Can I Put My Cutting Board in the Dishwasher?
After you get done using your cutting board, you might wonder how you’re going to clean it. Without knowing how to efficiently and safely clean it, you may damage it. It’s important to know what you’re doing before you throw money down the drain.
You can put your cutting board in the dishwasher if it is made from thick plastic or glass and labeled dishwasher safe. However, cutting boards made from thin plastic, wood, metal, or other materials, like granite, should not be put in the dishwasher.
Though a dishwasher could damage your cutting board, there are many ways to clean your cutting board efficiently. Depending on the material and thickness of the cutting board, there is the perfect option which you can find below.
Below is a list of our top recommended cutting board cleaners which are safe to use.
CLARK’S Cutting Board Organic Soap – Orange & Lemon Extracts
Clark’s cutting board organic soap is made of orange and lemon extracts. Not only is this a safe choice, the 12oz container should last a long time. This soap doesn’t have any harsh soaps, thickeners or gels making it a great choice.
Howard Products CBC012 Cutting Board Cleaner – Coconut & Lemon Oil
This board cleaner by Howard Products is also a nice and safe choice for all butcher blocks and cutting boards. Not only is it safe, but it gives off a fresh scent, as it consists of coconut and lemon oil. Like the Clark’s organic soap, you get 12oz, which will last a long time unless you are using your cutting boards daily.
Clark’s Natural Cutting Board Spray Cleaner & Microcloth – Easiest to Use
Clark’s natural cutting board spray is by far the easiest to use. On top of that, this cleaner comes with a microfber cloth as well, so great value. Like the other two cleaners mentioned above, this cleaner is derived of natural ingredients such as castile soap, lemon and orange citrus oil extracts, and also comes in 12 ounces.
Any one of these 3 products listed above are derived of natural ingredients, and are very nice having around. This will save you time by easily being able to whip out your cleaning product and stir up a concoction of salt and lemon each time.
Can I Put My Cutting Board in the Dishwasher?
Though people sometimes manage to wash non-dishwasher safe items in a dishwasher, it is not worth the risk considering that some of these items can cost a pretty penny. You may even risk other dishes inside the dishwasher getting damaged in the process.
If you put a cutting board not made to withstand the heat and moisture of a dishwasher in for a cycle, you are risking a whole list of potential issues. Below are a few of those issues you might see arise:
Warping
If your cutting board begins to warp, that means it’ll bend out of shape and twist into something that can no longer be used. A flat surface is important in a cutting board, and if it begins to warp, that flat surface will most likely be gone. This is commonly seen with thin plastic cutting boards.
Melting
If your cutting board begins to melt, it will no longer be usable in any way. It’ll most likely drip onto other dishes causing you to waste a good chunk of change. While the other potential issues only affect the cutting board, this issue can affect multiple dishes and even the dishwasher itself.
Though the melting may not be as severe, it is still important to avoid this if at all possible. You can never guarantee a small amount of melting or none at all.
Cracking
If your wood cutting board begins to crack, it will become difficult to use it. The surface will become uneven and it may disrupt your cutting process. Though washing your cutting board once may only cause small cracks, continuous washing in the dishwasher could cause it to split in half.
Wood Cutting Boards
Wood cutting boards are very common, and they are also the most important in keeping out of the dishwasher. If you’ve ever owned any wooden dishes, you’d probably know that they aren’t recommended for dishwashers. That is because they tend to warp and crack.
Deformities tend to appear on wood when the moisture content is changed unevenly in several parts of the wood. Therefore, anything that is wooden should be hand washed and left to air dry if at all possible. A few drops of water won’t hurt as long as it dries quickly, but a dishwasher would drench the wood for over an hour, causing warping to form.
If you have ever had a floor that is wooden, you might be very familiar with warping. When unwanted moisture enters the floor, it tends to lift and separate. That can become very frustrating. That is essentially what happens when wooden cutting boards are washed.
Bamboo Cutting Boards
There are also bamboo cutting boards that are usually grouped in with wooden cutting boards, but bamboo actually isn’t wood despite the visual similarities. However, those similarities do not translate in other ways.
Though bamboo still isn’t recommended for dishwashers, it actually will retain its shape and will not soak in water like wood keeping it from warping. The issue with bamboo and dishwashers actually lies in the excessive heat.
If you’re interested in less maintenance with bamboo cutting boards, you might want to consider buying one instead of wooden cutting boards. You won’t have to deal with any warping or cracking keeping you from worrying too much about using mineral oil or beeswax to maintain the cutting board’s shape.
Glass Cutting Boards
Glass Cutting Boards are commonly used as decoration rather than an actual cutting board. If you do indeed use it to cut food, you should use it lightly. It isn’t made to resist a sharp knife scraping against it, and you can dull your knife if doing so or even chip the blades which can lead to finding shards of the blade in your food!
If you have a glass cutting board, it probably has a sleek and pretty design which is perfect to showcase in your kitchen. It’s there to add color to the kitchen, and if you ever find yourself needing to cut something quickly, you can use it. Just don’t make that a habit.
Glass cutting boards are mostly dishwasher safe, and there is no proof that shows you shouldn’t do so. With that said, glass cutting boards are only cutting boards to be completely dishwasher safe.
Plastic Cutting Boards
With plastic cutting boards, the answer is much more complicated than the other options as it all depends on the cutting board. If you have a thin cutting board, do not put it in the dishwasher! Doing so could cause it to melt and bend due to the heat. A thicker cutting board should be fine, but it’s still no guarantee it will hold in the dishwasher.
Dishwashers vary in temperature, and if you can possibly turn down the temperature, that would help your chances of still having a cutting board to use after you take it out. Otherwise, you should be very cautious.
If the cutting board does melt, it could potentially ruin other dishes. Though that doesn’t always, happen, it is still a concern you should be aware of. It could potentially only appear deformed with bends and twists that shouldn’t be there. Either way, a flat surface is important when it comes to cutting boards.
How Should Cutting Boards be Cleaned?
If you’ve decided that you shouldn’t clean your cutting board in your dishwasher, you are probably wondering what other choices you have. While wooden and glass cutting boards have a clear way to be cleaned, it is a little more complicated with plastic cutting boards.
If you have used a plastic cutting board before, you may have noticed that the softer surface is susceptible to grooves and cuts caused by the knife. If you haven’t figured this out yet, the grooves and cuts are easily filled with bacteria that are very difficult to clean-out.
Though a dishwasher is probably the best way to clean plastic cutting boards, it isn’t guaranteed to completely clean off the bacteria. Furthermore, some plastic cutting boards aren’t dishwasher safe. With this said, it can be very difficult to clean them effectively.
However, glass and wooden cutting boards are much easier to clean. Glass cutting boards can easily be cleaned in the dishwasher, and wooden cutting boards aren’t much harder. Below is a step-by-step guide to cleaning wooden cutting boards.
- Scrape or scrub any leftover food or residue with a sponge or anything else that will do the job effectively.
- Use soap and water to wash it.
- Rinse with water to flush any bacteria off the surface.
- You can disinfect with white vinegar spray, but this is optional.
- Make sure to dry the cutting board completely or it could warp.
Can I Put My Cutting Board in the Dishwasher? Now You Know
Before throwing your cutting board in your dishwasher, you should think about how the material will hold up in such heat and wet conditions. While wood could warp and plastic could melt if thin enough, glass cutting boards are safe for the dishwasher. They open up a whole other can of worms though.
