Kenneth wrote:
> On Mon, 07 Mar 2005 09:01:56 -0500, "Bob (this one)"
> > wrote:
>
>>Did you see anywhere above where I said that food oils - not just
>>vegetable - are prevented from becoming rancid?
>>
>>Perhaps your immersion in the theoretical has overwhelmed your
>>capacity for pragmatism. Perhaps you think that history started when
>>mineral oil became a commodity. I cited why I state that the food oils
>>don't become rancid, the conditions under which the boards are handled
>>and the results of that handling. I offered history. I offered the
>>reasons for my skepticism. I offered a clear lack of anything to even
>>remotely support your assertion about rancidity in cutting boards.
>>
>>You have repeated the mineral oil mantra. And avoided answering the
>>question posed above: How, exactly, does one "lose the board to
>>rancidity?" For it to be credible, you have to offer a bit more than a
>>web site with bad information. A bit more than an unsupported opinion.
>>
>>In another post I said that I was in the cutting board business for a
>>couple years. I investigated very widely about the manufacturing,
>>finishing and maintenance of boards. I tested the suggestions I read
>>and heard. And I found that the old ways with wood in the kitchen
>>worked better than the cabinetmaker's way. Animal fats are wonderful.
>>Food oils are grand. Those oils with wax melted into it is yet more grand.
>>
>>And, sure, mineral oil can work, too. But it's not something most
>>people have on hand and it's simply not necessary. It's rather more
>>expensive than soybean or canola oil.
>>
>>
>>>(Or do you
>>>believe that characteristic of vegetable oil to be a myth as
>>>well.)
>>
>>I believe that you think you've imparted great wisdom - that you
>>picked up and dropped in here without questioning it. Copied from
>>others who also don't know anything much empirical information about
>>how cutting boards work.
>>
>>Explain how one can "lose a board to rancidity." Give me the name of
>>one person who has lost a board to rancidity. Tell me how long a board
>>with food oils on it will go before getting rancid. Show me one
>>reliable source that has an example of a board lost to rancidity. Back
>>up what you're saying with something a bit more concrete than "I said so."
>>
>>Pastorio
>
>
> Hi Bob,
>
> I have not had the problem on cutting boards, but have with
> wooden spoons. The oil on then has become rancid leaving the
> spoon with a terrible taste that I could not eliminate.

It may be the oil, but I doubt it. If you stir sauces with it, all
those ingredients permeate it. Stir soups. Stews. I've never heard of
anyone oiling wooden spoons before. They're thought of as essentially
disposable items in most cultures and typically treated as such.

But, again, my experience differs markedly from yours. I have wooden
spoons that I use that I got from my grandparents more than 40 years
ago. I use them, wash quickly with hot soapy water, rinse and let
air-dry in a drainboard. On rare occasions, I'll scour them with a
stainless steel scrubby pad if they're stained by what I just cooked.
I've never worn one out, never had any smell bad, never had any have
any sort of rancidity.

> That's why I switched to mineral oil, and suggest it to
> others.

To each his own.

It also may just be possible that I deal with cleanup differently than
most. All those years of foodservice taught me to clean as I go.
Nothing sits around dirty. Any cooking utensils I use during a meal
except those that will go through the dish machine will be washed on
completion of use. The ones to be machine washed are put into the
machine as I go. That way I always have all my counter space
available, just like it has to be in restaurants.

Pastorio