# Hawk: Cutting Boards **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [June 12, 2007, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hawk-cutting-boards/407711 "2007-06-12T15:08:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![LivingDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e8c25b/32.png) [@LivingDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LivingDog)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2007, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hawk-cutting-boards/407711/1 "2007-06-12T15:08:31Z")
Excellent straight dope - totally unconfused me about this massively confusing issue. The bit of humor injected into the article made it pleasurable to read. I am a teacher by occupation and now have a new benchmark for teaching my classes. (that’s not a ‘gush’ is it?) Thanks SD! -LD * * * [my faith](http://www.angelfire.com/ny5/jbc33/) ---
**Author:** ![Nametag](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nametag/32/406_2.png) [@Nametag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nametag)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2007, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hawk-cutting-boards/407711/2 "2007-06-13T04:42:01Z")
And the link is: [http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mcuttingbd.html](http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mcuttingbd.html) ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2007, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hawk-cutting-boards/407711/3 "2007-06-13T04:55:42Z")
Do people really prepare chicken and then use the same (inadequately cleaned) cutting board to prepare salad? I’ve never seen this happen. ---
**Author:** ![Amblydoper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/fbc32d/32.png) [@Amblydoper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amblydoper)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2007, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hawk-cutting-boards/407711/4 "2007-06-13T06:00:24Z")
“inadequately” is the key word here. People may “clean” the cutting board, but they won’t sanitize it. I wish home kitchens were subject to the same scrutinizing health inspections that our professional kitchens are. And also, very accurate article, Hawk. Now I go to find these ruberized cutting boards you speak of… ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2007, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hawk-cutting-boards/407711/5 "2007-06-13T14:08:57Z")
> [@](#): > > Maybe you’ll just give up on cooking and eat Ho-Ho’s for the rest of your life. OK, what’s a Ho-Ho? ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2007, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hawk-cutting-boards/407711/6 "2007-06-13T14:17:32Z")
[QUOTE=Colophon] OK, what’s a Ho-Ho? [/QUOTE] [Ho-Ho.](http://www.burningangel.com/archives/HoHo.jpg) A brand name of cheap “Swiss roll” baked good. It’s a thin chocolate cake, smeared with some sort of shelf stable imitation whipped cream that’s then rolled like a jelly roll and coated in a thin layer of chocolatish icing. Available in twin packs for 50 cents or boxes of 6 twins packs (or is it four?) for about $1.50. A staple of children’s lunchboxes and potheads munchies. ETA: By the way, here’s a link to a website selling the [rubber cutting boards](http://www.thematking.com/business_industry/we-aint-just-mats/cutting-boards/topchoice-rubber.htm) mentioned in the article. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2007, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hawk-cutting-boards/407711/7 "2007-06-13T14:40:30Z")
[QUOTE=WhyNot] By the way, here’s a link to a website selling the [rubber cutting boards](http://www.thematking.com/business_industry/we-aint-just-mats/cutting-boards/topchoice-rubber.htm) mentioned in the article. [/QUOTE] Wow. Only 25¢ per square inch. ---
**Author:** ![DSYoungEsq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c6cbf5/32.png) [@DSYoungEsq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSYoungEsq)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2007, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hawk-cutting-boards/407711/8 "2007-06-13T15:58:14Z")
[QUOTE=Shoshana] Do people really prepare chicken and then use the same (inadequately cleaned) cutting board to prepare salad? I’ve never seen this happen. [/QUOTE] People do it all the time, even people who know better. I know a Family and Consumer Sciences teacher at a local high school, who definitely knows better, who will do it without thinking about it, or will think about it, then inadequately clean it anyway. Note that adequate cleaning of the chicken board requires much more than soap and water. ---
**Author:** ![SiXSwordS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/49beb7/32.png) [@SiXSwordS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SiXSwordS)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2007, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hawk-cutting-boards/407711/9 "2007-06-19T21:56:22Z")
I can honestly say that I’ve never washed either of my cutting boards (I use one for meat and one for veggies) with anything other than soap and water. While I’ve made my share of “rush trips to the bathroom,” I don’t think I have ever done so after eating my own cooking. I have recently started buying whole chickens and cutting them up at home, so I’m sure I spread a _lot_ more chicken goo around the counter. None of the sites or books I’ve used to work on my butchery mention anything specifically about using bleach or anything other than soap and water to clean up. (Each one mentions the importance of good kitchen habits, but none seem to warn against expecting soap and water to sufficiently clean up the counter, the cutting board, the knives, the walls, the ceiling, the windows, unwary children etc, etc.) [e.g:](http://home.howstuffworks.com/how-to-cook-poultry-cooking1.htm)…cutting boards and knives must be washed in hot sudsy water after using and hands must be scrubbed thoroughly before and after handling [raw chicken]. ---
**Author:** ![Key\_Lime\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/48db29/32.png) [@Key\_Lime\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Key_Lime_Guy)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2007, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hawk-cutting-boards/407711/10 "2007-06-19T22:03:20Z")
I really like those Clorox Wipes. How do they rate in terms of sanitizing a cutting board after chicken? ---
**Author:** ![Jake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f475e1/32.png) [@Jake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jake)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2007, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hawk-cutting-boards/407711/11 "2007-06-21T15:02:47Z")
[QUOTE=Key Lime Guy] I really like those Clorox Wipes. How do they rate in terms of sanitizing a cutting board after chicken? [/QUOTE] After washing with hot water & soap? They might work on washed knives (be careful) but I’d like my cutting board to be immersed in bleached water for a few minutes at least. (Just my opinion) ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2007, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hawk-cutting-boards/407711/12 "2007-06-21T20:20:49Z")
[QUOTE=adam yax] Wow. Only 25¢ per square inch. [/QUOTE] Am I getting whooshed here. That’s $36 per square foot! I like at least 2 suare feet so that’s $72 for one cutting board. I bought a set of four thin-plastic ones for $12 minus a Bed Bath & Beyond 20% Off coupon. ---
**Author:** ![SiXSwordS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/49beb7/32.png) [@SiXSwordS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SiXSwordS)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2007, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hawk-cutting-boards/407711/13 "2007-06-22T14:59:55Z")
[QUOTE=garygnu] Am I getting whooshed here. \ [/QUOTE] Nope! However, the $.25 figure is for a custom board 1/2" thick. The closest stock board they have to what you want looks like [4469-016-1331](http://www.thematking.com/business_industry/we-aint-just-mats/cutting-boards/topchoice-rubber.htm) (same link as above) 18" x 24" for $74.47. The 36" x 96" goes for $613.78. Same board, 1" thick: $1,012.51 That’s 67.7264 Years worth of SDMB!