Care For Wooden Cutting Board: Wooden cutting boards are a big trend these days. They seem strong and hardy. But trust me when I say that they need and deserve our love and care. So, if you have one in your kitchen, take good care of it – and I will tell you how. It’s not hard, just once a week or every ten days, you need to a follow a simple cleaning ritual that involves basic, easy to find and natural ingredients and some elbow grease. Just get yourself two things: Mineral Oil and a lint free cloth.
Let’s go through the HOW:
Step 1: Wash the board Take some warm water (you can add a little mild soap to it) and wash all of the sides carefully, even the edges and handles. Remove any food leftover stuck to it with a soft natural fibre rag or loofah.
Most people only wash the top, which actually ends up hurting the board. When moisture reacts with grain, it swells, and if the swelling isn’t uniform, it can warp the board.
Once washed, wipe the board on all sides and leave it to dry overnight. Leave it standing slightly slanted so that both sides dry out easily.
Step 2: Add Oil The next morning, take a generous amount of oil in your hands and apply it to all sides and edges of the board properly. Cover the board evenly everywhere. Now allow the oil to soak into the wood, which would take around 3-4 hours. Leave it to dry again, slanted like before.
Step 3: Polish and Buff it up Next day, once the oil is soaked up, you will be able to see a darker tone to the wood. Take your soft, lint free cloth and start rubbing in circular motions to polish the wood board. Buff it till it shines and looks brand new.
Although it’s a wooden board, if kept properly and taken care of well, it will last you a lifetime, or at least a few decades. But if you start to see any deep cuts in the surface, you will need to rub and smoothen them out with some sand paper. Make sure you sand it before you begin the cleaning steps.
Care For Wooden Cutting Board: DO NOT ignore the deep cracks, as they could become home to bad bacteria and make you sick. Always remember to wash your precious boards with hand, NEVER a dishwasher. TLC remember!!
— Molly | Shop My Handpainted Upcycled Functional Art at www.design5.biz