291 replies to this topic

[andiesenji]

thanks for the reply, octaveman,

that's what I suggested and she nearly jumped down my throat.

BTW, can someone please explain what mineral oil is? I am not sure what it is called here in Oz....

thanks

Dario

you have to get it in a pharmacy (chemists/drug store) it might be labeled as "Food-Grade" liquid paraffin.
It is also used as a laxative in this form and is safe to ingest. It is part of the mixture that goes into waxes for coating cheeses, etc.
Do not use any of the paraffin oils used for lamps, etc. They have additives that are harmful.

If you can't find anything else, you can melt beeswax (carefully) which shouldn't be that difficult to find and while it is still liquid, rub it vigorously into the board. Some woodworkers use a commercial product that is a mixture of beeswax and mineral oil on bowls and wood utensils but I don't know if it is available in OZ.

Edited by andiesenji, 21 October 2006 - 09:24 AM.

[dario]

thanks for the reply, if I find the liquid paraffin I better keep it separate from my beer......

[Lisa Shock]

I have a cutting board that I purchased in 1985 from a Delancy Street group that made them by hand. It has worked well over the years, it's an inch thick with alternating strips of cherry and maple woods. I never oiled it, and never had any issues. I always figured that one day, I'd just sand it down a bit.

Anyway, my husband started chopping at thick, refrigerated chunks of chocolate by taking a cheap knife and holding the knife perpendicular to the board, tip in the chocolate, and hammering at the end of the handle with his fist until the chocolate split apart. Well, one day, the cutting board split apart. I was going to have a cutting board repair guy I know re-glue it, but, I noticed that it now has hundreds of tiny indentations in the surface from the knife being driven into it. Also, some of the other seams are iffy.

So, the husband has offered to buy me a new board. (and he is relegated to hacking at things with his cheap knives on a bamboo board) I am looking around, and have decided against bamboo because of its hardness. I am seeing acacia wood a lot now, and I am not very familiar with it as a cutting board medium. (one site said it was sustainably harvested, which is good) Other woods I am seeing are maple, teak and cherry -as well as generic hardwood. I'd appreciate any insight into how these woods compare to each other, and how they hold up. I am thinking that end-grain is the way to go, other than that, I can't decide.

[Moopheus]

I bought one of the 1" thick Sani-Tuff Cutting Boards shortly after Ms. Hesser's review in the NY Times.  It's nice and heavy, doesn't move around, cleans up nice, but it's a little pricey.  On the other hand, I've had it for almost 7 years now, and it's not showing any signs of wear.  It's probably the last cutting board I'll ever buy...

I still don't know why these boards haven't taken the culinary world by storm. They are the best cutting boards around. They're made of a hard rubber that still gives like wood when cutting (i.e., much softer than the white plastic boards). They can be sanded down like wood. They can be put in the dishwasher. If they warp, put them in a warm oven for a few minutes and all will be flat again. They last forever. Sure, they're heavy and a bit expensive, but there's really nothing like these.

I've had mine for years, and I hate it when I have to use anything but this cutting board.

I'd guess because it doesn't look upscale enough to justify the price. I got one a few years ago at a restaurant supply shop, and I agree, I prefer it to anything else I've used. But it is kinda ugly. It's not going to impress anybody. Your neighbor sees a John Boos board and they know you spent money on it; they see a Sani-Tuff and they'll probably think it came from the dollar store.

[Blether]

Following the older-but-immediately previous discussion above, I'll mention that here in Japan I sourced mineral oil for my cutting board from an online cosmetics-supplies store - Shizen Keshouhin Kenkyuujo. Apparently you use it as a base for facial cleanser ?

Pharmacies here looked askance when I asked for 食用鉱油 'shokuyoukouyu', edible mineral oil, but I think even if I'd said what turns out to be more common, 'mineraru oiru' they still wouldn't have had it.

[cbread]

I use the biggest plastic board I could get from a restaurant supply store and then add nine rubber feet - three rows of three rubber feet each, so the board won't trap a puddle underneath it. The feet are the little round ones with a very short screw so as not to stick out the top of the board. Size is 18x24" . I don't see the point of little boards if I have the space. I might get a slightly bigger board if I found it. I had my countertop built 30" deep, so I wouldn't run out of room. My plastic restaurant cutting board isn't a bit stylish, but I'm very happy with it.

If you want a oil or wax based surface treatment to rub into a board, you might try the salad bowl glop I make. Take mineral oil, easily found at the supermarket as a food grade home remedy. Warm maybe half the final volume you want of mineral oil in a double boiler. Melt shreds of beeswax into the hot mineral oil. I do it by eye and couldn't give you a ratio for beeswax to mineral oil, but I can tell you how to get it how you want it. Take a piece of paper towel and dip it into the mix and treat a salad bowl or your cutting board. As you add bees wax the mix will begin to become too stiff to easily spread as it rapidly cools on contact with the wood surface. Stop adding beeswax at that point, and add back just a little more mineral oil. You should have a great mix. I usually make a quary or so and keep it an old metal coffee can. It will last forever.

Should you want a fancy wood board like the ones on the food network, you can get the one used on the food network. As far as I can tell from their website, http://ozarkwest.com makes the gorgeous wood end grain boards on the food network shows. At least the photos are the best looking boards I've seen. If I ever decide I need a really beautiful wood board, that will probably be my pick.

[tme4tls]

Lisa-

Hard maple is the traditional wood used for cutting boards here in the States. Hard, dense, durable and heavy, it will serve for years with care. However, some national manufacturers infuse their maple boards with a resin hardener in an attempt to harden the surface which can cause chipping in some of the harder Japanese knives.

Acacia is seen a lot in cheaper boards. Certainly usable and has a look similar to walnut but with more voids in the wood. Not a soft wood, it is 1.25 times harder than maple. Also, they are not made here in the USA so the manufacturing plants may not come up to American standards and the glues used may not be able to withstand repeated washings.

Teak is not a good choice. It is 2.5 times harder than maple and contains silica which can sand down the edge of a good knife.

Cherry is a great choice. Softer than maple, beautiful color that will turn darker over time and durable in an end grain board. Is not as expensive as walnut but still has an expensive appearance.

End grain is the best construction method. When the knife edge contacts the cutting surface, the wood fibers relax a little bit and allow the edge to penetrate slightly. When the edge is removed, the wood fibers may show a cut but not severed fibers as with cheaper long grain boards.

David
The BoardSMITH

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Edited by tme4tls, 09 January 2010 - 03:50 AM.

[paulraphael]

I do it by eye and couldn't give you a ratio for beeswax to mineral oil, but I can tell you how to get it how you want it.

I make the same glop ... 10% wax by weight works great. I also find parafin works just as well as beeswax. I've been going back and forth and can't tell the difference in practice.

End grain boards drink a LOT of oil/wax. Mine needed to be oiled daily for a week or so, a few times a week for many weeks after. Finally it stabilized; now I oil it once a month at most. Be sure to oil it on both sides, especially in the beginning, so you don't encourage it to warp.

Dave at Boardsmith makes the nicest boards I've seen or used.

[qrn]

I use 1/2" Poly boards from the rest/butcher supply places. I cut them to size , so they fit in the D/W either horiz or vertical...Always have at least 2 in a load...
I make antique repro furniture and pool cues, so I have lots of wood available, and the equipment to make the "best", wood boards...Waste of time,,, Poly is best..IMHO,, (with which, that, and $10.00 will get you a cup of coffee most anywhere......
Bud

[Lisa Shock]

Thanks guys, I wound up getting a maple/cherry checkerboard end grain cutting board from a local place that is about to stop making wood cutting boards entirely. I will see how it works out, if it doesn't, I'll order one of yours, David.

[Blether]

Did you get your board yet ?

[Lisa Shock]

Oh yes, they sent it right away. I am a bit disappointed because it isn't the board shown in the pictures and it appears to be very resinated because it's very hard, smooth, and feels cold and kind of artificial. There are several squares where there is clearly filler material around knots. It appears to be THIS board. It's also 2 inches longer in one dimension than my old board, but weighs less.

So, I don't really want to spend $12 to return it, and it didn't cost much, so, I am going to keep it to use in photgraphs and as a backup, and look at getting on of David's boards in a few weeks when I am on my feet with my new job that starts next week.

I know you are wondering why I bought the checkerboard instead of the plain board you liked, and, in retrospect that's probably what I should have gotten. The reason is that a patterned board, for me, is easier to practice knife cuts on. (I don't need flashy decor in the kitchen.)

[Blether]

I'm sorry to hear you're disappointed in it. I found that that finish isn't so hard - the knife blade goes through it and in a month or two I think you'll see it wear through in places. My guess is it's wood oil or similar - a more practical hand than me (or the maker) should be able to tell you how to remove it if you'd prefer. I can see why they finish it that way, for the general market, and I couldn't resist a big, inch-and-a-quarter hardwood butcher-block board for 30-odd bucks.

[Chris Hennes]

Finally, after having the lumber sitting in the garage for the better part of a year, I finished my new cutting board. End grain maple, finished dimensions are 16.25" x 21.75" x 2.25". The Nakiri sitting on it is 12" in total length, for size reference.

[KennethT]

Beautiful job, Chris!

[heidih]

Yes Chris -magnifico! - I just want to give it a hug and would be scared to make the first cut.

[eldereno]

Great board! What did you decide to treat it with?

[dcarch]

Beautiful board! Are you using one side only? I use oneside for meats and one side for veggies.

For those of you who have wood cutting boards, you can get a carbide wood planer blade/knife as a scraper. makes cleaning and flattening the surface much easier.

dcarch

[Chris Hennes]

Great board! What did you decide to treat it with?

Just mineral oil. I thought about doing the mineral oil/wax treatment suggested above, but decided to go the easy route this time around and see how it goes.

[Chris Hennes]

Beautiful board! Are you using one side only?

Yeah, one side only. I never cut meat on the board in this spot, I have another for that purpose.

[weinoo]

End grain boards drink a LOT of oil/wax. Mine needed to be oiled daily for a week or so, a few times a week for many weeks after. Finally it stabilized; now I oil it once a month at most. Be sure to oil it on both sides, especially in the beginning, so you don't encourage it to warp.

Dave at Boardsmith makes the nicest boards I've seen or used.

Very excited with my new board from Dave...



So, here's my question: This board wants to suck up a lot of oil. I sent an email to Dave and he suggested:

Apply oil as needed. You can apply too much so a little will go a long way.

I guess I'm confused as to what is too much?

[Todd in Chicago]

Chris....

I'm having trouble locating your site to place my order. LOL...BEEEEAAAUTTIFUL!!!

Cheers....

Todd in Chicago