The wooden cooking spoon is a traditional and timeless kitchen staple — affordable, sturdy, low-maintenance and easy to replace when it’s time is done.
If you’ve opted to pass on plastic kitchen utensils for fear of microplastics and are wondering what to make of the trusty ol’ wooden spoon when it comes to food prep, the Star asked experts about the science behind cooking with and caring for wooden spoons.
What are the risks?
“Wooden spoons are porous (have microscopic holes) and have the ability to harbour bacteria that are essentially impossible to wash off without a harsh chemical, probably a toxic chemical, which could also just soak into the wood,” said William Navarre, a University of Toronto professor specializing in bacterial disease.
“If you’re sloppy with things like wooden spoons and cutting boards, you’ll be fine 99 per cent of the time,” Navarre said, ”(But) that one per cent … ouch,” said Navarre.
“Most bacteria in the environment can’t get you sick if you eat them, but listeria, staph, campylobacter, salmonella, some strains of E. coli can,” he said.
How to wash and dry wooden spoons
Bacteria need moisture to live. “Most bad bacteria die either when dried out, or when exposed to soap and hot water,” said Navarre.
You should always wash wooden spoons thoroughly with soap and hot water, said Navarre, and let them dry completely between uses.
“Make sure your wooden spoons are not soaking in water, or left sitting in water, and after washing pat them dry,” said Shawn Hermans, a spoon carver who also teaches carving from his studio, in Uxbridge, Ont.
When is it safe to cook with wooden spoons?
It’s OK to use wooden spoons to stir boiling water, boiling sauce or to move fried foods around in a hot, oil-filled pan, said Navarre. “Bacteria and viruses on the spoon may get into the food but they will be killed by high heat,” Navarre explained.
However, wooden spoons should not be used to stir uncooked eggs or meat, such as stirring ingredients into a meat loaf, said Navarre, “because those may have bad bacteria in them,” he said. “Plastic, metal or silicone will do better in these situations.”
Materials matter
When it comes to the type of wood a spoon is made from, hardwood or “closed-grain” wood is best for wooden spoons used in food preparation, said Hermans.
“Wood is made up of fibres and these fibres are really microscopic straws, and things can go in those straws within the fibres,” he said. “So you want to have something that’s really tight.”
Woods such as cherry, maple, walnut, birch and apple wood are all examples of hardwood.
How to care for your wooden spoon
To help his spoons last a long time, Hermans said he uses a certified food-safe finish on the wood after he is done carving. “Any (food-safe coating) you put on the spoon evaporates and what’s left is a natural product like linseed oil or tung oil, two oils that dry very hard,” he said. “This will seep into the wood a little bit, dry and form a film on the spoon, giving it some water resistance.”
“Then, I also make a mixture of beeswax and jojoba oil because those are two natural products and it just provides a bit more water resistance,” he said.
Hermans said he recommends people apply a coat of beeswax and jojoba oil on wooden spoons every four to six months, especially if used for cooking.
“You just smear it on your fingertips, and from the warmth of your fingers” it soaks into the spoon, said Hermans. “Then you buff it and end up with a spoon that looks great and has a bit more water resistance.”
