Kitchen tips: How to Care for Wood Utensils and Cutting Boards

Standard care for wooden or bamboo cutting board is easy. Rinse with soap and warm water immediately dry with a towel after wash. You can set the cutting board on the side to let it completely dry over night. Never put your cutting board in the dishwasher.

Most of the time, I forget to care for my wooden utensil and cutting board beyond simple cleaning. It really needs care every once in a while. Wood and bamboo are organic material and needs oil to maintain their sheen. A little bit of care will also prolong their life. A well maintained wooden cutting board can last a life time.

My cutting board has definitely seen better times. Today I am going to care for it with mineral oil. Leaving it on the side overnight to let the oil soak into the wood.

I have been using my wooden utensil for years too. They stood up pretty well considering I’ve never really cared for it by putting mineral oil. Once done, leave it to dry for couple hours before use.

I like to use my bamboo cutting board for fruits and veggies. It is light and thin, just the right size for an apple or pear. These are my wooden small fruit dishes. I usually use them to hold ingredients I’m about to bake. The edges have worn out and needs a little buffing from oil.

This is my fruit tray. I really like the texture and the colours on this one. It is for sure one of my favourite pieces.

Like the fruit bowls, the corners have had some wear. A little buffing with mineral oil will offer protection against changes in humidity, which makes the wood less susceptible to cracking or warping.

I like to cook with my bamboo cutting board, and it has picked up smells from garlic from a recent food prep. One way to remove the smell form the cutting board is to use lemon and salt.

Spread liberal amount of salt on the cutting board. Then use half a lemon to rub out the salt. Rinse with warm water and the smell should be removed!

Sometimes when you prepare beet or carrots, it leaves a small stain on the wooden cutting board. It can be easily removed by some baking soda and water. I did a similar cleaning on my kettle with this method in a previous video. You can check it out by clicking the link on the right side screen.

Once the baking soda has been made to a paste, scrub it with a towel and rinse off with water.

My wood cutting board is in desperate need for a sanding down. The surface is picking up lint from my towel when I was buffing it with mineral oil. I will be using sand paper to buff the parts. Here I’m simply using a new bar of soap to wrap around the sand paper.

This method will also work for deep cuts, scratches and moldy area.

Start with 100 grit coarse grain sandpaper and move to finer grain

Sand it in the direction of the wood grain. After washing, let it completely dry and apply a coat of the mineral oil.

I often give a nice rinse to my wooden furniture on a dry, but cloudy day. I bring it out to the yard for a small sunbath and air dry once it’s done. The purpose is to just kill the bacteria on the surface. Never leave your wooden furniture under the scorching sun!