How to Season a Wooden Salad Bowl

Preserving kitchen décor and utensils through proper maintenance is an important part of not only keeping these items for long use but also to upkeep their beauty. Seasoning a wooden bowl will help to prevent it from becoming damaged, cut down on the possible spread of germs and will give it a beautiful luster. All it takes is a little time to perform and it will yield amazing results.

Instructions

1. Pick an oil preserver. Choosing an appropriate oil preserver for your needs will yield different results and will have different costs. While cooking oils such as sunflower seed oil, ingestible oils (castor oil) and olive oils will work and are relatively cheap, they will not last as long as professional finishes. Longer lasting finishes such as bee's oil, salad bowl finish and wood preserver are slightly more expensive but will have a dramatically longer effect on seasoning your wooden bowl.

2. Feel the inside of the bowl. When you run your hands and fingers on the interior of the bowl, feel for rough patches and inconsistencies. Using fine steel wool or even some sandpaper, smooth out these parts as much as possible so that they are smooth and unnoticeable.

3. Mix a few tablespoons of oil with a few teaspoons of coarse salt in the bottom of the wooden bowl you want to season. Take a paper towel and gently massage the mixture into every bit of the bowl's interior. After you have covered every part of the interior surface of the bowl, use new paper towels to wipe the excess oil out and dry the bowl.

4. Let the bowl sit for an hour or two. That will help the oil seep more deeply into the pores of the bowl. After you have let the bowl sit, place another tablespoon of oil (no salt this time) into the bowl. Using clean and dry hands, massage the oil over and into the interior of the bowl's surface. Using your hands this time will ensure that the paper towel is not soaking up all the oil and that it is being worked into the bowl thoroughly.

5. Let the bowl sit for another 30 minutes to an hour after its interior is sufficiently covered in the oil. Wipe the bowl out with a paper towel and remove all excess oil that has not been absorbed. At this point, your bowl is fully seasoned and ready for use.

Tips & Warnings

• Clean your bowl with warm to hot water, using liquid dish soap and a dish towel or sponge to wipe it out. Allow it to either air dry or wipe/blot it dry with a soft dry cloth. Season your bowl from time to time again by lightly rubbing oil over the interior surface with clean hands. Allow it to sit for 10 minutes before wiping it dry with paper towels.

• Wooden bowls should never be placed in the dishwasher for cleaning or allowed to sit in water for an extended amount of time to avoid damage and cracking.

Resources

• Find wooden bowls.
• Info about wooden bowl preservers.