Most woodworkers make a cutting board at one point or another. Some of us even get addicted to making these simple but beautiful accept pieces to adorn our own kitchen, and the kitchens of others.
Finishing a cutting board is simple, but there are a few things to keep in mind. Cutting boards have a couple unique attributes that lead to some important requirements when it comes to finishing.
First, they come in contact with food, so you will want to use finishes that are FDA approved for food contact. Second, they get abused regularly with knives, hot soapy water and abrasive sponges for cleaning, which constitutes a hostile environment for any finish.
Those two factors suggest that your “old faithful” approaches for finishing furniture and other projects, such as lacquer or polyurethane, aren’t likely to be a good option here.
Important factors to consider when selecting a cutting board finish include:
Toxicity: Is the finishing product free of harmful chemicals such as mineral spirits and drying agents that would be unhealthy to place in contact with food? Would the Food and Drug Administration endorse the product for food contact applications?
Surface build-up or penetrating finish: As much as you want your cutting board to look beautiful on the day it was created, you also want it to continue to look good over its useful life.
Surface build up finishes tend to get sliced up through regular contact with knives, so in my opinion they do not provide a good option for cutting boards. Instead, I favor finishes that penetrate into the fibers of the wood and reside there, rather than building up on the surface.
Will it go rancid: Since your cutting board will live in the kitchen, you might be tempted to wipe it down after each use with vegetable oil that you have on hand.
If you use your cutting board daily, that might actually be ok. If the cutting board ever sits unused and unwashed for an extended period, however, the oil can go rancid. That would lead to unpleasant odors and a food safety concern the next time the cutting board was used.
Allergens: Since the cutting board will be in regular contact with food, it is advisable to avoid using any finishing products that contain substances that might cause an allergic reaction. Walnut oil is one that raises such a concern with some people.
The question of whether walnut oil can trigger an allergic reaction in people who suffer a tree nut allergy is an often-debated topic, but with even the remote chance of it, I avoid using it on cutting boards that I sell.
Test results: I tested several different products to determine which ones would provide the nicest looking cutting board, with the easiest maintenance and best durability.
I found that none of the products were extremely durable to the frequent scrubbing that a cutting board must endure, so the best approach is to ensure that your chosen cutting board finish is easy to reapply and the board looks good again following application.
Based on the testing results, the products that I primarily use for finishing cutting boards are:
Howard Cutting Board Oil: A mineral oil-based product enriched with vitamin E for stability. This product penetrates deeply into the wood fibers, preserving the wood and making it look nice.
Howard Butcher Block Conditioner: This product contains mineral oil along with a blend of food-safe waxes. The wax provides some additional water resistance, and also fills in small cut marks on the wood to improve the appearance of the wood.
I apply the cutting board oil, letting it continue to soak into the wood until the wood will not accept any more. Then I’ll apply Butcher Block Conditioner as a top coat for additional protection. After the wax dries, I buff it out with a soft cloth to bring the wood to a lustrous glow.
For all of the testing and product details, watch the video on the ToolMetrix YouTube channel:
Paul Mayer is a guest blogger. He operates under the name "ToolMetrix" (because of his passion for detailed tool analysis) and his work can be found on his:
YouTube Channel: (youtube.com/c/ToolMetrix)
