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soap and hot water will also kill nearly all household germs...

I'm confused. Microwave the oil or the board?

I'm pretty sure the oil. She said "I also heat IT up in the microwave before applying it to the board."

I don't know about you, but my cutting board is WAY too big to fit in the microwave.

I think she meant the oil, but actually, I use smaller cutting boards now so I can microwave them and sterilize them. Cutting boards harbor all kinds of germs, and there have been studies that microwaving kills almost all of them.

I'll be sure to give this a try. I actually just recently bought a set of those bamboo cutting boards. Speaking of which. does anybody know if microwaving the bamboo would be disastrous?

Here's a link to a study
www.sciencenews.org/pages/sn_arch/9_14_96/bob2.htm

Doh! My fault. She meant oil and i made a correction, but the point is still good. Even more interesting is that Fiona DOES put her boards in the mike...

I nuke kitchen sponges, too, for sterilization. Prevents them from getting too olfactory-funky.

There was an Oprah show about how gross household sponges get. You end up smearing germs all over as you "wash" dishes. I try to microwave (and replace) my sponges pretty regularly.

There was a study that showed that slovenly bachelors had the least germs in their kitchen because they didn't constantly wipe down their counters with the same sponge they wiped up raw chicken juice with.

I know this is terrible for the environment, but I'm addicted to those disposable antibacterial wipes. At least I feel like I'm not spreading nasty stuff around.

Pardon me while I go home and nuke my sponges.

yikes! i have a teeny tiny itsy bitsy galley kitchen with hardly enough counter space for a dishrack. thus, i have no microwave. i DO, however, use my kitchen a lot - how do i disinfect my cutting board and sponges?

People, people! It's the oil that gets microwaved. The warm oil is absorbed into the wood more easily. Though it's probably not a bad idea to put the board in if it fits. A good way to kill germs. But I only cut vegetables and herbs on the wooden board. I use a plastic board for meats, then clean it in the dishwasher.

A sponge in use for two days harbors millions of bateria; when you use the sponge, you spread the pathogens. yup.

its sick.

I use my sponges for a day and then launder them in hot water and machine dry them. They are a little dried out looking when they are done, but they soften right up as soon as you put them in water.

So that I don't get dirty smelly sponges, I don't use sponges. I use cloths. You use them for one day, then toss them in the laundry with BLEACH. Bleach will kill ALL germs/bacteria. The cloths are cheap enough that to replace them once every 3 or 4 months is inconsequential. As far as putting oil on the cutting board, I was wondering if you used a really fine steel wool to 'polish' it into the wood, will this make it a harder surface?

Putting the Cutting board (wooden) in the microwave for a few secs (not more than a minute) apparently kills the bacteria.

http://www.cookingforengineers.com/article.php?id=17&title=Cutting+Boards

Based on lab research not suppositon...

Killing germs on cutting boards:
http://www.sciencenews.org/pages/sn_arc97/7_12_97/food.htm
http://www.hi-tm.com/Documents/Cutboard.html

Killing germs on food:
http://www.sciencenews.org/pages/sn_arch/9_28_96/food.htm
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Common spayer tops fit perfectly on 32 oz hidrogen peroxide bottles. Vinegar helps cut grease some in dishwater as well.

Antibacterial care for sponges & dish rags (cotton & synthetic) - machine wash, then heat 3 min in water in a microwave at full power. Use immediately or hang dry.