About a month ago, American recipe creator Justine Doiron posted a TikTok video that she never expected would blow up. She smeared butter onto a wooden board, adding salt, onions, honey and lemon zest on top, before picking up a dollop of butter on her toasted sourdough. With 8.6 million views to date, many have since showcased their own version of the butter board. But what exactly are butter boards and are they actually healthy?

Butter boards 101

Similar to cheese platters, butter boards are a communal dish highlighting butter and various toppings used to add flavour and aesthetics. It’s fairly uncomplicated and allows you to curate it however you like.

You start by smearing softened butter on a wooden board and adding a dash of salt. Then, garnish it with savoury components like smoked ham or salami, alongside tarty elements like pickled onions and sweet notes like honey or maple syrup.

The final step is to take your favourite bread, be it sourdough, brioche or even baguette, and have a go! But as picturesque as these boards may be, they aren’t free from risk. 

Are butter boards healthy?

While communal dishes in general pose a slight health risk, butter boards in particular may be more menacing. The idea of everyone double dipping (or in this case, double scooping) while tearing bread apart with their bare hands may spread germs. Plus, can you imagine the amount of dust, hair and spit that could fall onto your butter board during a gathering?

But that’s not all, because butter boards seem impossible to clean afterwards, and using an old board for this trend may spread even more germs. Butter on its own is also extremely high in calories and fat, particularly saturated fat which leads to heart diseases. So the next time you’re thinking of building butter boards, you might want to think twice.

Featured image by Justine Doiron.