Forget washing up liquid, the best way to clean dirty dishes is using a bowl of heated pig swill.

A keen cook in southwest China has revealed that the age-old method was once commonplace in local kitchens before modern Western cleaning techniques took over.

Her online tip – shared on Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok – claims it is the best way to remove oil and sticky food.

And not only that, it ensures that whatever is on the plates ends up as a tasty treat for the pigs as well.

The woman – identified only by her surname Ren, from the city of Zunyi, Guizhou Province – explained that the method was common in traditional Chinese kitchens and is far more environmentally friendly than using washing-up liquid.

She said: “When many people here in the region was the dishes, they soak them in hot pig food and then just rinse them in clean water.”

At the end of the day, the lack of chemicals, she said, was an added advantage because it meant that the method was green and clean.

The online posting, however, caused heated debate among online commentators, with more than 3000 people making remarks and the video being watched more than 5 million times.