The Great Bake 
Silicone baking mats have long been convenient and helpful for saving money. The reusable silicone baking mats are used when baking cookies, pizza, and more.
But what if you only have one size mat and a smaller-sized pan? Can you cut silicone baking mats? Keep reading to find out whether or not you should cut your silicone baking mat to a smaller size.
What Do You Use a Silicone Baking Mat For?
Silicone baking mats can be extremely useful in the kitchen as they are reusable. They are also oven and freezer safe.
There are endless recipes in any realm of cooking that silicone mats can help. Most commonly, silicone baking mats are easy to use in place of parchment paper. Even more, you can use the mat as a smooth surface to roll out cookie and bread dough. Mats used for this purpose make the clean-up process a breeze.
Silicone baking mats are not reserved for only the oven. In fact, they can go in the microwave or in the toaster ovens as well. Additionally, these mats can also cover food as well as protect pans underneath the food.
Another reason to invest in silicone mats is that food slides off the mat easily and transfers to a plate without much effort. They are the perfect kind of heavy-duty equipment to best help your cookies or any other type of baking product flourish.
What Happens When You Cut Into a Silicone Baking Mat?
Silicone baking mats usually have a layer of fiberglass sandwiched between the top and bottom silicone layers. The fiberglass weaving is perfectly safe as long as it stays sealed in silicone. However, when someone attempts to cut the mat, they risk getting fiberglass in anything they cook on it after.
Many people have cut and afterward resealed their mats, but while there seem to be no problems at first, it leads to issues down the road. When fiberglass comes in contact with human skin, it causes irritation. Eating fiberglass makes it much worse.
Eating fiberglass can cause intense irritation in the stomach and worsen any illness in the stomach area. It is best to keep searching for the right size and continue working on parchment paper until you get the right-sized mat.
When wondering if can you cut silicone baking mats, think about cutting boards. Repeatedly doing anything harsh on the baking mats will eventually wear them down. Such repetitive actions include cutting on it with a sharp object, such as a knife or a pizza cutter. Wearing through the silicone will expose the fiberglass presenting safety risks when used.
Try to never cut directly on any brand of silicone baking mat, as cutting through will expose anyone eating food from the sheet to possibly ingesting fiberglass. On top of cutting through the baking mat, cutting on the mat also makes it wear out faster.
Either way, cutting on a silicone mat leads you to buy a replacement sooner than you would have, had to had you not used a knife on the mat.
How Do You Resize a Silicone Baking Mat?
If you cannot cut a silicone baking mat, then how can you resize it? The easiest and safest solution is to buy various sizes of silicone mats instead of trying to resize the one you have.
There are some brands that have created sheets that you can cut to shorten. But these are few and far between, and it is best to be safe and not cut a mat unless you are absolutely sure it will not be harmful.
Silicone can shrink down. If your mat needs to be smaller and you do not think it is cuttable, then you can attempt to boil and shrink it. There are also some lasers that can safely slice through the silicone. These lasers are usually expensive.
Remember that it is better to be safe than sorry, so do not cut your mat if it is not one that distinctly says it is able to be broken apart.
Can I Use a Pizza Cutter or Sharp Knives To Cut on a Silicone Baking Mat?
Most companies highly discourage customers from cutting or using sharp objects on the mat for safety reasons.
In theory, you can cut with a pizza cutter or a knife on the silicone baking mat, but in reality, it is best to avoid slicing directly on the baking sheet. Sharp blades will not hurt once in a while but should never be used to cut through the sheet.
If the mat is ever damaged or cut by the pizza cutter or knife, then stop using it immediately. Fiberglass will start to fall into the food baked on the mat.
It would be best to avoid cutting directly on top of the silicone mat. Take the extra few seconds to slide it off, and then cut it on a different surface.
Because of the non-stick silicone material, the baking sheets constructed out of food can slide off quickly and easily. Once the food moves to a plate or cutting board, then you can cut it safely.
How Do You Keep a Silicone Baking Mat Clean?
Keeping a silicone baking mat clean is as easy as throwing it in the dishwasher. That’s right, silicone mats are dishwasher safe. Another cleaning method is to scrub it with soap and water after each use.
If there is burnt food or oil on the mat that doesn’t keep clean, refrain from using a knife to scrape it off. Doing so runs the risk of cutting through the silicone layer. To deep clean your mat you can scrub it with a baking soda and vinegar solution.
Final Thoughts
Silicone baking mats are sustainable, reusable, and safe for most kitchen uses. They can help you save money by replacing parchment paper. Remember that it is not safe to cut on silicone baking mats. Nor is it safe to attempt to resize the mats with a knife or scissors.
