The Versatile Cutting Boards: Materials, Uses, and Care Tips

Cooking something delicious? You’ve got the ingredients, pots, and knives? How about a chopping board? Because, like every artist, you need a proper canvas for your artwork. These kitchen essentials take daily knife abuse while protecting your countertops and providing the foundation for all your chopping, dicing, and slicing adventures. But between all the different materials, sizes, and even colour coding practices, how do you decide which one is the right one for your culinary experiences? Let’s cut to the cutting board universe!

What Material Is Best for a Cutting Board?

Ah, the burning question – what’s the best material? The truth is that each type has its own perks and considerations, so the answer lies in your specific needs. Here are a few options:

Wooden Wonders

Wooden cutting boards have been a staple in kitchens for centuries, and for a good reason. They offer the perfect blend of form and function. Hard woods like maple, walnut, and cherry make elegant and functional cutting boards loved for their natural beauty. Besides adding character to your kitchen, these materials are durable, nonslip and they don’t dull your knives too quickly. Wood also has natural antibacterial properties – studies have shown that wood actually pulls bacteria down into the wood where they cannot reproduce and eventually die off.

Timbers like teak contain natural oils that make them more water resistant and less prone to warping. That gorgeous end-grain butcher block? Not only gorgeous – those bare wood fibres can “self-heal” minor knife marks since they seal back up after being cut. Just keep in mind that wooden boards require more maintenance – occasional oiling and keeping them relatively dry will extend their lifespan.

Plastic Practicality

Plastic boards may lack the beauty of wood, but they’re very functional. They’re dishwasher safe, cheap, and available in many colours, which prevents cross-contamination (use the red one for raw meat, green for vegetables, … you get the idea). New plastic boards are usually made of polyethylene or polypropylene, which won’t dull your knives quickly.

The downside? Plastic boards wear down in deep knife grooves over time, which are perfect hiding spots for bacteria. Once your plastic board is badly scarred, it’s time to replace it – something you’ll be doing more frequently than with well-maintained wooden boards.

Bamboo Benefits

Technically a grass and not a wood, bamboo has become increasingly popular for chopping boards in recent years. Bamboo is renewable, growing at a much faster rate than hardwood trees. The boards are more durable than most woods, better resisting knife marks and water absorption.
The disadvantage is that such hardness can be harsh on your knife edges. And many bamboo boards contain adhesives that are not necessarily food-safe, so if you do choose to go this route, look for boards that are labelled as food-safe.

Stone, Glass and Composite Surfaces

Marble, granite, and glass boards are trendy and high-tech, resistant to stains, and easy to clean. But these visually appealing boards are better used as serving boards and not cutting surfaces. The hard surfaces can dull your knife edges in no time, they could be slippery and easily chipped. If you do use them for cutting, save them for soft foods like cheese. Marble, in particular, is not suitable for cutting raw meat.

More recently available are composite kitchen boards constructed of materials like paper composite or recycled plastic. These can be good, knife-friendly surfaces, plus they are more environmentally friendly options.

Taking Care Of Your Boards

No matter what material you work with, proper care lengthens its life and maintains food safety:

• For wood boards, use hot soapy water (never the dishwasher!), dry immediately, and oil regularly with food-grade mineral oil or beeswax-based board cream. Standing water is the wood boards’ worst enemy – warping and cracking are the consequences.
• For plastic, bamboo, or composite boards, hot soapy water will do, and most can be washed in the dishwasher. Just be aware that very high heat will warp some materials over time.

All boards benefit from an occasional good cleaning. For wood boards, dust with coarse salt, scrub with half a lemon, then wash. For plastic, bleach solution (one tablespoon bleach per gallon of water) can sanitize deeper grooves.

Best Uses: The Right Board for the Job

Use your board for the appropriate cooking task for best results:

• Wood is great for vegetables, bread, cheese, and cooked meats. Avoid raw meat on wooden boards with deep cuts.
• Plastic is ideal for raw meats and seafood since it can be dishwasher-sanitized.
• Use your decorative boards for serving your culinary creations not heavy cutting.
• Keep at least two boards in rotation – one for raw proteins and one for ready-to-eat foods.

Final Thoughts

Purchasing high-quality boards and maintaining them not only improves your cooking experience but saves you money in the long term. A well-maintained wooden board can last decades and be a kitchen heirloom with tales of its knife scars and subtle stains. You might prefer the classic elegance of wood, the ease of plastic, or the sustainability of bamboo. Whichever you choose, remember that it’s more than a mere kitchen tool – it’s a companion in your culinary adventures.