Wooden cutting boards are notorious for harboring germs and harmful bacteria, and when not cleaned properly, can be a very real health hazard.
With this in mind, here’s a guide to getting your wooden cutting boards, hygienically clean:
What you’ll need
With just these few ingredients, you can make your cutting board safe to use:
- Warm water
- White vinegar
- Dish soap
- 3% hydrogen peroxide
- A sponge or stiff brush
- A lemon
- Salt
Begin by washing your cutting board
Using regular dish soap and warm water, hand wash the cutting board, taking care to scrub both sides well. Then, dry it off and if possible, leave it to thoroughly dry overnight. Use this method to clean your cutting board after every use.
Move on to the disinfecting stage
It’s not necessary to use bleach when disinfecting your cutting board; this method should work perfectly well:
- Lie the board down flat on a towel
- Pour the 3% hydrogen peroxide evenly over the board using a soft, clean sponge or cloth
- Leave it to sit and fizz on the board for a few minutes
- Then, rinse the board under hot water, repeating the process for both sides
If you use your wooden board to prepare meat on, you should use this method to clean it each time, as meat can leave a bacteria-heavy residue on the surface long after it’s been washed.
Eliminate stains and deodorize
Now that your board is clean and sanitized, you should take the time to deodorize it and eliminate any remaining stains:
- Sprinkle a good amount of salt onto the board and with half a lemon, rub the salt all over the board in small circles, taking care to rub it in the direction of the woodgrain
- Leave the salt and lemon juice to sit for around 5 minutes before rinsing it under warm water
- Repeat the process on both sides of the board and allow to dry overnight before using it again
How to keep your wooden cutting board hygienically clean
Maintaining the cleanliness of your cutting board between deep cleans is important, and here’s how you can do exactly that:
- To prevent cracking or warping, apply a food-grade mineral oil to the board once a month
- Try to use different boards for preparing different foods i.e. one for vegetables and another for meat or fruit, to minimize the risk of cross-contamination
- The best cutting boards for hygiene and durability are those made from maple, walnut or cherry.
Don’t forget that you can always ask your regular cleaning service to add disinfecting your wooden cutting boards to their list of tasks, and that way, you’ll never have to worry about making anyone in your household sick the next time you cook.
