I've heard that butcherblock countertops are unsanitary. This bothers me because it seems like it'd be really cool to have a whole countertop that you could use as a cutting board. Is this type of countertop something that is easy to keep clean, or should I steer away from it?
i've heard this, too. i've also heard that as long as you are careful about sanitizing the wood countertops they're safe. so I guess it depends on how good you are at cleaning them after every use with some kind of antibacterial cleaner.
don't put one near the sink tho. you're risking water damage. look at one of the quartz surfaces instead. you can cut on those without damaging them, but it's kind of hard on the knife. you'd have to sharpen the knives more often, but you wouldn't have to worry about bacteria nearly as much.
Any cutting surface that scratches will harbor germs, so you would not want to cut directly on the countertop regardless of the surface. Butcher blocks are kept 'clean' by physically removeing the top surface every day with a scraper. I doubt that they use butcher blocks even in buther shops anymore to cut on. I think they are attractive, but I would not use them for cutting.
Actually studies have been done that showed if you placed a colony of bacteria on an oiled wood counter and a plastic counter, the bacteria was killed off in 3 minutes on the wood surface and the plastic surface the bacteria had multiplied.It is believed that the tannic acids in wood act as an anti bacterial. If you use Urethane as a protectant, it acts the same as a plastic counter
If you want to use wood around water, use a tropical hardwood such as teak or most any wood that grows in wet or swampy areas. Yellow Pine works well. These woods have a lot of natural oils in them that help keep from staining
Butcher Blocks have been used for over a hundred fifty years. Go down to a local shop and see for yourself. My dad was a butcher in my kitchen i have his butcher block it is a 30 x 30 x 14 thick block of maple set on the end grain. They are still used and considered safer and more sanitary by the FDA for a few reasons. One when you cut on them a deep cut mark or scratch can be removed with sandpaper and two the food does not penetrate into the wood as long as you keep it oiled with Mineral oil. The oil causes the wood to swell and seals the pores, so that no food can penetrate and fester their. The plastic is fallible as it scratches and will hold food and bacteria and let it go where it can grow. A few Years ago the FDA did a test of the butcher blocks and the plastic stuff for bacteria growth and the plastic lost, that’s why you still see them in butcher shops, nothings better. The block that I have is set on end grain which is the way they are supposed to be made so that the pores can soak up the oil and they are harder. I know the counter tops are not but I would suspect a solid maple top would do just fine. One more thing you need to wipe the top down once a week or so with a week bleach solution to kill bugs. If you really want to see a butcher block go to www.johnboos.com, mine was made their in 1947. I talked to the man who made it. He was an apprentice at the time 15 years old.
There is really no problem with butcher block countertops. You use wooden cutting boards, don't you? Clean the countertops regularly with Clorox and you will have no germs! Also, the scratches and imperfections just add to the character.
I found a product that I coat mine with called Salad Bowl Finish. It is food safe and easy to keep. I like it so well I plan to make more of my counter top into oak cuttingboard.
as a chef i agree that butcherblock makes a great surface that is both sanitary and better than most other surfaces on knives. but current health codes out law the use of wood in most comercial kitichens as the move in the food safty world is to color-coded plastic cutting boards for use with different food groups. i.e green for vegies, red for beef, yellow for poultry, ect. as for the kitichen at home, i use a wood butcher block surface for baking products that are not wet and a solid surface material in ares that are subjected to moisture, like my sink areas. i also seal my butcher block surface with a comercial butcher block finish, actualy a food grade mineral oil. a good bakery should beable to sell you some. for safty reasons i use plastic boards to cut on for everything eles, besides protecting the solid surface materal, it saves the edge on your knives. a dull knife is dangerous.
Yes, butcher block counter tops are still used and are the best for cutting surfaces.
A few clarifications from previous posters:
Oak is not the best wood to make a cutting surface out of. Oak has an open grain and it lets food and bacteria into the wood thats hard to get out. Hard Maple is the best cutting surface.
The best way to "treat" a wood cutting surface is with pure food grade mineral oil. It's a treatment instead of a "finish" because it never dries to a hard finish. Finishes that dry to a hard finish should not be used on cutting surfaces. Salad bowl finish is great for cheese boards and salad bowls, but not for cutting surfaces.
End grain butcher blocks are the best for your knives because when you cut on the surface, your knife blade goes in between the wood fibers then the fibers go back together when your blade is removed. When you cut on an edge grain surface, your knife actually saws the fibers in half and they don't repair themselves. This is also harder on your blades.
Stay away from exotic woods such as red heart, purple heart and teak for cutting surfaces. These woods are tropical and have oils that are toxic to humans. When we work with purpleheart in our shop, we get very red hands from the oils that come out of the wood and irritate our skin.
Cooks illustrated had a great article in October of last year touting wood versus plastic.
Cleaning and maintaining butcher block countertops is fairly easy. Most butcher block counters are sealed to protect the wood and only need to be cleaned with a mild soap and water after each use. It also depends upon the type of wood used to make the butcher block. Maple is a common wood used and it has a tight grain with small pores, this is helpful in keeping bacteria out. Other woods are more porous and need additional cleaning. Here is a terrific site that has videos and information about butcher block countertop care
Posts: 8 | Location: WV | Registered: 02 October 2008
