I would like to make a charcuterie board. Where would be the best place to get a live edge slab? And what should I coat It with? My friend thinks it needs to have some sort of varnish, but I think a good sanding and some oil would be good. Any advice?
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Just like a regular cutting board, I would use food-grade mineral oil, and then apply a mix of beeswax and mineral oil (multiple coats), until a drop of water beads easily on the surface.
Even then, we tend to lay down a piece of parchment paper before placing the meats/cheeses/crackers/dried fruits & nuts onto the board for serving.
AFAIK, there’s no food-safe ‘hard’ finishes (polyurethane, etc.), so I go with food-grade oils/waxes. Better to be safe than sorry.
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The 2-part epoxies can be food-safe, but they’re not labeled as such since it relies on accuracy in the amounts and mixing. The big companies aren’t going to take the rap if you mixed it incorrectly.
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You might consider pure tung oil. I’ve been using it for a few years now on wooden utensils and charcuterie/pastry work boards with good results.
One caveat is that full cure after the final coat is generally 7-21 days.
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Yes there is. Behlen/Mohawk Salad bowl finish is a poly that the company claims is food safe per FDA’s definition of food safe. It is the only one that I know of that claims FDA food safe. (at least as of two years ago when I did some researc). BTW it’s hard to find and $$$$. Many on the internet say that any poly, once cured, is food safe. That may or may not be true (I am not a chemical safety expert). But the FDA says that poly made from a specific list of chemicals and once cured is food safe. Once again - I have no idea if the FDA rule results in an actual food safe finish.
Not true there are many that say it right on the bottle. Example: https://www.amazon.com/Superclear-Anti-Yellow-Highest-Resistance-Tumblers/dp/B07DM74ZYC/ref=asc_df_B07DM74ZYC/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=693675077007&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=9968195859964374008&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9026847&hvtargid=pla-785849127566&psc=1&mcid=17330f51481e35baa930192c6900a7ea
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I don’t know the best place but have you looked at PlanoMill.com (Lloyd Plum). Or Clean Slabs Custom in Celina He has hundreds of boards that would be suitable for charcuterie boards (tell him Dan Wolf said sent you). Both are reasonably priced (at least compared to Rockler or Woodcraft). They will tell you the drying process for each board up front.
Warning: And there are many listings on facebook for wood suitable for charcuterie boards. Make sure you know if and how they were dried. Kiln dried best, solar kiln second best, air dried can be hit or miss and green is worst. You can dry green wood but it takes effort and time. A reasonable way to dry green wood is to put it in a garage with a small fan to move air over the board. Better of the garage door faces south or west. Use the weight method to assess dryness - Weigh it every two weeks, once the board stops losing weight - it’s dry. May take 6-16 weeks depending on type and thickness.
My experience with Moisture meters is that they will tell you if a board is wet but not if it’s dry. Yes the meter can say the surface is dry but cut into the board and you may find the interior (away from the ends) is wet. NEVER cut wood that is green, air or even solar kiln dried on the Saw Stop - The probability of hitting a wet part is too great.
Poly/varnish will look good for a very long time - no maintenance. But a knife cut will ruin the finish. Oil/beeswax looks great for a while but needs refresh periodically (like every 3 to 12 months). Extra work, but worth it IMHO.
Also think about open vs closed grain wood - open grain wood (like ash, red oak, …) can harbor bacteria in the open spaces, Closed grain wood (maple, cherry, walnut…) don’t have room for bacteria. FDA recommends (not law or a reg) closed grain woods when wood is used in a food prep. If I remember the recommendation specifically calls out maple as acceptable.
Lowes/ Home Depot sells a cutting board concoction that is oils, minerals, wax mixed. I think the name of it is cutting board oil ? they have 2 kinds. It’s were the stains are. I use it on my boards.
I saturated a new board and store it in a bag a few days, saturate again, put it back in the bag a couple more days, at least 3 times. Then buff it and it’s ready.
Where can I get a piece of Maplewood the size of a charcuterie board?
Suppliers are listed in Source:
source.dallasmakerspace.org - click on Search
use the “Label” search for “suppliers”
clicking the one for woodshop
lists some suppliers the committee posted there
https://source.dallasmakerspace.org/pages/viewpage.action?pageId=26419650
Out of date information cache on Wiki shows others
who understands the DMS member, and might have something.
McKinney Hardwoods is another local supplier.
For any supplier, it’s usually good to go by or give them a call (which small shops can be harder to catch as they’re out working) to see what they have - wood is a natural resource and supply of something in particular can wax & wane, both in supply & demand.
What size would that be? I’ve seen anything from “cheesboard” style tiny to 2’x2’ large - they look like a pizza peel but for the wide edge! called “charcuterie board”. Although Costco calls their big one a “grazing board”.
https://www.costco.com/birdrock-home-18”-herringbone-grazing-board.product.4000249638.html
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