What Kind of Cutting Board Should I Use for Food Prep?

[james terrio]

This thread is for the purpose of discussion about food safety and knife care. I'm not here to tell anyone what kind of board to use, because if I do surely someone will use such a board improperly, get their whole family sick, and blame me.

What I will tell you is that using my knives on a glass, stone, steel, ceramic or other similar cutting board voids all warranties, express or implied. I simply can't guarantee that whacking or scraping away at such a hard surface won't dull or chip your blade. You don't want to dull or damage a fine edge, and you certainly don't want chips of steel in your food!

So other than the obviously terrible choices for cutting boards mentioned above, we're pretty much left with wood or plastic.

Now then, on to the food safety part. I'm sure we all understand that poor hygiene in the kitchen is very dangerous. It's very clear that regular cleaning/disinfecting/preventing cross-contamination, etc. is important.

A lot of us have been told that plastic is the way to go, because people assume it's "more sanitary" or "easier to clean" than wood. But the research simply doesn't back that up... here are a couple links explaining why:

Press release from the University of Wisconsin: STUDY: WOOD CUTTING BOARDS, NOT PLASTIC, ARE SAFER FOR FOOD PREP

Full write-up from the same researcher: PLASTIC AND WOODEN CUTTING BOARDS

So... taking all of that into consideration, I think you can guess what I use in my home.

 

[Rhinoknives1]

James and everybody else!
Bamboo is as bad or worse on knives than any of the ones you have mentioned due to the plastic that's needed to form it and the Silica "Sand" that's naturally in it.

I also concur that plastic is not safer than Maple, Oak Walnut, etc have natural anti microbial properties to them.

There is also board maintenance,
I never use olive oil or any other "natural" oil on the wooden board or knife because these will turn rancid and make you poop like a Goose!

So I like boards out of maple,Walnut and other woods and only use Mineral oil to treat them with.

 

[Insipid Moniker]

Appreciate the links. I honestly figured plastic was the better option, good to see someone took the time to do testing.

 

[james terrio]

Thanks for your input, Laurence; I confess I haven't done much research into bamboo cutting boards.

There is also board maintenance,
I never use olive oil or any other "natural" oil on the wooden board or knife because these will turn rancid and make you poop like a Goose!

Absolutely, a scored/cut-up board with rancid goop on it is definitely going to be both rougher on an edge and harder to clean. Like you said, I stay away from olive oil and similar stuff for protecting either blades or boards. I feel the best protection for a board is a good cleaning and an occasional wipe-down with plain mineral oil, and the best protection for a blade is simply keeping it clean and dry.

 

[cbwoods67]

I use my THK Kitchen blade on only the finest of granite counter tops.

Just kidding, James. I don't even use a plastic cutting board for fine cutlery.

Thanks for the thread, great information for people who are new to high quality cutting tools.

 

[Karda]

Normally I will only use a wood or white poly food prep board suitable for food service industry.
They key to cutting board safety is cleanliness and sanitation.
Also be aware that mineral oil is a mild laxative.

 

[1066vik]

Appreciate the links. I honestly figured plastic was the better option, good to see someone took the time to do testing.

if you tend to clean your cutting boards with very hot water, harsh soaps, or by soaking it, polyethylene boards are the way to go.
I tend to use wood for cutting "dry" things (bread, broccoli, etc...) and plastic for cutting "wet" things -- like meat, onions, potatoes, & tomatoes.

 

[Rhinoknives1]

Normally I will only use a wood or white poly food prep board suitable for food service industry.
They key to cutting board safety is cleanliness and sanitation.
Also be aware that mineral oil is a mild laxative.

Karda,
I agree whole heartedly that cleanliness is job one as far as food prep & safety is concerned. Some do prefer the poly boards with a dunk in a sink of hot water with a 1/4-1/2 cup of bleach every few days or so.

Mineral oil is a laxative, but with just a light dressing on a wooden board once every other month, it won't be enough to have any effect. Unless you are doing shots! :stupid:

 

[HwangJino]

I've gotten a boos board and one custom from a maker here.

For me, wood or cork (work).

 

[gmoneyluv]

Great post James.

We use maple boards for bread and drier food and a dedicated HDPE plastic board for meat and one for wet veg/fruit. Sort of what Vic does. That said, we have no problem occasionally using the wooden board for wet stuff.

What we don't do is use any of the "hard" cutting boards. Never understood how they would not damage knives.

 

[Rhinoknives1]

One that's a safe technique is to use plastic or a poly for chicken, then it can be washed with bleach to kill any residual Salmonella germs. Then wood which is easier on your edges for everything else.

 

[Chameleonbear]

So, personally I use wood for vegetables and breads then I use a plastic/poly for meats and fruits.

One thing I learned from working at the restaurant is put something under the cutting board to keep it from sliding around. Under wood I use shelf liner that I cut out to fit the cutting board, and under the poly/plastic board I use a damp paper towel.

 

[james terrio]

Great tips here folks, thank you!

 

[zzyzzogeton]

I use wood boards "LIGHTLY" dressed with mineral oil for breads and white poly boards for meats and veggies. I have multiple small/medium sized boards and 2 large ones. With my paranoid cross-contamination food poisoning phobia, I have been known to use 3-5 boards for a meal - a different board for meat, veggies, cheeses, fruits, desserts. The poly boards get washed in hot, soapy water every time they are used and about 1x per week they get the 10:1 chlorox disinfecting treatment.