Home › Home & Kitchen › Kitchen & Dining › Kitchen Utensils & Gadgets › Utensil Sets How to Clean a Wooden Spoon Published: July 9, 2026 · Updated: July 9, 2026
Photo: Michael Browning CC0 1.0 Source
Wash wooden spoons by hand in hot soapy water right after use and dry them standing up — never leave them soaking or put them in the dishwasher, which makes the wood swell, crack and roughen. Every so often rub in a little food-safe mineral oil to keep them from drying out, and lift stains or smells with a baking-soda paste or lemon and salt.
Recommended Hand-wash and dry upright, oil now and then — never soak or put in the dishwasher — Wooden spoons and spatulas are porous, so the whole aim is to clean them without waterlogging them, which is what warps, splits and roughens the grain. Wash them promptly by hand in hot, soapy water with a sponge or brush, then rinse — don't leave them sitting in the sink or a pot to soak, and keep them out of the dishwasher, where prolonged water and heat ruin them. Dry them thoroughly, ideally standing handle-down in a jar or upright in a rack so air reaches all sides, rather than lying in a puddle. For stubborn stains or lingering garlic-and-onion smells, scrub with a paste of baking soda and water, or rub the wood with half a lemon dipped in coarse salt and rinse. To sanitize occasionally, wipe with diluted white vinegar or a little hydrogen peroxide, then rinse and dry. Because washing gradually dries wood out, rub in a thin coat of food-safe mineral oil (or a board oil/beeswax finish) every so often when the spoon looks pale and dry, which keeps it from cracking. If a spoon gets fuzzy, a light sanding smooths it; retire any that are cracked, splitting or deeply stained, since those harbour bacteria.
