Separate cutting board for meats?

[eyewanders]

On Netflix, there is a show called cooked. Season 1 episode 4 is about microbes. Worth a watch for sure. Anyone concerned with wood cutting boards should watch this. One of the subjects it covers is cheese making. That one covers the area of wood.

Oh say I saw that one. Nuns making cheese with generations-old wooden containers or something like that, and just wouldn't come out correctly without them. I enjoyed that series - should watch it again.

[loco_food_guy]

On Netflix, there is a show called cooked. Season 1 episode 4 is about microbes. Worth a watch for sure. Anyone concerned with wood cutting boards should watch this. One of the subjects it covers is cheese making. That one covers the area of wood.

Oh say I saw that one. Nuns making cheese with generations-old wooden containers or something like that, and just wouldn't come out correctly without them. I enjoyed that series - should watch it again.

Yeah. The health dept stopped them from using the wooden vats for cheese making. Health dept said It was unsanitary and made them use stainless steel. The nun happened to be a microbiologist before she became a nun and showed the health dept that their was good bacteria in the wooden vats that stopped ecoli and other harmful bacteria from multiplying. The steril stainless steel vats did not have this beneficial bacteria and the cheese was spoiling and was being over run with ecoli and other harmful bactaria. Its super interesting.

[milkbaby]

one board for meat, second for veggies and they NEVER cross.

I survived salmonella from under cooked chicken about 15 years ago. To this day I will NOT order chicken from a restaurant, and I purposely overcook it at home every time. I treat raw chicken the same way I would a full, loaded diaper. I never use my good J-knives on raw chicken either, only full stainless Wusthof.

I'm much more cavalier with all other meats, but still only use meat board.

^This board strategy... I use a poly board dedicated to raw meat only to avoid cross contamination. Also, I consider the poly boards cheap and disposable. Worried you're harboring pathogens in that scarred poly board? Just throw it away and buy a new one!

However, I will say that I recommend using a really good food thermometer like the Thermopen or Thermopop instead of overcooking your chicken to a dry mess. If you cook to 165-170°F, you'll be fine. My paying job actually involves research on virulent strains of salmonella (and black plague!), and I have no problem following my own advice on cooking chicken.

[slobound]

This might be a silly question but are you guys using your j knives on the poly boards too or only the wood boards?

[eyewanders]

I use a poly board dedicated to raw meat only to avoid cross contamination. Also, I consider the poly boards cheap and disposable. Worried you're harboring pathogens in that scarred poly board? Just throw it away and buy a new one!

However, I will say that I recommend using a really good food thermometer like the Thermopen or Thermopop instead of overcooking your chicken to a dry mess. If you cook to 165-170°F, you'll be fine. My paying job actually involves research on virulent strains of salmonella (and black plague!), and I have no problem following my own advice on cooking chicken.

I fully understand this strategy and it works, especially for busy commercial kitchens. I guess I just don't think the amount of pathogen fear in the world warrants making enough plastic crap for every household out there, only to thrown out and replaced every year or two. There's enough plastic in the world already, and besides part of what drew me (and I think most others here) to J-knives is having near-perfect and simple tools that only require some care to remain that way... e.g. keeping a good wooden board or two and your home work surfaces clean isn't that tough. Certainly easier than thinning an expensive knife on a stone.

[loco_food_guy]

I use a poly board dedicated to raw meat only to avoid cross contamination. Also, I consider the poly boards cheap and disposable. Worried you're harboring pathogens in that scarred poly board? Just throw it away and buy a new one!

However, I will say that I recommend using a really good food thermometer like the Thermopen or Thermopop instead of overcooking your chicken to a dry mess. If you cook to 165-170°F, you'll be fine. My paying job actually involves research on virulent strains of salmonella (and black plague!), and I have no problem following my own advice on cooking chicken.

I fully understand this strategy and it works, especially for busy commercial kitchens. I guess I just don't think the amount of pathogen fear in the world warrants making enough plastic crap for every household out there, only to thrown out and replaced every year or two. There's enough plastic in the world already, and besides part of what drew me (and I think most others here) to J-knives is having near-perfect and simple tools that only require some care to remain that way... e.g. keeping a good wooden board or two and your home work surfaces clean isn't that tough. Certainly easier than thinning an expensive knife on a stone.

The whole subject of food poisoning is also so misleading. There are so many ways to get sick with symptoms mimicking food poisoning that its easy to confuse or assume that because you ate at restaurant "a" and then got sick later that night, that they made you sick. Maybe they did, but there are so many other ways to pick something up. Maybe your server cant afford to call off because he needs the money so he goes to work with the flu. Hands you a contaminated menu and one to everyone in your party. 3 out of four people get sick and its obvious. It was the meal. Also I have personally been in so many homes that do major no no's in the food business. store raw meats or poultry over produce or other foods that you may not even cook before consuming. I guess what I am trying to say is "chill out". Don't throw out your plastic cutting boards every week and don't color code your wooden cutting boards for every different item you plan on preparing. Wash your hands. Wash and sanitize your cutting boards and cutting utensils. You will survive.

[Gregory27]

Loving all of the input. I find the antimicrobial properties of wood fascinating, but I think, for the time being, I'm going with a board that I can just throw into the dishwasher to supplement a nice maple board. I don't necessarily feel confident that I'll always be able to properly clean my board right now. Maybe when my 3 year old twins are a bit older...

[Kit Craft]

I use a poly board dedicated to raw meat only to avoid cross contamination. Also, I consider the poly boards cheap and disposable. Worried you're harboring pathogens in that scarred poly board? Just throw it away and buy a new one!

However, I will say that I recommend using a really good food thermometer like the Thermopen or Thermopop instead of overcooking your chicken to a dry mess. If you cook to 165-170°F, you'll be fine. My paying job actually involves research on virulent strains of salmonella (and black plague!), and I have no problem following my own advice on cooking chicken.

I fully understand this strategy and it works, especially for busy commercial kitchens. I guess I just don't think the amount of pathogen fear in the world warrants making enough plastic crap for every household out there, only to thrown out and replaced every year or two. There's enough plastic in the world already, and besides part of what drew me (and I think most others here) to J-knives is having near-perfect and simple tools that only require some care to remain that way... e.g. keeping a good wooden board or two and your home work surfaces clean isn't that tough. Certainly easier than thinning an expensive knife on a stone.

I have had the same plastic cutting board since attending university, it even went to Spain with me. (It was a gift from my grandmother.) Anyway, I do not like to dispose of things that have use but rather like to reuse them. Coffee cans, bottles or what have you do have other uses around my house even if that is only holding nuts and bolts in the garage. Coffee cans in particular are great feed scoops for the animals (chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys, rabbits, goats and dogs. The reptiles eat live mice that I catch in the garage...). The funny thing is that I don't even drink coffee that comes from a can, which means the can came from my grandfathers place. It seems I steal peoples trash.

My wife likes to recycle old t-shirts into trapillo yarn. My chicken coop is an old greenhouse. My raised beds in the garden are reclaimed from old decking. Etc.

Anyway, I get your point about plastic.

As an aside, I raise chickens and it is a shocker to me the amount of people that will not eat eggs from my chickens or any chickens that harvested from a homestead. It is like they are somehow weird, the eggs. My aunt in particular will not even try them. I offer her free eggs all of the time (I get 40(ish) every morning). In stead she chooses to buy them at the store. Sigh...

[eyewanders]

As an aside, I raise chickens and it is a shocker to me the amount of people that will not eat eggs from my chickens or any chickens that harvested from a homestead. It is like they are somehow weird, the eggs. My aunt in particular will not even try them. I offer her free eggs all of the time (I get 40(ish) every morning). In stead she chooses to buy them at the store. Sigh...

Send her eggs to us!
We're trying to move in the next year, looking for a small place on just a few acres. I've been wanting pretty much what you're describing. For the past 4 or so years we get all our eggs (in the "laying months" anyhow - winter they're store-bought) from a gal just a 1/4 miles away for $3 a dozen. She sometimes washes them because she forgets - she loves giving them to us because I told her I don't want them washed. We store all our eggs for months at room-temp in the back of a lower cupboard with a light coating of mineral oil on them for store-bought, and just bloom&dirt if they're from her (sometimes I'll coat those too just to be safe if I know they'll be around for more than a couple weeks). Our nextdoor neighbor has I think six hens, but they go through them all with a family of five. Urban coops are getting more and more popular here which is pretty cool to see. I can hear my neighbors making their afternoon calls right now in fact. Hahah. We get raw milk from a small buyers group here in my neighborhood too. People are weird about these things now - expect everything to be pasteurized and sterile-packaged in plastic wrap... but I think it's changing slowly.

[eyewanders]

Loving all of the input. I find the antimicrobial properties of wood fascinating, but I think, for the time being, I'm going with a board that I can just throw into the dishwasher to supplement a nice maple board. I don't necessarily feel confident that I'll always be able to properly clean my board right now. Maybe when my 3 year old twins are a bit older...

Nothing wrong with that at all. A little later you can get a second "meat" wooden board, when the twins are old enough to have chores like cleaning the board. Get those sous chefs trained early.

[Gregory27]

Loving all of the input. I find the antimicrobial properties of wood fascinating, but I think, for the time being, I'm going with a board that I can just throw into the dishwasher to supplement a nice maple board. I don't necessarily feel confident that I'll always be able to properly clean my board right now. Maybe when my 3 year old twins are a bit older...

Nothing wrong with that at all. A little later you can get a second "meat" wooden board, when the twins are old enough to have chores like cleaning the board. Get those sous chefs trained early.

I'm finding it to be a fine line between wanting to teach them and wanting to tell them to "get out of my kitchen."

Thankfully my wife is more patient. But she's a baker and chocolatier, so I will still need to fill in the actual cooking gaps.

[Kit Craft]

As an aside, I raise chickens and it is a shocker to me the amount of people that will not eat eggs from my chickens or any chickens that harvested from a homestead. It is like they are somehow weird, the eggs. My aunt in particular will not even try them. I offer her free eggs all of the time (I get 40(ish) every morning). In stead she chooses to buy them at the store. Sigh...

Send her eggs to us!
We're trying to move in the next year, looking for a small place on just a few acres. I've been wanting pretty much what you're describing. For the past 4 or so years we get all our eggs (in the "laying months" anyhow - winter they're store-bought) from a gal just a 1/4 miles away for $3 a dozen. She sometimes washes them because she forgets - she loves giving them to us because I told her I don't want them washed. We store all our eggs for months at room-temp in the back of a lower cupboard with a light coating of mineral oil on them for store-bought, and just bloom&dirt if they're from her (sometimes I'll coat those too just to be safe if I know they'll be around for more than a couple weeks). Our nextdoor neighbor has I think six hens, but they go through them all with a family of five. Urban coops are getting more and more popular here which is pretty cool to see. I can hear my neighbors making their afternoon calls right now in fact. Hahah. We get raw milk from a small buyers group here in my neighborhood too. People are weird about these things now - expect everything to be pasteurized and sterile-packaged in plastic wrap... but I think it's changing slowly.

I hear that urban coops are becoming popular but I live in the country and they have always been a thing here. Not as common as they are now, though! We have way more chickens than we need. If you have any intention of saving money, do not get extras! Heritage birds are dual purpose alright. Expensive to feed and make terrible meat birds.

Anyway, I don't want to take over the thread. If you ever want to chat chickens, let me know. I have many breeds and have come to realize the ups and downs of each in terms of production and personality.

[cooknola]

one board for meat, second for veggies and they NEVER cross.

I survived salmonella from under cooked chicken about 15 years ago. To this day I will NOT order chicken from a restaurant, and I purposely overcook it at home every time. I treat raw chicken the same way I would a full, loaded diaper. I never use my good J-knives on raw chicken either, only full stainless Wusthof.

I'm much more cavalier with all other meats, but still only use meat board.

By over cook I hope you mean IT of 165F before you take it off the heat. Sorry bro but if you gotta kill the chicken again why bother?

[Jeff540]

By over cook I hope you mean IT of 165F before you take it off the heat. Sorry bro but if you gotta kill the chicken again why bother?

Yes, I use a instant read thermometer to check it's at least 165 before removing from heat. However, my "removing from heat" is usually place it into oven set ~200 and let it "rest" until remainder of meal is prepared and everyone is ready to sit down. I make up for dried chicken abuse with pan sauces or gravy heavy with buttery goodness.

My case of salmonella was one of the most traumatic experiences in my 43 years on this planet - as bad or worse than any car accident I've been in, and in the ~15 years since there is never a time I eat, prepare, or even see chicken without recalling that episode. I've had flu, broken ribs, bronchitis, and other food poisoning, but nothing compares to salmonella.

[Lepus]

There's no arguing with severe food poisoning trauma. It's still a trial to get my father to eat fried fish. Seared and roasted fish is right out.

[Kit Craft]

one board for meat, second for veggies and they NEVER cross.

I survived salmonella from under cooked chicken about 15 years ago. To this day I will NOT order chicken from a restaurant, and I purposely overcook it at home every time. I treat raw chicken the same way I would a full, loaded diaper. I never use my good J-knives on raw chicken either, only full stainless Wusthof.

I'm much more cavalier with all other meats, but still only use meat board.

By over cook I hope you mean IT of 165F before you take it off the heat. Sorry bro but if you gotta kill the chicken again why bother?

Avoiding death for yourself.

[BillyKitchen]

I use a plastic board for meats, and so easy cuts on one side then hard cuts (like ground beef) on the other side. This way the one side of the board gets cuts in it but that side is not used as much. And yea as most people saw wooden board for vegetables.

[VictorTex82]

I love cooking meat, especially pork, as it is much harder to cook than chicken. I often found that the meat was cooked on the outside but still raw on the inside. But now, I use an amazon meat thermometer to tell if the meat is cooked on the inside. It is very convenient and, most importantly safe. Eating raw meat is dangerous to your health, so it is important to cook it completely. Cooking chicken is much easier because the meat is cooked proportionally.