I like my cutting boards that can be sterilized in a microwave

Fwiw, BPA free doesn’t necessarily mean much; it’s only certain contexts that allow it to leech ( highly acidic I think was one of them). And even then, the BPA has just been replaced with some other plasticiser that we know even less about. I’m not saying BPA is a good thing or to ignore it, but BPA free may be unnecessary or worse. Just stop using plastic if you’re worried about it.

Water is very effective at converting microwave energy to kinetic energy, but a whole lot of things get “hot” when exposed to electromagnetic radiation. Also it depends on what frequency you are talking about 2.45Ghz or 915Mhz, with depth of penetration being higher for a lower frequency. Metal doesn’t get hot, not directly. It acts as an antenna in a way and transforms the EM radiation to electrical. If you place a fork in a bowl of water the water will basically act as a ground sink and absorb the electrical energy being absorbed by the fork. I’ve done it by accident when cooking mac and cheese…the fork is no hotter than water it was sitting in.

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I don’t know about yours, but the inside of my microwave is far from sterile…

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I had a friend who’s microwave was supposed to be white on the inside. It looked more like a Jackson Pollock.

You can sterilize small wooden cutting boards in the microwave, too.

And is it REALLY that hard to scrub the surface with salt and lemon from time to time? :slight_smile:

Yes - when dry, wood absorbs moisture, unlike plastic, so it desiccates bacteria which can kill them.

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I don’t know what to gently make fun of more, microwaving a fork or Mac and cheese in a microwave. One is a safety hazard, the other is a moral hazard. (Not to be confused with a morel hazard, which denotes a lack of morels in your Mac and cheese)

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Have you ever looked at ‘end grain cutting board making’ videos on youtube? I find them strangely addictive.

Yeah, I knew the minute I said I used the microwave to make mac someone was going to say something. From time to time I do the full from scratch thing, but everyone in my house likes some dolled up Kraft - they don’t call it liquid gold for nothing.

*dolled up meaning, butter, extra cheese, milk, and cream…

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It’s like the bread snobs who would NEVER use a breadmaker, and never make bread. Expedience is not to be sniffed at.

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Even King Arthur Flour says that they use a bread machine to do the kneading part, to make sure any recipes they’re working on are done consistently.

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Every Friday we set a challah recipe up in the breadmaker timed to be ready to bake at 5:30 when we get home. It gets braided, risen, eggwashed, and baked in the oven to be hot and ready for Sabbath dinner. When we have guests they are astonished.

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Them things work good these days. Especially if your a terrible baker. The only bread I can consistently make well is Irish brown bread, and that’s a shit easy quick bread. That can’t be made in a bread maker (way to much kneading and temps too low). If it weren’t for the bread maker. I’d never make good fresh bread of any other kind.

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We used to do science by introspection; that’s how Aristotle came up with his laws of motion, and Goethe his theory of color. Nowadays we test theories by experimentation. The ability of home dishwashers to sanitize knife-scarred cutting boards has been experimentally tested, and the results have passed peer review and published in journals on food science and applied microbiology.

As fas as I know, broken dishwashers have not been tested, so for anyone cutting chicke on knife-scarred cutting boards, if your dishwasher is broken then please don’t count on it to properly sanitize your cutting board. Likewise, if you decide to sand your board, if you previously used your sander to get asbestos off a lead surface, consider using new sandpaper.

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I just gently tease. Mostly I wanted to get a pun in :smiley:

If I had it to do all over again, I would have gone into some sort of food science. The fact that you can make Mac and cheese that is honestly acceptable for as little as it costs is astonishing. I enjoy the laborious methods because it’s a hobby that I, well, enjoy.

@anon67050589 the best cinnamon rolls I ever baked were kneaded and proofed in a bread machine.

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They also work great for fresh pasta.

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Likewise, if you decide to sand your board, if you previously used your sander to get asbestos off a lead surface, consider using new sandpaper

This is why you’re not invited to the fun parties. :smiling_imp:

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