How To Clean A Cutting Board

Cleaning you kitchen and it's components that are used to prepare foods can protect the health of your family from food associated illnesses, and among the most basic of these is to clean the kitchen cutting board frequently. When considered how often the average home utilizes a cutting board in the kitchen, it is probably the single largest potential threat to continued good health. Cleaning the kitchen cutting board requires that it not only be cleaned with soap and water to appear clean, but must also be sanitized with stains removed and stored properly for future use. Whether the cutting board in your kitchen is made of wood or plastic has no bearing, as each need to be germ-free prior to each occasion it is used in preparing meals.

The first step to cleaning the kitchen cutting board is to scrape all visible food particles from the board and then wash the board with soap using the hottest water available. For homeowners that have a dishwasher with an antibacterial cycle this task can be completed with less effort by placing the cutting board in the dishwasher - if not, good old-fashioned hand scrubbing with a piece of steel wool works just as well in most instances.

After washing, if the kitchen cutting board appears to be stained it is not really clean because the stains represent remainders of foods. A great tip for cleaning the kitchen cutting board and removing the build up of stains is to purchase an ordinary box of sea salt. Wet the cutting board with hot water and while still warm quickly pour a liberal amount of sea salt on the stained areas and allow it to sit over night. The next morning rinse the cutting board thoroughly in hot water. Next in a small cup add several tablespoons of sea salt and a very small amount of water, stirring the mixture into a thick paste. Use this paste and a small stiff scrub brush to eliminate any remaining stains and then wash the cutting board in soap and water and allow it to dry.

The last steps to clean the kitchen cutting board is to sanitize the item and then to store it away properly until the next use. Spray the cutting board with a mixture of one part chlorine bleach and three parts water and allow it to sit for at least ten minutes. Wash and rinse the cutting board once again using soap and water and then allow it to air dry. When dry the cutting board can be stored by wrapping it in ordinary plastic kitchen wrap.