Kitchen Cutting Goes to the Mat

ChopChop may sound like a karate flick, but it has nothing to do with films. It’s a thin, plastic cutting mat that’s simply one of the handiest kitchen gadgets around.

ChopChop is made of recyclable, “space-age” plastic that won’t dull your knife as you slice and dice vegetables, fruits, meat--almost anything you want. Then bend the mat into a funnel shape and pour the chopped food into a bowl or pan without spilling a thing.

The 11 1/2-by-15 inch “board” is nontoxic, unbreakable and easy to clean. It even can be washed in the upper shelf of a dishwasher. Not only does ChopChop protect kitchen counters and cutting boards from cuts and stains, it prevents bacteria buildup on wooden cutting boards.

Knives will score the surface of ChopChop, but won’t cut through. And you can use the mat on any flat surface, so it is also ideal for camping, picnicking, boating or RV travel.

“We first developed it as a shield or guard to be used on top of a wooden cutting board or butcher block to protect the surface from juices and keep it free from contamination,” says says Rod Thompson of Schneider Plastics Inc. in San Marcos, Calif., ChopChop’s manufacturer. “But then we found it would work on any flat surface, and when you pick it up by the edges, you can easily transport the cuttings.”

Depending on the amount of use, a ChopChop should last six weeks to six months, he says.

ChopChop ($3.99 for a package of two) is sold nationally in Camping World, Smith’s Food and Drug, and Friedman’s Microwave stores. In Los Angeles and Orange counties, you can find it at Gelson’s and Mayfair supermarkets, Mrs. Gooch’s, Mother’s Market and Kitchen, Jensen’s Finest Foods in Palm Springs and Blue Jay, Le Pot in Laguna Niguel and DeNault’s Hardware stores in Orange County and Oceanside.

Or you can order ChopChop from Schneider Plastics, P.O. Box 941, Solana Beach, Calif. 92075; (619) 752-7242. Add $1.50 shipping and handling.

Sodium Is Down for the Count

If you’re on a low-sodium diet or know someone who is, the Salt Checker, an electronic sodium monitor, is just the ticket. It can accurately indicate salt levels in drinks and foods, hot or cold liquids and semi-liquids.

The sodium thermometer is simple to operate: stir the food or drink to be tested, put in the tip of the monitor and press the button for an immediate reading of low, medium or high salt content. A table giving the percentage of salinity of the food for each category on the indicator scale is included.

The white, 6 1/2-inch monitor comes with three batteries, and has a hole in the top for convenient hanging in the kitchen. It’s manufactured by Maverick Industries, the Edison, N.J., company that makes barbecue grills, accessories and Redi-Chek, a meat thermometer for barbecuing.

To order Salt Checker ($19.95 plus $1.50 shipping and handling) call Maverick’s toll-free number, (800) 526-0954.

It’s a Breeze for Your Picnic Table

Planning a football picnic or a back-yard barbecue? Consider Tablebonnet, a drawstring picnic tablecloth that won’t blow away. No more fussing with rocks, clips or thumbtacks to hold down the corners.

“We enjoy picnics and eating out on our patio,” says Tablebonnet designer Jackie Sweetser (of Hot Springs, Ark. “However, a blowing tablecloth has always been one of my biggest pet peeves.”

Tablebonnet, made of washable red-and-white check cotton/polyester, has a drawstring around the edges of the cloth, so it fits each corner of the table snugly and ties underneath. An 86-by-32-inch rectangular Tablebonnet is $19.95, plus $2.95 shipping and handling, as is the 48-inch round one. The 60-inch round is $24.95, plus $2.95 shipping and handling.

To order Tablebonnet, contact Sisters and Friends Inc., University Tower, 1123 S. University Ave., Suite 1015, Little Rock, Ark. 72204; (800) 489-0464.