Sanitization of Wooden Cutting Boards Naturally

In a past blog, we discussed some of the cleaning techniques and considerations you’ll want to keep in mind when purchasing and using a cutting board. These are specific to wood cutting boards. Some of the best cutting board designs are found with Carolina Wood Designs, and this certainly can be attractive, but be sure not to forget about the practical matters when it comes to food safety and cutting board safety. In this blog, we’ll continue that safety discussion and further your cutting board education.

Before you use a new wooden cutting board, you should oil it using food grade mineral oil. Take a soft cloth and rub it into the board generously, and then let it stand to soak in for about 5 minutes. The board will absorb much of the oil. Keep applying the oil and letting it dry/absorb into the wood until the oil does not absorb in any further. This will prevent bacteria from absorbing into the wood as easily, and will prolong the cutting board’s life by many years. You should re-oil your board whenever it appears light and worn in color.
    

  Because wood is so absorbent, be sure to never submerge the cutting board in water for longer than a few moments. Don’t run it through the dish washer either, because the cutting board designs are relatively delicate. Use a rough sponge, scrub with hot water, and rinse clean. Dry immediately with a paper towel. You can sanitize the board naturally, using a 5:1 water/white vinegar solution. Let it sit, and then apply another oil coat to seal in the sanitation.

The benefits of wooden cutting boards are many, for beauty’s sake, and for nature’s sake. You aren’t letting your food come in contact with unnatural chemicals that plastic is made of and you use natural cleaners to care for the wood.

Classy Designs with A Simplicity Touch

      Carolina Wood Designs is a carrier and creator of many different wooden cutting board designs. In this blog, we’d like to spend some time talking with you about best cutting board safety. Many people may not realize that you can be more or less safe in terms of food illnesses if you adopt certain procedures for sanitizing and using your cutting boards, be them wood or plastic.  

      You want to be careful about cross-contamination of foods. Some raw foods like meat should not come in contact with foods that will remain uncooked. If you’re using the same cutting boards for both types of food, you run the risk of cross-contamination. Consider purchasing a separate cutting board for all of these categories: fresh produce and bread; raw meats; poultry and seafood; dairy products; and cooked foods. You might even try different colors or cutting board designs to help you remember which is which. Reducing bacterial transfer is key in safe cutting.

      After every use, cutting boards should be washed with hot, soapy water and then rinsed with clear water and air dried. If you’re going to pat them dry, be sure to use un-used paper towels, but not your kitchen dishtowel. The dishtowel will probably have been used and filled with bacteria you want to keep from your cutting board.

      There are a few other safety tips that might be helpful, but for the designs and simplicity of Carolina Wood Designs cutting boards, these tips should serve you well.

Anti-bacterial cutting boards

      Carolina Wood Designs is a source for intricate cutting board designs, and produces some of the highest quality cutting boards out there. Given that all of our cutting boards are made from different types of wood, you may have a question about whether wood or plastic cutting boards are better. This blog will tell you a one aspect of why wooden cutting boards are useful. In general, however, it’s usually a bit of give and take, where wood boards are better in some ways, and plastic are better in other ways. 

      If you look at the situation one-side, you get the belief that plastic cutting boards are better because grooves are created when you cut into a wooden cutting board with a knife, and in those grooves, bacteria could grow that would infect the next food that was put onto the cutting board. People argued that because plastic cutting boards are harder than wood, they don’t develop as many or as deep of grooves, and they were less likely, therefore, to pass on those harmful bacteria. The only issue was that studies showed the opposite was true: Plastic is not water-absorbent, so it stays wet longer, which means bacteria can survive on the surface longer. On the other hand, wood absorbs water quickly, so it dries faster, which means shorter bacterial survival. Additionally, wood contains natural antibiotic agents that slow up bacterial growth.

      There is more to the story between plastic and wood cutting boards, but this will help you get a bit of perspective on the matter. If you have interest in trying a wooden cutting board, remember that the designs found at Carolina Wood Designs are unlike any others, as they are custom made from fine woods.