When Good Food Does Bad Things

Gravy on your tie, red wine on your new white shirt, coffee on your silk blouse, chocolate on your beige rug. It must have been a wonderful meal — or a wild party — but what about the stains? Here’s a short list of the most common food stains and what to do about them.

• Chocolate on clothing: Scrape away any thickness of chocolate and blot gently with cool water. Use a powdered laundry detergent with enzymes and presoak for 15 minutes, or rub gently with a laundry gel stain remover. Launder in cool water. Repeat if needed before drying.
• Chocolate on carpeting: Sprinkle with salt to absorb the fat in the chocolate, then vacuum. Spray the stain with laundry or carpet stain remover; let stand for 10 minutes, then blot up stain with cool water, folding and turning a clean cloth to absorb the chocolate. Do not use hot water.
• Coffee: Sponge with cold water. Work in a drop of two of mild, clear dishwashing liquid and rinse in cold water. Repeat if needed.
• Gravy on your tie: Blot with paper towels and sprinkle with salt or cornstarch to absorb grease. Brush off. Dilute a bit of liquid laundry detergent in cool water and work gently on the stain, remembering that most ties cannot be laundered. Do not let the tie get soaked with water, and keep blotting with clean paper towels.
• Ketchup or tomato sauce: Soak in cold water, then apply a few drops of mild dishwashing liquid; rinse. For stubborn stains, mix 1 tablespoon white vinegar with 3 tablespoons water and apply to stain; rinse and launder as usual.
• Mayonnaise, oil, or butter: Soak in cold water for 15 minutes, then work liquid detergent or laundry stain remover into grease stain. Rinse and let dry (not in clothes dryer). Repeat if necessary.
• Red wine: Sponge immediately with cool water. Mix 1/2 teaspoon of mild dishwashing detergent into 1 cup of water and apply to stain, working from the outside toward the center. If necessary, mix 1/3 cup white vinegar and 2/3 cup water and apply to stain. Rinse and launder.