Surprisingly Natural Way To Deodorise Your Chopping Board

As you may have seen all the horror stories on TV, the internet, your magazines and even more shockingly the list on the back of the bottle! There is a huge debate on the use of chemical ingredients in household cleaners. This along with an extensive amount of research online has lead me to begin switching my household over to a more natural way of cleaning the home, hence the discovery of this very simple but effective way to deodorise my chopping board.

This recipe if you can call it that! Is so straightforward that you will wonder why you haven't used it before, it will leave your wooden chopping board feeling refreshed, invigorated and smelling lovely.

There are two main elements to this cleaning recipe, and well a bonus third if you want to get all fancy! The below are all products that are pretty much store cupboard staples, however if you do not have these in your home, then you will be able to easily get them online if you are willing to wait, or alternatively you can get them from your local grocery store. They are all relatively cheap products with the third being the dearest. Don't worry too much about the cost though as they will not break the bank and all can be used in a wide spectrum of ways around the house, in your personal care and more so in your cooking.

The first one is salt. I specifically use Pink Himalayan salt as this is the variety that I have in the cupboard, however sea salt or any other salt will do just fine. The reason salt is used is due to the fact that it has strong antibacterial properties, that will help clean and sanitise your board whilst your deodorising it. The salt inhibits bacteria growth whilst soaking up any moisture from your board.

The second is lemon. Lemon is just one of those things that your house has a million uses for, you have probably heard your grandparents say that back in their day all they used to clean was lemon, vinegar and old fashioned newspaper! And if you think back do you ever remember your grandparents houses being unclean... No? I thought not! Lemon is not only antibacterial it is also antimicrobial, meaning that when coupled with salt your board will be fresh as a daisy!

The third optional ingredient, as I say if you fancy being fancy is coconut oil. This is used to reinvigorate your board after all that scrubbing, you could also use mineral oil. I personally used coconut oil as this is known to have a high resistance to rancidity.

This first step is simple, wipe your chopping board so that it is clear from any debris. If you have a natural cleaner then you may want to use this lightly, to bring you that extra boost of antibacterial properties to your chopping board. You can use a microfiber cloth to do this step, as they are like little Dyson's of the fabric world!

Once you have wiped down your chopping board, the next step is to scatter your salt about the chopping board. Try and make sure that your chopping board is well covered, and that your salt is pretty in pink!

I have found that around five tablespoons of salt gives my chopping board an even coverage. However, as you can see from the picture it is rather large as chopping boards go! So you may wish to use less or more depending on your chopping board size.

Allow the salt to sit on the chopping board for several minutes, this will help the salt draw out any residual moisture before applying the lemon.

Chop them in half and put one half in the fridge for later when you use it in other cleaners, or homemade lemon tea! Yum! Take the half that you are not going to be devouring and flip it so it is face side (flesh side) down and give it a good squeeze, remembering to move up and down the board ensuring even coverage.

Once you have done this, plonk the lemon down on your chopping board ready for the next step.

That's right you have guessed it, the next step is to apply light pressure to your lemon and begin scrubbing the chopping board, particularly in a circular motion. The idea is to really put those antibacterial and antimicrobial properties to work.

Ensure that you cover the whole chopping board like this, I usually do it for at least five minutes, you will notice that the salt will become almost like a discoloured paste (it will look like the image below) but don't stop or be discouraged when you see this, as it is all the dirt being removed from your chopping board.

Once you have completed your five minute workout, then you will want to remove the lemon and the salt from the chopping board, ensure that you have a nice smooth surface all ready for the next step.

This is the final step to deodorising your chopping board. This step is the one that is totally optional, however I would personally recommend it, as it helps to pro long the life and use of your chopping board.

Once you have cleaned your chopping board of any debris, you will want to take a clean lint free cloth to dip into your coconut oil, once you have a decent amount on your cloth, work in a circular motion covering the entire chopping board. Ensure you have covered every millimetre I recommend to re-dip your cloth and work horizontally as well as vertically across your chopping board.

Leave this to dry naturally before reusing your chopping board, also make sure that it is left to dry away from any strong odours.

Well there you have it, a simple but effective way of naturally deodorising your chopping board. I personally do the method above once every three months, which I find is more than enough to keep the chopping board in tip top shape, however you may wish to do yours more frequently if it is under heavy use.

Now, all that is left to do after this workout is slice up that remaining lemon from the fridge, boil the kettle and have some lovely honey and lemon tea to relax, after all we have earned it right?

Thank you for reading the article, I do appreciate it and I hope it helps you make cleaning become natural by naturally cleaning! If you are interested in this then please check out my other hubs that I have on natural household care, along with natural personal care as well.