as hell and it always bugged me," a second agreed.
"As an American it disturbs me too. My first flatmate in NZ said, 'You know the dish is clean when your food taste like soap'," a third added, with a fourth commenting: "My partner is French and hated it. Now I'm a better person."
"As an immigrant I've observed this and it boggles my mind… I mean you rinse your hands/body right? You rinse your car. Your laundry gets rinsed. Hell, automated dishwashers have a rinse cycle," another chipped in, with one user sharing: "My Kiwi partner did this until he told me off for touching him with 'dirty' hands from the sink and I pointed out that he was happy to leave that dirty water on the plates he's eating from. He's rinsed them ever since."
Others flat-out refuted that detergenty dishes are characteristic of New Zealand, with one declaring: "I'm a Kiwi. I always rinse."
"I have never heard of 'rinsing dishes after washing them' being a common thing," said another.
Several more pointed out that rinsing was seen as wasteful growing up in the rural regions, particularly in households where water came from a tank.
"We are not going to be wasting precious water rinsing clean things over and over like there's no tomorrow. It's a very urban attitude."
I mean, hey - soap as seasoning? Whatever floats your boat.
Last year, a "brutally honest" thread in the New Zealand forum asked Redditors to share the harsh truths that Kiwis refuse to accept, prompting some pretty sobering responses.
