# How to get rid of Cutting board smell ...



## alterwisser (Jun 21, 2016)

Simple question: How do I get rid of that Onion/garlic smell that has slowly but steadily taken over my end grain cutting board?


----------



## WildBoar (Jun 21, 2016)

I've found cleaning with diluted white vinegar helps. Or cutting up a pineapple -- seems to pull all the onion/ garlic out and deposit it in the fruit chunks :curse:


----------



## mikedtran (Jun 21, 2016)

I have some Clark's board soap that is very mild but has a nice lemony scent.

I have also heard that lemon + baking soda should take out any scents/stains on a board.


----------



## jmgray (Jun 21, 2016)

Lemon juice. The acid helps remove odors


----------



## jklip13 (Jun 21, 2016)

Lemon juice and vinegar work well but if you have really stubborn smells a very dilute bleach/water solution does well


----------



## alterwisser (Jun 21, 2016)

WildBoar said:


> I've found cleaning with diluted white vinegar helps. Or cutting up a pineapple -- seems to pull all the onion/ garlic out and deposit it in the fruit chunks :curse:



Don't tell me you enjoy the pineapple afterwards? Or are you feeding it to your kids? [emoji23][emoji12]


----------



## WildBoar (Jun 21, 2016)

alterwisser said:


> Don't tell me you enjoy the pineapple afterwards? Or are you feeding it to your kids? [emoji23][emoji12]


Neither. I eat it myself, but I do not enjoy it :O


----------



## DrEriksson (Oct 26, 2020)

Hey. I found the answer I was looking for in an old thread. Just had to pat [edit: from pay] my back for using google like a pro.


----------



## applepieforbreakfast (Oct 26, 2020)

I know this got necro-bumped, but I'll second the vinegar.
I sprinkled a fair amount of baking soda, and then spritzed with white vinegar until the fizzing was mostly done.
It really helped out with the onion smell.


----------



## Matus (Oct 26, 2020)

Fresh apple juice, immediately after it was made. So I was told.


----------



## Nemo (Oct 26, 2020)

WildBoar said:


> I've found cleaning with diluted white vinegar helps.


I use full strength vinegar pretty much after every prep.

Occasionally hydrogen peroxide if it's gotten dirty or contaminated (with meat or somethinf like that). Sometimes I use kitchen sanitiser (benzalkonium) but I'm pretty careful to rinse it well afterwards.


----------



## Nemo (Oct 26, 2020)

Ooops... I didn't reslise I was participating in thread necromancy.... my bad


----------



## Oshidashi (Oct 27, 2020)

I've TRIED all of the above (except benzalconium chloride). But my daily use edge grain cherry board must have accumulated garlic and onion molecules an inch down into the wood, marinating in years' worth of mineral oil deep below the surface. But, what the heck, most the stuff I prep is either in the onion family or will join that family later in the recipe, or in any case will not be compromised by a faint wisp of shallot. So, as long as it is sufficiently sanitary, it usually doesn't matter whether or not my board is subtly perfumed. Unless, of course, I'm cutting fruit, which will indeed be tainted to unpleasant effect by garlic wood. So, I keep handy a separate hinoki board just for fruit.


----------



## DrEriksson (Oct 27, 2020)

Nemo said:


> Ooops... I didn't reslise I was participating in thread necromancy.... my bad



That is not dead, which can eternal lie...


----------



## Carl Kotte (Oct 27, 2020)

DrEriksson said:


> Hey. I found the answer I was looking for in an old thread. Just had to pat [edit: from pay] my back for using google like a pro.


Sorry, I will not pay your back for this achievement!


----------



## Carl Kotte (Oct 27, 2020)

DrEriksson said:


> That is not dead, which can eternal lie...


----------



## Benuser (Oct 27, 2020)

Matus said:


> Fresh apple juice, immediately after it was made. So I was told.


Haven't tried yet, but makes sense, as apple neutralises garlic.


----------



## alterwisser (Oct 27, 2020)

Benuser said:


> Haven't tried yet, but makes sense, as apple neutralises garlic.



I’d say: cut open an apple and rub the board with it should work as well then?!


----------



## Iggy (Oct 27, 2020)

@alterwisser: Simple.... use salt & lemon

Step 1: Clean and dry your board
Step 2: Cover your whole board with fine grain / plain table salt
Step 3: Cut a lemon in half and rub the whole board down with only slight pressure for like a few minutes to distribute evenly
Step 4: Leave it there (with the Lemon juice/salt on top) for a while (maybe 30min or an hour or so)
Step 5: Rinse and let dry

Regards, Iggy


----------



## Ruso (Oct 28, 2020)

Pee on it, ammonia in urine will do the trick.


----------



## applepieforbreakfast (Oct 28, 2020)

Ruso said:


> Pee on it, ammonia in urine will do the trick.



You um... 

You doing ok, man?


----------



## Ruso (Oct 28, 2020)

applepieforbreakfast said:


> You um...
> 
> You doing ok, man?


Can’t hear you man, must be that all the ammonia in the air making me nauseouuuuuuuu.....


----------



## Noodle (Oct 29, 2020)

Blitz an apple or two, spread it on the board, leave it overnight. Has always worked for me.


----------



## DrEriksson (Oct 29, 2020)

White vinegar and water applied with paper tissue worked really good.


----------



## John Loftis (Oct 30, 2020)

This seems to work well (as others have noted). TL/DR version: rub an apple or potato on it.
Full disclosure... my wife smacks the hell out of me if I cut onions or garlic on our end grain boards. We use a cheap plastic (gasp!) one for that. 





__





Wipe out Garlic Odor on Cutting Boards | Cook's Illustrated


We've got a new trick up our sleeves to remove the potent smell of garlic from cutting boards.




www.cooksillustrated.com


----------

