Easy Homemade Dish Soap that cuts through grease

This non-toxic liquid dish soap is super easy to make.  It’s just 3 ingredients and water.

But even though it’s incredibly easy to make, it still works great.

• Makes lots and lots of bubbles (and the bubbles last for an entire sink full of dishes)
• Cuts through grease
• Works great in both soft and hard water
• Rinses well
• Gets dishes, silverware, and even glasses squeaky clean and sparkling
• Smells great! Fresh & clean

This recipe is for liquid dish soap used to hand wash dishes.  Also be sure to check out my recipes for homemade dishwasher detergent (find it here) and DIY dishwasher detergent tabs (find recipe here).  Just like this dish soap, my dishwasher detergent recipes are natural, non-toxic, and easy to make.  And best of all, they get dishes sparkly clean.

What’s in homemade dish soap

This website contains affiliate links. This means that should you click on certain links, and then subsequently purchase a product, I will receive a small commission. The price is exactly the same for you as it would be without the affiliate link. 

• Sal Suds (find it here)

This is a concentrated cleaner made with plant-based surfactants that cut through grease and grime, yet is gentle and mild on skin. 

I used to use liquid Castile soap, but made the switch to Sal Suds a couple years ago after discovering how much better it worked.  Unlike Castile soap, Sal Suds is a detergent.  There’s some complicated chemical explanations for the differences between soap and detergent, but the important thing to me is that the detergent works MUCH BETTER for washing dishes (and laundry). 

It’s equally effective against hard or soft water.  And it rinses cleanly and easily.

Sal Suds makes more bubbles, does a better job of cutting through grease and stuck-on food, and rinses really well (even in hard water).  What does that mean? Dishes get squeaky clean.  Silverware is shiny.  Glasses sparkle.

• Water

Water is used to dilute the Sal Suds.  It makes the dish soap last longer and reduces cost.

Use distilled water or boiled and cooled filtered water.

• Baking Soda

I know, adding baking soda to dish soap sounds odd, right? 

But it works. 

It adds a little scouring power to cut through stuck-on food, but is still super gentle on glasses and dishes.

• Essential Oil

Of course, essential oils smell great, but they also have wonderful cleaning antimicrobial properties that help the dish soap work even better.

How to make natural dish soap

step 1:  add 1 cup Sal Suds (get it here) to glass bowl

step 2:  add 1 cup water

(I use distilled water or filtered water that’s been boiling and cooled)

step 3:  add 1 teaspoon baking soda

step 4:  add 20 drops essential oil

12 drops lavender essential oil

8 drops rosemary essential oil

step 5:  use whisk to mix together ingredients until baking soda is dissolved

step 6:  pour into bottle – a cruet like this or a mason pump like this work great

How to use

• add 1-2 pumps of dish soap to sink
• then fill sink about halfway full with hot water
• add dishes to bubbly dish water
• if dishes are especially greasy or have some stuck-on food, I let them soak in the hot soapy water for a few minutes before scrubbing them
• wash as normal
• rinse with water
• dry (either air drying or towel drying works great with this soap)

here are a few other essential oil posts that I think you’ll like:

dishwasher detergent tabs

homemade Lysol disinfecting spray

granite cleaning spray

homemade shower cleaner- works like magic!

mold & mildew spray

best essential oil recipes for LAUNDRY

dusting spray {made with essential oil}

kitchen & bathroom cleaning wipes

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Please note: Products mentioned in this article have not been evaluated by the FDA. These products and information on this page are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. This website is not a substitute for professional care.  Always consult your medical doctor regarding your medical care. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this website.

Disclaimer: Please know that this website contains affiliate links. This means that should you click on certain links, and then subsequently purchase a product, I will receive a small commission. The price is exactly the same for you as it would be without the affiliate link.  Thank you for supporting me in this way.