Cutting Board - Sanitation and Care

Sanitation and Care

Regardless of the material, regular maintenance of a cutting board is important.

• Sanitation with cutting boards is a delicate process because bacteria can reside in grooves produced by cutting, or in liquids left on the board. For this reason, it is often advised to cut raw meat on separate cutting boards from cooked meat, vegetables or other foods.
• A very dilute bleach solution is best for disinfecting cutting boards.
• To remove odors, rinse the board and then rub with coarse salt and let stand for several minutes. Wipe the board and then rinse it clean. This procedure will also smooth out minor imperfections in the wood.
• Wooden boards should never be placed in the dishwasher, or left immersed for long periods, as the wood or glue may be affected.
• A light food-grade mineral oil is a good preservative for wooden cutting boards, as it helps keep water from seeping into the grain. Alternatively, one may also use a food-grade drying oil such as poppyseed oil, tung oil or linseed oil. The first two dry much faster than linseed. Note that most commercially available linseed and tung oils are not “food grade”, as they contain metallic driers. In general, edible savory vegetable or olive oils are not recommended because they tend to go rancid, causing the board to smell and your food to pick up the rancid taste.
• To prevent cracking, cutting boards should be treated when they start looking dry. A standard recommendation is 5-7 times a year, or as needed.
• When heavily or deeply scored, wood or plastic cutting boards should be resurfaced, as scoring can harbor bacteria, or mildew in the case of plastic boards. Wood can be easily resurfaced with various woodworking tools, such as scrapers or planes. Sandpaper is to be avoided, as it leaves in the surface residual abrasives which will dull knives. Resurfacing a plastic cutting board is more difficult and replacing it is recommended instead.