Well, I scrape into a compost can and fling the into the dishwasher, usually as I’m cooking as I designed my kitchen to have the DW next to both stovetop and sink. I’ve never soaked anything unless it was stuck on really hard. I know people who do their own dishwashing and they don’t cook as much as I do, or as hard. Honestly, if I had one of those huge grand kitchens I see on HGTV I’d have two dishwashers.
For stuck-on-hard try Dawn Power Dissolver! I love that stuff. Usually found on the shelf next to all the other Dawn dishwashing products. Lasts a long time, too. I am so dependent on it, that I usually have a spare bottle around, just in case I run out.