Turmeric has a gorgeous, sunny color that gives food a natural hint of yellow. This color seems less gorgeous, however, when it ends up on your clothes. Knowing how to remove turmeric stains will help you save your favorite shirt. It does require a bit of TLC, but don’t worry – these tips will make your clothes look good as new!
Step 1: Take care of the turmeric stain quickly so that the curcumin doesn’t saturate the material fibers. Remove any debris carefully and as well as possible.
Step 2: After pretreating, you can start the main wash. Depending on the garment type, pick the suitable detergent for your clothes. If you’re washing a stain out of light-colored clothes, consider washing it alone so the stain doesn’t affect other garments.
Step 3: Wash your clothes in the machine at the warmest temperature possible. You’ll find this information on your clothing’s care label.
Done! Check whether the stain is still there. If still visible, repeat the process before drying your clothes, and perhaps pre-treat it for longer.
Top Tip from our Pros: Check the detergents you use and their compatibility with your fabrics and avoid DIY stain removers because the effects on different fabrics are unpredictable. Persil® Advanced Clean Oxi+Odor Power is a good option.
Turmeric contains curcumin, which gives it its intense color and is unfortunately not water-soluble. This means that you can’t just throw your stained clothes in the washing machine and hope for the best.
Here’s our detailed guide for how to remove turmeric stains on clothes. Follow these steps and you’ll wave goodbye to those stubborn turmeric stains!
Turmeric stains are tricky to get rid of, so you should use high quality detergent. Persil® products provide high washing power, whether it's getting out turmeric stains from a spot of curry or spilled turmeric “moon-milk”. Depending on what you want and how you prefer to wash, the following detergents might be ideal for you:
- The powerful classic: Persil® Original Scent Liquid Detergent
- For a fragrance free option try Persil® Free & Sensitive Liquid Laundry Detergent
- For serious turmeric stains, try Persil® Advanced Clean Oxi+Odor Power Liquid Detergent
It is best to shake off any remaining turmeric powder outdoors, or scrape off as much liquid or solid debris as possible. Apply the detergent directly to the stained area and rub it in gently. Allow to soak in for up to 10 minutes and then rinse thoroughly by hand.
Wash your garment as for the “heavy soiling” level indicated. Your detergent will indicate how much you need. Wash the fabric at the warmest setting possible – check the care label.
Do not dry the garment after washing until you are sure that the turmeric stain has disappeared. If it is still there, soak the fabric in a mixture of water, detergent and stain remover for a few hours. Then wash it again and check it once more for remaining stains.
Turmeric stain removal from delicate fabrics requires detergent for delicate fabrics and for you to hand wash them. Some fabrics may require professional dry cleaning. For fabrics that cannot be machine washed, apply the detergent to the affected area and rinse by hand with warm water. Check for residual stains, repeat the washing process if necessary or if the stain has disappeared, completely dry the garment as per the care label.
Even with yellow or white garments, the steps described above are usually enough for turmeric stain removal. However, you may have to repeat the pretreating step more than once - especially if the turmeric stains are very dark or have already set in.