Choose The Right Chopping Board
First and foremost, choosing the right chopping board is very important for easy maintenance. Most cheaper wooden chopping boards are made of softwood that is damaged by the strokes of your knife. The knife leaves Porous on the board due to its soft build, allowing food materials to get stuck. The food later stagnates and forms mold.
For this reason, we recommend using hardwood chopping boards. Woods like maple, walnut, cherry, etc. are stronger and can deal with the regular wear and tear from big knives. So, choosing a chopping board made of a hard category of wood is the first step to having a mold-free cutting board.
How To Maintain A Wood Cutting Board
Once youve got it sparkling clean, its important to understand about proper wood cutting board maintenance.Simply from the point of view of health and safety, its important to keep any food preparation surface or utensil free from mold and bacteria. However, show your wooden board some proper care and attention and, unlike plastic boards, it will last you for years or even decades. A well looked-after board will maintain its appearance and even become more pleasing to look at if you show it some TLC once in a while.
Keep your board squeaky cleanAny board thats not cleaned properly will quickly grow bacteria and mold. For this reason, you need to wash your board thoroughly with warm water and detergent after every use. If youve been cutting meat, you may wish to use a very mild bleach solution to make sure absolutely all the bacteria are gone.
2. Never soak your boardUnlike pots and pans, you should never leave a wooden cutting board soaking in the sink.
Soaking your board will cause the wood to swell. Over time, this will lead to warping and cracking. Not only does this look unsightly, but cracks are the perfect place for mold to set up shop.
3. Keep your board oiledOiling your board is vital to keep its appearance and stop it from drying out.
Removing Black Mold On Wood
Removing black mold on wood is a bit trickier. The wood behind drywall is part of the structural framing of the wall or ceiling, so its basically a permanent fixture. Sometimes the wood is so rotted and falling apart that it needs to be removed and replaced with new. But that is rare, and in the vast majority of cases the wood is still strong and structurally sound.
The good news is that black mold on wood can almost always be easily removed.
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Cutting Board Cleaning Method: Hydrogen Peroxide Baking Soda And Dish Soap
- Total time: Overnight
- Rating: 4.5/5
The method:In a small bowl, mix 3 to 4 tablespoons of baking soda, 1 tablespoon of dish soap , and 1 to 2 tablespoons of hydrogen peroxide. Spread the mixture over the stain and let it sit overnight. Rinse and scrub with warm, soapy water.
How it went: By morning, the mixture had drawn bits of color from the stain to the surface. I rinsed the mixture off with warm water and was pleased to see that the stain had lightened significantly. Once I used dish soap for a general cleaning, even more of the stain came up. It didnt come up completely, but was definitely an impressively effective method for such a stubborn stain. Honestly, Id say this method and the next one should tie as the winners.
Effective Ways To Clean A Plastic Cutting Board
Last updated Sep 29, 2016 at 8:48AM | Published on Aug 12, 2016 | Cleaning Tips |
Your plastic cutting board, or boards, get lots of use on a regular basis. In many homes it serves as the chopping block for raw meat, poultry, vegetables, cheese, and more.
Some people use their plastic cutting boards as serving tools as well. They make excellent cheese boards and platters for spreads of crudities and cold cut arrangements. Regardless of how you use your plastic cutting board, you no doubt realize how easily it becomes stained. Tomato sauce, pomegranates, avocados and more leave their permanent mark on the plastic.
There are important steps that must be taken to leave these cutting boards in clean and disinfected order. Since plastic is porous, a few steps are needed to ensure it is germ-free. If you employ a maid service, they no doubt already know these steps.
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Lemon And Kosher Salt
Clean the cutting board with hot water to help break the bonds that create the black mold. Clean off the board with a cloth until its completely dry. Set the board on the counter, and sprinkle salt directly onto the mold. Then, squeeze your lemon, squeeze it on the cutting board, and salt. Make use of the lemon half squeezed then scrub it over the entire board to ensure that the black stain is gone. Ensure that the lemon is used to clean the whole board. Utilize a moist towel to get rid of the lemon and salt out of the bowl. Make use of a dry towel to take away any leftovers. Apply a layer of mineral oil on the outside of your board to stop breaking or warping.
Sealing And Protecting Your Limestone
Sealers are used to protect the newly cleaned and buffed surface of your limestone. Use your sealers provided directions to apply it. Intensifying sealers can be especially great, and add an extra layer of protection to stone while still giving it room to breathe. Some sealers even bring out the color of your stone!
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Washing Dirt Off Of Larger Rocks
How To Clean And Cut Stains On A Cutting Board With Lemon
Rather than using dish soap, you can also use a bit of lemon and salt to clean your cutting board. In addition to cleaning, this helps to remove odors. This is a great method to use after cutting raw meat.
Half a lemon.
Sprinkle salt on the cutting board.
Rub the lemon wedge over the board.
Let the solution sit for 5 minutes.
Wash off with soap and water.
Rinse and dry.
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Use Multiple Cutting Boards
Having more than one cutting board is not only a smart move but a hygienic one as well. When cutting meat, fishes, or any sort of protein, the residues or remainings from them can stay on the board. Afterward, when the same board is used for chopping herbs or something like bread, the residues can seep into those items, eventually causing cross-contamination.
So, we recommend having a few boards for different actions. Have a good-quality, well-seasoned board for cutting proteins and raw items. Use the older boards to cut things like herbs and loaves of bread since they dont require a lot of technical effort. Chopping boards with the container would be a good choice for you
Fallback On Commercial Cleaning Products
If vinegar or bleach do not work, or you would prefer to move directly to a commercial solution, you should have no trouble finding effective products at your local garden center or home improvement store.
You can opt for a simple patio or deck wash-type of product that is used for general cleaning if your mold or algae problem is mild. If your hardscape has been stained from the mold or algae, you may need to opt for a mold stain remover. For example, if you just purchased a home where mold or algae has been allowed to flourish for an extended period of time on concrete, brick or paving stones, there may be stains that require a product specifically designed for mold and algae stain removal.
With most of these products, you will spray the area, allow it to work its magic for a few minutes, scrub with a deck brush or push broom, and then rinse the area with water.
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Resurfacing Commercial Plastic Cutting Boards For Food Businesses
Quality plastic cutting boards that food businesses use become worn and stained over time, but in most cases, these do not need to be replaced with new ones because they can be professionally resurfaced instead. Resurfacing plastic cutting boards removes stains and returns them back to a brand new condition, at a fraction of the cost it would be to replace them.
For hotels, restaurants, coffee shops, commercial kitchens, or any food business that wants to resurface their quality plastic cutting boards, rather than having to buy new ones, much money can be saved by calling Cutting Board Services in Sydney. A mobile service will come out to your location that can resurface any size of commercial plastic cutting boards quickly and easily, and then reinstall them again as good as new.
How To Clean Chopping Boards
- 14 Apr 2021
Your chopping board is one piece of kitchenware that gets a regular workout, so you have to keep clean to avoid food contamination. There are several methods you can use to clean both wooden and plastic chopping boards, and most of what you need is likely already in your pantry!
Bicarbonate of soda: Mix one tablespoon of bi-carb soda, one tablespoon of salt and one tablespoon of water to form a paste. Give your chopping board a good scrub with the paste, then rinse thoroughly with hot water and dry. For a more effective cleaner, add a little white vinegar and lemon juice.
Bicarbonate of soda
Vinegar: This is great for disinfecting as the acid in it helps combat nasty bugs such as E.coli, Salmonella and Staphylococcus. After washing your board, disinfect by giving it a wipe with full-strength, white vinegar. You can also deodorise the board by sprinkling bicarbonate of soda followed by a spray of white vinegar. Leave for 10 minutes, whilst it foams up, then rinse off with a cloth.
Hydrogen peroxide: Its recommended to use 3% hydrogen peroxide for chopping boards that are used for chopping up raw meat. Spray enough hydrogen peroxide around the chopping board for it get into the cuts and rub it in with a clean cloth. Rinse with water and then dry.
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When Should You Throw Out A Cutting Board
Most of us use a cutting board to prepare dinner every day. And that kind of use can take a toll on even the best cutting boards. Furthermore, a cutting board that is not replaced when it should be can cause quite a few upset tummies or other health concerns.
According to the USDA if you have a wood cutting board that is excessively worn, warped, or scared with hard-to-clean grooves it should be discarded . The same applies to plastic, silicone, and bamboo boards. You should also take notice of wood cutting boards made with multiple layers of wood. If the layers or seams begin to separate bacteria can easily accumulate.
As you can see the importance of cleaning wood cutting boards should not be taken lightly. However, clean up is truly simple and doesnt require any pricy cleaning solutions. If youve been neglecting the cleaning of your prep boards, you may want to start fresh with a new board and these practical cleaning methods.
Pin these easy techniques on How to Clean a Cutting Board, Disinfect, Deodorize, and Everything In Between! Tag #lifenreflection on Instagram to share your natural cleaning tips with us.
REFERENCES
United States Department of Agriculture Cutting Boards and Food Safety. Retrieved from
Keep The Surface Fresh
If the surface of the board has dried out and its not in its proper shape, then we also have some tips on how to keep it clean and fresh.
Clean all the dust from the board. Use sandpaper to smoothen the surface. Use water and soap to clean it up and allow it to dry.
After the bamboo cutting board is all clean and dry, you need to recoat with oil. Apply it once or twice a month and you will notice a difference in the condition of the board.
You can also use Bartow oil to impart the smells and tastes from the board.
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How To Clean Your Cutting Boards And Butcher Blocks For Mold And Bacteria
Mold sometimes forms in places where you would least expect it. Today, I want to address one, or should I say two of those places: cutting boardsboth the plastic and the wood variety and butcher blocks.
Now, before I begin with the steps to take to get rid of the mold, I want to talk about how and why mold would grow there in the first place. Because butcher blocks, and wooden cutting boards naturally have divots and grooves on their surfaces, moisture can penetrate and become trapped in these grooves. The food residue and sometimes mold and bacteria from whatever you were cutting, then clings to this moisture and starts to grow mold and bacteria of its own. Its a rather icky process.
On plastic cutting boards, the issue is usually caused by the sandpaper-like surface of the cutting board not being cleaned thoroughly enough between uses. Many of the foods that we eat have mold and bacteria on their surfaces naturally. If they are not mold- and bacteria-free prior to setting them on the cutting board, both substances can get ground into the cutting boards surface, only to grow even more bacteria and mold as time goes on. Combine this with moisture, and you can really have a problem on your hands. Wood is also a porous material, so mold can grow into the mold, using the natural substance as its food. Thus, a soap and water cleaning, or a harsh chemical, like bleach or ammonia will not fully penetrate it.
Lets fix that problem right now!
Tools:
Method:
How To Maintain Bamboo Cutting Boards
The process for maintaining a bamboo cutting board is very similar to that used to maintain a wooden board:
But in addition to the steps above, you can also slice a lemon in half and rub it cut side down over the boards surface to freshen up the board between oil or beeswax treatments. The natural acidity of the lemon will help to break down any residue on your cutting board.
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Natural Solution Lemon And Kosher Salt
For a less severe problem, you can use kosher salt and lemon juice. The kosher salt is chunky and will give the board a rougher clean.
The lemon juice works as a disinfectant and can help with the removal of stains as well. You can also use vinegar with this method as another disinfectant. Both will help remove the stains.
Washing And Drying Your Cutting Board
Dont lay your cutting board flat to dry.
Before anything else, let’s establish an iron rule for wooden cutting boards: they must be washed by hand. Regardless of how gentle your dishwasher may be, too much time exposed to heat and water will warp and eventually crack the board leading to your board’s untimely demise.
Fortunately, washing a cutting board by hand is no monumental feat: It’s actually quite simple. Soon after you finish using the board, you should clean it. Cleaning it soon after use keeps stains and water from penetrating the wood. Take hot water , a washcloth or sponge, and ordinary dish soap. Scrub the board until any remaining food bits or coloration is gone and rinse it well to remove excess soap. Voilà! You now have a clean board.
Drying is equally important. It’s best to air dry your board upright to ensure even drying. Some water will always get into the first layer of the wood, but air drying upright will allow it to escape evenly from all over the board. Drying the board with one side down, on the other hand, will allow water from the top to evaporate while water on the bottom will become trapped and may end up warping the wood.
Washing your board regularly and quickly after cooking, combined with a proper drying technique, will greatly reduce wear and tear on your board and keep it in good shape. However, every once in a while you may need to take stronger measures to ensure your board is the best it can be.
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