Cutting boards

[Steve N]

Just curious why anyone thinks that washing a cutting board is a bad idea.  Obviously dishwashers and soaking it are bad, but washing? Mine get washed every time they're used.

I think the emphasis being used by the don't wash them folks, is the amount of time in the water. It's really hard to clean anything well without moisture. Researchers have found the old "use salt to clean a cutting board" didn't really clean anything, it just preserved the gunk under the salt cap. Bleach, Vinegar, and Hydrogen Peroxide all 3 are potent germ killers, and not much quantity is needed, but to remove the mass, a good sluice of warm soapy water is a great way to get it done.

Probably the biggest concern is after soaking/washing/gettin wet, the wood dries, and because it is wood it tends to wick out some of the mineral oil, Reapplication should be more frequent than most people do, Howie's recipe of Mineral Oil with Beeswax added also slows that wicking out process, and could slow the need for as frequent reapplication. But all you need do is buy a Gallon of MO, put it into a plastic tub, and let the board sit in it, flip it over after a while, and let the other side fill up. If your use of the MO is just for wooden ware you can pour the unused portion back into the container for later use. Touching wood, or air does nothing to change it's properties.

[MichaelMouse]

The use of detergent water to wipe the board will lyse the bacterial cell walls.  Don't poison them, blow 'em up!  Same with salting the chopping block, which was already "finished" with tallow or lard - non-mineral "oil".  Osmosis will do the job better if the osmolytic agent is soluble in the liquid. 

No need for oil.  A non-drying oil will attract and maintain dirt and shelter bacteria from the beneficial effect of the detergent wipe.

[gizmo]

sand it, wet it, let it dry, and repeat several cycles until the grain stops popping.  I wash mine every time I use it, meaning take it to the sink, run water on it scrub and dry.  Fibers have not come up ever. It's 16 years old and made of hard maple, walnut and paduk.

[Redman]

Yup, I wash mine every time it's used. Hot water no detergent/soap even when used to cut raw chicken. Just very hot, steaming almost, water. Wipe off excess immediately. Someday I might put some mineral oil on it.

[Cecil]

Razor blade on edge may work well.

+1.  That is how I always clean the boards I cut meat on.  You will be surprised at what the razor blade pulls out!  Also, I always wash the board before I use it.  In other words, when I pull it out of the cupboard, I wash it again!

Of course a great looking board should only be used for non-meat items and simply rinsed. 

I vote for scraping, with a proper scraper or razor blade.  I keep one of these at my sink.

[glennw]

Gizmo what sand paper do u sand it with in between the wetting process.

[gizmo]

150, 220ish.  Not really critical.  You just need to to keep raising that grain until it stops. Usually about 3-4 cycles.

[Hank Knight]

After wetting, light sanding with fine sandpaper, 220 or even 320, seems to work better than sanding with coarser paper. Paper coarser than 220 seems to pull more fibers loose than it removes and prolongs the process. I use the finest grit I can that still removes the fibers that are raised after the piece is wet. It usually takes no more than two wet-sand cycles to remove the fuzz. YMMV

[Stwood_]

Yup, I wash mine every time it's used. Hot water no detergent/soap even when used to cut raw chicken. Just very hot, steaming almost, water. Wipe off excess immediately. Someday I might put some mineral oil on it.

I never wash mine.
















The maid washes it.

[Redman]

I never wash mine.
















The maid washes it.