9 Tips For Caring For Wooden Cutting Boards
Years of chopping, cutting and slicing on your wooden cutting board can be gained by treating your board with care. Following these wooden cutting board basics can lengthen the life of your board.
1) Use mineral oil on the work surface of the cutting board. Sponge it on and repeat every several weeks depending on use.
2) When moisture soaks into the wood, it expands and softens affecting the strength of the glued joints. Therefore, you should not allow any type of moisture to stand on the block for long periods of time. This includes brine, water, blood and wet meats.
3) Use of a steel brush on the cutting surface is not recommended. Instead, use a good steel scraper or spatula as necessary.
4) After cutting fish or fowl, the work surface must always be cleaned thoroughly. Follow the instructions in Step 1 to insure the moisture barrier is in place before cutting fish or fowl.
5) Insure that your block wears evenly by not cutting continuously in the same place on the surface. Instead, distribute the cutting over the entire surface of the block. Avoid chips, splinters and soft spots by not using a razor-edged cleaver. Best results are obtained by using a cleaver with a dull sharpened edge.
6) When washing your block, never use any type of harsh detergents. Also, never wash your butcher’s tools on the block.
7) Scraping your block will remove 75% of the moisture. Dry immediately with an absorbent towel. This will prevent quick deterioration of the work surface and you will have an odorless and clean cutting surface for the next use.
To prevent splitting or chipping of outside boards, maintain the same bevel on the edge of your block as it had when you bought it.
9) Insure even usage on both work surfaces by turning the block over periodically.
As for dishwashers, never use them to clean wooden butcher blocks or cutting boards.
According to Kent Dinsmoor, caring for high quality cutting boards is much easier than inferior products. Go to Kent’s favorite source for quality cutting boards to learn more.
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