Puzzling. Perhaps you need a new source?
Have you tried filling your sink up, giving them a swish, and letting them soak for a while? I find much of the grit then falls to the bottom of the sink. If you remove the greens, drain and rinse the sink, and then refill (might need to do this 3-4 times) you generally get it all.
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I have 2 ‘worsts’ kitchen tasks because I don’t know which one annoys me more. One is deboning certain types of fish (stupid grass carp!). Usually the ones that have lots of tiny but annoying pin bones, and it results in my unintentionally shredding that fish meat, or still leaving surprised bones in the dish. Ugh, soo annoying. Deveining shrimp is like a dream compared to that.
The other is a cleaning one - I hate cleaning the stove and the oven. The de-greasing is just a pain even when you’re not doing the insides of an oven (counter-top or regular) with all the various parts where you’re not sure if you should be spraying that Easy Off on. WTF? How is this not easier in this modern time? The stove top isn’t tons better because the clean stove surface literally lasts for about 1 hour and then you have to use it again. There is no joy in either of those tasks; it’s a never-ending pit of despair.
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With you on the grass carp thing. So many bones in those. My eyes aren’t getting any better with age. Might need trifocals next time I remove fish bones.
With grass carp in particular, you just have to run your fingers all over the fish to find the hidden pin bones. They seem to exist in no logical anatomical way. I always find tiny thin ones lying just below the surface of the flesh. It’s why the meat gets mangled when I do it.
So far it’s been several farmers’ markets and two groceries.
If you’re finding beets with greens that don’t have much (any?) dirt, I wonder if they’re being grown hydroponically?
I think I’ll see if there are any local source for hydroponic beets.
Otherwise, I could buy some tween80 or other heavy duty surfactant and add that to the rinse water. P&G used to sell something called FIT about 20 or maybe 30 years ago, marketed as a veggie wash, that was a solution of surfactants and what not.
[Edit - looks like FIT is still available. But I watched their video and read the claim and I’m left wondering if it’s really got much going for it other than reducing surface tension on the veggies so that they wet out. Note the comparator is to how much gunk “water alone” removes: “removes 98% more pesticides, waxes, human-handling residues, and other contaminants than water alone”. So, let’s say you’re dunking broccoli in water and the water removes almost no pesticides, wax, et al., then it’s trivial for a bit of surfactant solution to remove “98% more”.]
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I do similar but with a large bowl because my sink is huge (even the “small” side) compared to the amount of beets I’m dealing with at any one time - usually just 5 or 6 for borscht. But with 3 or 4 times in the bowl I always find there’s still some grit in the sautéed greens even if the 4th bowlful looks like clean water. But what I haven’t done that you suggest, and will try next time is let them soak longer between dump/fills while doing something else.
I find that when processing multiple batches of onions, the processor blade generates enough heat to activate the tear-inducing components. I am content to sit at the table with my knives and cutting board. Turn on the radio. I generally wind up making different cuts on different batches, so there’s a bag each of chopped, diced, thin-sliced (for green salads), and regular sliced (burger topping, carmelizing, stirfries).
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Seeking out a station playing tear-jerking songs, so you have an excuse, sort of like described in this song.
I rather enjoy cutting onions. Radio on here, too. I think deciding what to keep and throw out from my drawers is arduous work.
I also hate putting my hand in the garbage disposal, especially when my wife’s hand is on the switch. Gulp!
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I use an All-Clad SS roasting pan, use Marcella Hazan’s recipe for Roasted Chicken with 2 Lemons (breast side down first ½ hour … I do 45 minutes) no rack and I have no trouble cleaning it. Sometimes I leave hot soapy water in it for an hour.
For a very large batch of onions, like making a lot of onion soup, with minimal tears, a mandoline is kind of fun. No heating as with a food processor. Good clean cuts. I got a NIB Bron on the Bay and use it a lot for sliced potatoes, coleslaw, and piles of chiffonade lettuce. It also makes nifty matchsticks of carrots, etc.
I am not completely sure, but I think one of the major reasons my parents decided to have children was to find someone willing to scale the fish my Dad caught.
I am not certain, mind you, but the possibility that it was a major factor has been growing in my mind for some time.
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