Wood Cutting Board Care: 5 Tips & Tricks

Wood reducing boards are important devices for food preparation as well as food preparation, whether you’re cutting up some Do It Yourself carrot, as well as celery, adheres to treat on with hummus, making slim beef stroganoff for supper, or obtaining expensive with some fresh pineapple.

Many individuals like timber reducing boards due to the fact that they won’t plain your blades as promptly as — or obtain nicked as conveniently as — plastic reducing boards.

However, there are some important ideas for timber reducing board treatment. For instance, timber cutting boards, as well as dishwashing machines, don’t blend.

Instead, there’s unique timber reducing board treatment you must adhere to.

“Don’t put wooden cutting boards in the dishwasher!” alerts Leah Barron, a New York City-based signed up dietitian. “The high heat and extended time in water can lead to cracks in the wood that can harbor bacteria.”

To maintain your cutting surface area in prime cutting problem, right here’s just how to care for a wood reducing board.

1. Wash

First, clean or rinse any type of crumbs or remaining food little bits and afterward clean your board in cozy soapy water, suggests Barron.

“Wash both sides even if you didn’t use the other side because you never know what contaminants are on the countertop,” she includes.

Washing both sides additionally avoids irregular bending as well as an unsteady board.

“Pay extra attention to any areas on the board with knife cuts or cracks and give those spots an extra scrub,” she claims.

Wood reducing boards are much less at risk to scrapes than plastic cutting boards.

According to the USDA, bamboo timber reducing boards are harder as well as extra immune to germs than various other timber kinds.

2. Disinfect

“If you’re using the board to cut raw meat or poultry, this is especially important,” claims Barron.

She suggests among adhering to cleansing combinations:

• One-component white vinegar to four-parts water.
• A tbsp of bleach in a gallon of water.

“Let the board soak for around five minutes, and then rinse well and dry thoroughly,” Barron claims.

The UDSA additionally suggests a watered-down bleach-water remedy, however, some researches recommend an ammonia-based cleanser is much better for timber boards.

As an added safety measure, the USDA suggests having a devoted board for meat as well as fish and shellfish, as well as one more board for fruits, veggies, nuts, cheeses, as well as breads.

“Don’t leave the board to soak in water or disinfecting solution for more than a few minutes because the wood will start to warp,” claims Barron.

3. Dry

After cleaning, completely dry your timber reducing board with a tidy towel as well as permit it to air completely dry standing upright in a recipe shelf.

Drying is one of the most important action for avoiding your board from bending or splitting.

4. Condition

“To help maintain the quality of your wooden cutting boards, oil the board at least once a month with a cutting board oil or food-grade mineral oil,” suggests Barron. “This helps to avoid drying, cracking, and warping.”

You can conveniently buy food-grade mineral oil, such as Thirteen Chefs Food-Grade Mineral Oil or Clark’s Cutting Board Oil enhanced with orange as well as lemon removes, online.

When you oil your board, make certain it’s totally dry — preferably after resting over night or numerous hrs.

“Don’t use cooking oils such as olive oil or avocado oil on the boards because the fats in these oils will go rancid and cause the board to smell,” claims Barron.

Spread a slim layer of oil on the board as well as permit it to saturate for a couple of hrs. Then clean the board with a completely dry towel or paper towel.

5. Know When to Hold ‘Em, Know When to Fold ‘Em

These ideas can prolong your timber reducing the board’s life expectancy, however, you require to change all reducing boards ultimately.

“Don’t continue to use wooden cutting boards that have deep knife cuts that are difficult to clean thoroughly,” claims Barron.

The USDA additionally suggests disposing of both plastic as well as timber cutting boards with deep grooves.