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Everything gets washed by hand immediately after being used - during cooking if the recipe allows time for it, or right after the meal at the latest. Very happy with this system, I don't get the habit of piling dirty dishes on top of each other and having a separate time slot for a big wash.

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Same here. The longer it sits, the harder it gets, especially by hand.

> during cooking if the recipe allows time for it

A lot of meats, not just beef, can do with a little resting time. Veggies may need to cool just a little. Perfect for at least getting the cooking utensils, pots and pans washed.

My experience with a wok is that you have to do this before the crud dries, or you can't keep the seasoning on it.

Deglazing a wok at the end goes a long way -- through in half a cup to a cup of water while it's still hot after you've taken the food out, and scrape the bottom gently. Don't put in enough water that it'll cool the pan off entirely, just an amount you might be using when making a sauce. Even if you put off fully cleaning it until after your meal, you'll have saved yourself a bunch of work, on both cleaning and reseasoning (though I always throw a little oil on at the end for good measure).

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