How to Season (+ Restore) Wood Cutting Boards
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 18 ก.พ. 2020
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Wood cutting boards are the best all-around material for a cutting board, they are forgiving to your knife edge meaning they stay sharper longer, according to a University of Wisconsin study bacteria has a lower survival rate on wood than plastic, aka wood cutting boards, are more sanitary than plastic, and they just look good.
It's got the looks and the functionality, so how do we care for the backbone of our cooking experiences? Let's learn how.
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► Useful Kitchen Gear
- Whetstone for sharpening: amzn.to/35lvnuv
- Scale: amzn.to/2SMht25
- 8 inch Chef's knife: amzn.to/2QLYvWr
- Cast iron: amzn.to/2tu4Bmo
- Saucepan: amzn.to/2tu4Bmo
- Wood cutting board: amzn.to/2Qkw1UQ
- (NOT cheap) Amazing Pan: amzn.to/2rW8wYY
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MISC. DETAILS
Music: Provided by Musicbed
Filmed on: Sony a6400 w/ 18-105mm F4
Voice recorded on Lav Mic
Edited in: Premiere Pro #WoodCuttingBoard
Research Sources:
- www.seriouseats.com/2015/09/h...
- WISCONSIN STUDY on WOOD vs PLASTIC - www.johnboos.com/uploads/file...
Affiliate Disclosure:
Cook with E is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. - บันเทิง
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Woodworker here: There is a small step you should add to avoid the board feeling rough when it gets wet. After the second sanding, you should give the board a light spray with water and let it air dry for +/- 20 minutes. This will make the fibers of the wood stand up straight (much like your hair when you get it wet before you shave). Use your finest sandpaper to give it one last sanding to get rid of these tiny fibers, THEN apply your finish.
As a woodworker, did you watch this and say "No... we aren't stopping at 320"?
Shoulda used a card scraper, son
Hi Edward. I'm wondering if mineral oil/beeswax would be a good way of protecting my garden tool wooden handles like ash shovel handles etc. What do u think?
@@jeil5676 i don't have much experience with beeswax finish, but it's my understanding that it's used to finish wood that will be coming in contact with food. I'm unsure how useful it would be for finishing tool handles. I imagine you'd get waxy residue on your hands.
@@jeil5676 There are better surface finishes than beeswax out there. The main reason we use beeswax is because it's temporary and food safe. It would work, but would wear of pretty quick.
Furthermore, I've heard from woodworkers before that it is not recommended to oil wood that is going to be exposed to the elements. The reasoning is that the wood will trap water and rot. I don't know how true this is, but it's worth looking into.
Personally, if I cared enough about my tools, I would go all the way and spray them with an outdoor primer and use tung oil to create a strong, lasting finish. Almost like how you'd paint a guitar.
I’m 53 and built my cutting board when I was early 20’s. 2” X 2” oak strips 30”X20” finished size. (I had access to an industrial cabinetry planer at time of build.) I clean it regularly, mineral oil it every 1-2 months, and will sand it down (just with an orbital palm sander 280 grit) every couple of years. It gets used every day, and was in use all thru both my sons growing up (so it seen lots of idiot ninja crap - damn kids). Still looks great tho. I’m at a point where I need to have it planed as it’s got a bit of a wobble (cupping warp?), but I jus5 flip it over and it doesn’t wobble.
I had a warped cutting board. I just stored it upside down (so all the corners touched the counter) for a while and it straightened out. How long it takes would vary I guess. In my case it took a little over a week.
Good stuff. Was going to chuck my wooden board since it looked too old. Found your video and now I’m fixing it. Thanks!
First time seasoning my cutting boards today thanks to this video! The natural color of the wood really came out after the seasoning it! Thanks for the tutorial
Thanks Ethan. Yep, my two fave boards look like yours. I know what to do now. Stay Strong, Be Well, Rock On!
I've been an amateur furniture maker longer than I've been an amateur cook. If you do this like a furniture maker would, wipe on a generous but not sloppy amount of finish, wipe off the excess after 5 or 10 minutes, let thoroughly dry (overnight). Repeat this process as many times as you see the wood still soaking up most of the finish. When most of the finish is still unabsorbed after 10 minutes, wipe off, let dry overnight and you're done. The more often you treat the board, the less layers of finish required each time.
I am buying my first nice wood cutting board ever. I want to use it the day after it arrives, but supposedly it comes prefinished. How often do I have to reapply the oil??
I love that you're putting this out there! As Larry David would say, "I respect wood."
Much appreciated man!
Thank you for introducing this subject. Much needed by most cooks.
Wow !! I never thought of my cutting board. What a great tip !!
Thank you so much for this! I just upgraded from a cheap plastic cutting board to a beautiful walnut one from The Boardsmith, and I've been so worried about being too rough on it, not just because of the price, but because it feels "softer" than the old plastic one (which to my inexperienced mind means it's not as durable). This gives me the absolute confidence to not be afraid to really put it to use. Wow! Again, thank you.
That’s how I felt about mine, too. My brand new knives, too. It’s weird.
That music at the start sounds so familiar!
Got it I recognise it from Binging with Babish
@@Laittth pretty sure it's just generic cooking channel music now
Juparo by broke for free, awesome guy who makes free music
according to google its been used a lot in gay porn videos....
@@jeil5676 “according to google” 👀 please there’s obviously another reason you know this
Good video. I perked up my cutting boards and knife handles a while back. Might be time to do it again.
However, some woodworkers would say not to jump from 180 to 320 sandpaper. It's just less work to gradually step up from a coarser to a finer sandpaper. And 320 sandpaper is very fine, perhaps extremely so. You can buy a packet of sandpaper that already has a nice assortment of grades.
Beautiful cutting boards and quick easy process, thanks!
Awesome, I just got my iron wood cutting board and now prepared to give it some love.
You should only ever jump up in grits by a factor of 50%
So 80-120
120-180 and so on
This will make sanding a better experience
Easier to do and better finish
Also the wood will absorb the oils better if you stop at 220/240 grit
Any higher is really used between coats of finishes or paint
Interesting... 🤔
Thanks 😄👍
Question: should maple utensils be given a higher grit sanding, to kind of seal them?
Thank you!
Bought a cutting board from a yard sale. It is the striped one you have in the video. I am eager to get this board ready to use. Thank you. job.
Thanks for the information, E!
My wood cutting board desperately needs some TLC so this will certainly help!
Sure thing. Show that cutting board some love!
Good video, thanks for getting to the point
Well done
I did exactly as you did but I used flax oil, food grade, as the water resistant medium. The board sucked up the flax oil. My daughters thick end grain cutting board. I am putting my 20# dumbbell on the slight warp to help remove it. It is looking nice. She had one part of her board that had stayed wrt, where the warp is, and it had mildewed bad. I coated this area with bleach and it removed most of the mildew. I let it dry and coated it with several coats of flax oil. The mildewed part stayed a little dull for the first few coats but is coming around after put on several more coats. All in all, I am very pleased. Btw, I used 80 grit in my orbital sander to sand it.
I recently started a cutting board company crafting these has been a passion of mine for a while now
Thank you very much. Lockdown kitchen project today. Miss Jenny
Pure Tung Oil is also food safe... just make sure it's PURE Tung oil, not one mixed with varnish. But it will likely take more coats and each coat will take longer to cure. Beeswax can be applied after it's cured.
I just did that with the same product two weeks ago. I also did my wooden utensils also.
Thank you so much. That was very informative. I was getting ready to do it wrong
Just to point that out: that research about cutting boards was conducted, sponsored, and published by a company that sells wooden cutting boards, and hadn't been replicated anywhere. Take it with a grain of salt.
I respect you calling it out.
But in honor of the scientific method. Do you yourself have proof for anything regarding this?
I just watched adam rageusa talk about how plastics are disrupting our endochrine systems. Might be a good idea not to cut it and scrape it into your food. Some day I might get around to buying some wood.
Well, even if that's the case, you really do not want microplastics in your body so any way of minimising that is good (microplastics are so abundant in the environment, it's not possible to avoid them completely). I'm only watching this video as my plastic chopping boards are now at the end of their life & I won't replace with plastic. I've bought wooden ones & intend to care for them properly & wash them carefully a) to avoid microplastics b) to avoid waste c) to avoid bacteria.
@@finneh6145 micro plastic is real thing
I know. He said that the research against plastic was published by people who sell wooden cutting boards. Essentially supporting plastic cutting boards, by devaluing "proof" for wooden cutting boards.
I love wooden cutting boards and believe in their benefits, so I'd like to see some proof that the studies supporting them are supposedly biased
So I see there are alot of comments and I don't know if you'll get to see this of others.
I live in South Africa this means getting products that are certifiedfood friendly is a hard find and an expensiveproductwhen u do find itm, wooden products have always been a preference for me. So cutting boards are wood without question. I'm a passionate carpenter (not my work profession)... this video was extremely helpful. When you motioned that bees wax ath a wood treatmentalmost made me dance😂. ...ive been so unsure of what to use to treat the wood. Linseedoil will leave a horribletas5e...wood sealantis a chemicalso than u i rwally applicate this vid as u are also doing it for the 1st time it gave me insightto how to start .
0:58 his hands were gliding over that cutting board so lovingly and I'm not mad about it at all. Lol this is why I love your channel, Ethan!
just got my acacia cutting board and i got interested to watch your video how to care it,but thank you for this video
Great video, can not wait to restore chopping board. A wise man once said you have to look after your wood.
Never knew this. So glad you covered! I really don't like plastic. Well I know my next move.😎
Thanks so much! I love you videos!
my dude im typing in notepad as you speak and piling my amazon shopping cart lol. my board is as dry and crusty as the Atacama desert. Thanks!
Why I season my cutting board not my food
Yes, I have been treating my cutting board with food grade mineral oil to help keep the cutting board from soaking up water or food odor.
Very informative thank you 👍
How about seasoning wooden spoons/ utensils, have you done yours yet😁
Ethan I looked up what you posted on cutting board oil, there was an article that suggested baking soda, is that a safe alternative?
I’m starting to do this from now on!
I used to put mineral oil but no sanding and now they have small gouges
I'm definitely doing this
Love it! They look absolutely beautiful. I am a woodworking fan!!! This will be my first time as well. What are you thoughts and advice on a clear top coat?? Melodie in Mustang Must Know🖤🖤
I got an old Boos cutting boardAnd I’m going to start taking care of it now
TY, it worked !
My GF just gifted me a Boos Block (my first not discount store $5 cutting board) and got me some oil to keep it nice. Might have to try the sand and restore on our kitchen counter (a hand-me-down island cart with a butcher block top)
thanks! have you tried doing this with something natural like olive oil?
How about some tips on how to choose a good board to purchase in the first place? My wood boards always seem to be cheap and crack into their sections.
I like wooden chopping boards because of the weight, it keeps them much more stable. I treat all mine the same way as a butchers block, using olive oil, salt and a brass wire brush. Steel is too hard and will leave grooves as I found out as a commis with a very angry violent head chef in the 70s. The salt pulls out all the dirt and stains, especially blood. I then use a scouring pad to get rid of any loose stuff, let it dry and use a low grade olive oil which I also use on salad bowls and wooden spoons (Why don’t people treat their spoons? They leave them to crack and pick up all sorts of stuff).
Thanks for your information
Do not use olive oil on a cutting board as it will go rancid!
@@markedfodeath AGREED!!! NEVER USE OLIVE OIL. Food grade mineral oil. The olive oil will go rancid as mentioned.
I wash the cutting board with sodium percarbonate.
Never ever use olive oil to season a cutting board. It will go rancid. I use either food grade mineral oil or boos brothers mystery oil.
Thank you!
Thank You
My small board has wood fuzz from cutting on it for so long and I seem to always have diagonal cut marks. If I sand It well will these disappear. How do you know when your board is a done tom turkey loI?
I’m gonna do this tomorrow,
Will start now
I’m a old guy. I never tried sanding but will. But I do wipe it down regularly with grape seed oil
Just subbed. Great channel
Much appreciated!
Is that smaller board just a beveled and finished 1x12?
would you recommend season your wooden spoons and spatulas?
You know, I just watched your knife sharpening vid and that got my mind in the space of doing some maintenance on my kitchen equipment. Probably the most beat up thing in my kitchen is my board, and somehow I knew you'd already covered it.
Any suggestions for deodorizing boards, or will removing the upper layers with the sandpaper get rid of any odors (onions, garlic mostly) that have seeped into the wood?
If youre still wondering I believe I read you can use a powdered bleach solution, dissolve it in a proper ratio with hot water, let it sit on the board for a couple of minutes and wash it away.
@@eNergievlh regular white vinegar, and some cheap table salt. Mix it into a slurry, and use a green scrub pad with some pressure. Let it sit. Rinse in the sink. Will clean and sanitize your boards and make them safe for the next day.
Hope you get more subs soon!
He did!! And well deserved
I’m a furniture maker by trade and a cook for love but I never use anything but end grain chopping boards, quite a lot of the reason for chopping boards being wood is the antibacterial resistance they have but not every wood has this plus end grain is friendly to knifes and lasts longer. I think the reasoning is that end grain repairs it’s self to the knifes cuts and because the grain runs the way it does it does not fold the knife edge over and your knife will need less repairs in it’s lifetime as will the chopping board.
A con of end-grain boards can also warp and crack more than edge-grain if they are not well made.
@@violetviolet888 This is because people make them too thin and or do not maintain them with mineral oil, all chopping boards came from butchers blocks and just take a look at how thick they are, I've made some that took 4 people to lift. If you want the best, it will cost you but it will also last forever. That doesn't mean you can continually abuse it with no maintenance and expect it to last. This is no different than a knife-edge or your car. Maintenance is key. Chopping on with grain boards will blunt your knives much quicker and you don't get as much benefit from the woods natural ability to repair it's self either.
Does this work on bamboo cutting boards too?
I have a wooden cutting board that started to discolor and mold after being mistreated but i couldn't bring myself to throw it out so i stored it away for years. I just ordered some mineral oil bring it back to life during these strange times
You might want to try and kill the mold that is on the board with a bleach solution before sanding.
Where from you got your knife holder
Never had a wood cutting board, but I’m going out and buying a few.
Hoping you bought them and have fallen in love with them. I love love love to cook and one of my fave sounds in life is hearing the knife tap the board during chopping. Such a beautiful thing. : )
@@robertbeining141 I haven’t yet, but still plan on doing it. What bar and and sizes have you gone with?
Please tell name of wood wear n conditioner used by u.
That dark cutting board should be hanging on your wall, it’s gorgeous!
I have a thick wood cutting board that has been sitting on a kitchen counter for two years in a kitchen infested with cockroaches. Im moving into a clean environment now and would like to restore the board for regular use in my new kitchen. If I follow your procedure can I be assured that any toxicity from the roaches has been eliminated, or should I just toss and replace it?
Any problems with using paper towel to spread the oil around?
Does anyone know how to get a smell out of the wood? I had a phase for a good year where I would place 2 crackers on the board, spray with olive oil then sprinkle with cinnamon (don’t judge me, it wasn’t bad). Thing is, I was living in a caravan at the time so never really washed the board properly, just wiped it with a paper towel. After I moved from there I could always smell the cinnamon no matter how thoroughly I washed it so I just shoved it in the cupboard and no longer use it. It’s a beautiful board through and was a gift so I’d love to start using it again. Any suggestions? It’s end grain if that makes a difference.
Can you use coconut oil to season the board?
My board is splitting. How do I fix that?
I have a teak cutting board I used Clark's cutting board oil on it it is food grade mineral oil but after I oiled the board it looks ashy - PLEASE HELP
if you sand after wetting it will raise the grain and give you a smother surface
I know what I'm doing today!
I got these bamboo cutting boards for Christmas, and I really like them. However, they are always getting warped and unwarped. One day I will use it, wash it, dry it off, and leave it in my kitchen, and then sometimes the next morning they won't lay flat on the counter. The first time it happened I was very upset! But then, somehow, it just randomly gets straightened out again all by itself. I think it has something to do with moisture but I'm not sure. I've rubbed a coat of oil onto it and hopefully that will help.
When you wash the board are you submerging it in water? Are you washing it front and back? You should wash it front to back, even if you haven't used the back. If you don't the board will become uneven. And unless I'm wrong, I was always taught to never submerge your board under water or to put it in the dishwasher.
@@Simply_Helen Hi, thanks for replying. You're right. It could be I wasn't washing the back every time. With my new board, I always wash it evenly and apply a coat of oil every so often.
Can we use and food grade oil ? Like canola or coconut to lube ?
No, they will go rancid
I didn't know that we can do that with cutting board.
Start doing it from now on, and invest in some bigger cutting boards as well ! Thanks.
You made really good points in this, Ethan, and thanks for the scientific paper link, too. You should send this to Adam Ragusea since he did a post on cutting boards a couple of weeks ago and was looking for a paper on the antimicrobial properties of wood. And yes, SeriousEats is always a good source.
Sure thing, I always like to include a source to back up a claim! I didn't see that video of adam's I'll have to check it out.
I see you know of Adam as well
i picked up a container of mineral oil at IKEA and have consistently oiled my boards. and even touched up some friends that needed some love
Contact me.
@@halogensarefun8674 You want your wood oiled too?
The babish music lol
Yes did he makes the music
Hi how to remove the smell of oil from wood dining table, I bought a oil from shop and I wipe all over the wood but I don’t like the smell of it what should I do to remove the smell please advise me
Thank you.
You need to remove the oil, try odourless mineral spirits, it has to be odourless and will remove the oil but will leave the wood dry.
Use a clothes rag with some OMS, use in a well ventilated area.
Don't try on chopping boards, it is not food safe.
I used to season With vegetable oil but I just found out that this can go rancid on the board! I’ve heard mineral oil Because it is tasteless and odorless. The beeswax apparently smells fantastic
How to clean it safely?
Are you supposed to season it before ever using it for the first time?
Just wanted to show some comment love.
Thank you!
Not sure to put any kind of mineral oil on a surface on which I cut my food
Fun bonus: cutting up sandpaper will actually sharpen your scissors.
Really? It seems to me it would hurt them
@@antonhelsgaun if you use a really coarse grit like 40, 60, or so, then yes.
Ethan started with 180, though, and worked up from there.
accurate ! great hack!
ehh about once a year or so I like to sand it down and reseason.....honestly I just go by how the cutting board looks.
Nice video! Please could someone give me some advice on what's the best second or third option instead of mineral oil or bee's wax? I have no access to those products where I live. I heard sunflower oil? Thanks for any info, tips.
Shellac, Pure tung oil, parrafin wax, walnut oil, fractionated/processed coconut oil, and raw linseed could work, but some tend to have odd flavors/aromas that may linger. Not to mention nut allergy risk for the walnut oil. Look into which ones you have access to and pick accordingly 👌
@@SeanQuinn4 Thanks a lot man, that helps, cheers!
Go to your local pharmacy. You can use the mineral oil they have there as it is food safe and cheaper than what you'll get online.
@@sanmurillo Thanks for the tip!
Food grade 100% mineral oil can be found in medicine aisle of grocery store or pharmacy (because it's used as a laxative, just fyi).
I use wallnut oil..
I try and clean my chopping board but find no matter what I do it feels slimy when wet, soap Brillo pads and salt don't remove the slimy feel.
Can I use this on wooden utensils?
You said this oil contain beeswax, is there a vegen option?
Mineral oil, although it's made out of billion years-old dinosaur corpses (petroleum) so who knows?
Wasn’t this video posted before?
It was posted on accident because I scheduled it for the wrong date, it was only up for like 20-30 minutes, but TH-cam wouldn't let me repost it without doing a whole new upload :(
Actually, the best trick that I have found after sanding, coat the board in mineral oil then stick it in the oven at 170° for 30 minutes repeat the process two or three times. You have to think of it the same way as seasoning cast iron. Obviously not as hot, but the heat opens up the pores of the wood and will allow it to absorb more oil and quicker...
I always just used the same olive oil I cook with.
Olive oil can turn ransid but food grade mineral oil does not. I’ve sold a lot of chopping blocks and butchers blocks you would never use olive oil on them.
this dude is so handsome *swoon*
Is it just me, or this intro song is the same as Binging with Babish'es intro song??
Why cant I just use good grade olive oil? Why mineral oil??
Me pulling mine out of the oven 30s into this video. I guess ovens arent involved in the process
I didnt know wood was safer than plastic. And that's why I stuck to plastic. Not I'm dedinantly buying a wood after I wear them out
Or you could of use round sander way faster