While shopping for a new cutting board recently, we heard all kinds of conflicting advice on which was the most green, the most sanitary and the least damaging to our knives. So we're setting the record straight on which is the best kind of cutting board - plastic, wood, or bamboo.
• Plastic Cutting Boards Plastic is our least favorite kind of cutting board. Many people believe that it is the most sanitary, especially as you can wash it in the dishwasher. However, a University of Michigan study found that "more bacteria are recovered from a used plastic surface than from a used wood surface." The study also found that though a new plastic board could be disinfected, a knife-scarred plastic surface was impossible to clean and disinfect manually. When you also consider that a knife-scarred surface means plastic is getting into your food, we're kicking plastic boards out of our kitchen.
• Bamboo Cutting Boards Bamboo is the choice of many environmentalists. As a hard grass, it is a sustainable, renewable resource that needs no chemicals to thrive or to be harvested.
As far as we know, no independent studies have been done on how sanitary bamboo cutting boards are. However they do absorb less liquid than wooden boards, so many believe they are as sanitary or more sanitary than wood boards.
Be aware that they are 19% harder than traditional maple cutting boards, so many also think that bamboo cutting boards are harder on knives than wood boards. Also, the small grooves may ever so slightly catch your knife, interrupting a smooth cutting action. When shopping for a bamboo board, look for ones that use formaldehyde-free glues, such as those from Totally Bamboo or Bambu.
• Wood Cutting Boards Just like mom used, a heavy wood board is kind to knives, and will not dull them quickly. A good maple or beech cutting board is somewhat self-healing, and thus won't scar as easily as a plastic board. Regularly oil your board with food-grade mineral oil to protect it from staining or warping, and please don't put it in the dishwasher. A well cared-for board will last you for years.
Wood is a renewable resource, but not nearly as easily renewable as bamboo. However many boards are made from waste wood - leftovers at the mill that would have been otherwise thrown away.
So what's in our kitchen? A heavy maple board that we use for most of our cutting, and that we expect to last us for years. For the bar, and other small chopping jobs we have a bamboo board. As it's used near water, and thus is more likely to warp or crack, we chose the most renewable resource in case we have to replace it in a year or so.
What kind of board do you use in your kitchen?
Images: Bamboo board, plastic flexible cutting board, maple board
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I'm guilty of using plastic boards, even though I know they're not as good or attractive or probably as safe as wood. I have a few nice wood cutting boards that I like, but the ease of just sticking the cutting board in the dishwasher is hard to beat. I'm going to make an effort to swap, though.
I have the same wood one I've had for like five years now. When I'm ready for a new one, may go with Bambu...
3 cutting boards (1 for meats, 1 for veggies and 1 smaller one for cutting kids fruits etc.), all plastic. I never heard that bacteria is harder to remove from plastic boards, but that's good to know. We were motivated by the convenience of dishwasher cleanup.
I have three small plastic boards that I use for most purposes and a giant sized wooden cutting board that my father bought at least thirty years ago that is used for turkeys and big carving jobs.
I like the convenience of being able to put the plastic boards in the dishwasher.
I have to watch out for formaldehyde glue when buying a cutting board?? Who's bright idea was that?
I have two glass ones. I'm thinking this is bad for the knives?
I have removed all my plastic cutting boards (and I'm working on the plastic utensils as time goes on). I have two wood cutting boards and two bamboo (and phasing in all stainless steel and bamboo utensils as well).
It was good of you to link to an abstract of the study. That is a rare and helpful thing to do!
When I read it, I found that, as you said, a plastic cutting board can not be manually cleaned, but that "Mechanical cleaning with a dishwashing machine can be done successfully with plastic surfaces." In other words, you can put your plastic cutting board in the dish washer and you WILL get it clean.
There was an earlier AT post on the topic of dishwasher versus handwashing dishes. The poster (may have been Maxwell) summarized the debate as (approximately) whether you define "clean" as free of grease or free of germs. Since very very very few of us would willingly dip our hands in a dishpan of water hot enough to achieve BOTH definitions of "clean", I would say that plastic in the dishwasher is going to be CLEANER than wood washed by hand for most people that aren't that guy on X-Men who burst into flames.
But I usually use a wood cutting board instead of the plastic one right next to it.
Someone just gave me a bunch of chop chop cutting mats http://www.dynamic-living.com/product/chop-chop-cutting-boards/
They're awesome! Sometimes you just want to mince a little garlic or portion some meat and you don't want to commit to a big cutting board so you just whip out a chop chop mat.
I know, I sound very anal but I guess I am when it comes to cutting boards.
The day I decided to propose to my wife I had planned a picnic by the lake. When we were at the store picking out the food I think we had to go to a couple of different places so I could buy a small cutting board for the picnic. Chelsea (my wife) was like, "what do we need a cutting board for?" Well, we need one for cheese and apples. I was excited to find a little wooden cutting board at Ikea for this purpose that has a little knife that actually fits into the cutting board. Easy transport.
So, cutting boards are very important to me.
To answer the question--plastic, wood and bamboo. I have them all.
If I had my way, we would have a nice thick maple chopping block in the kitchen, with bamboo accessory cutting boards, if needed. But what we have is a muddle of variously sized plastic boards and mats. Sigh. One day...
I love my bamboo cutting board. It's going on 4 years now and still looks amazing.
I use my bamboo board for everything except for meat. The meats are done on plastic cutting mats which then go in the dishwasher.
I have 4 plastic ones of all different sizes (I dont eat meat so thats not an issue). I had nice wood ones, but they ended up in the dishwasher. Everything in my kitchen ends up in the dishwasher so I decided not to fight it anymore.
I use Epicurean cutting boards , which are made from wood fibers and resin. They're thin, i.e. don't take up any space, can be put in the dishwasher, and have the feel of wood but don't need oiling. I think they're also made from sustainable wood? Anyone else use these? I'm curious.
all my attempts at bamboo boards ended with them coming apart at the lamination joints or getting badly stained there. i like my plain wood one for everything but raw meat. i can't convince myself to use anything but plastic for the raw meat.
nmontgom: glass cutting boards are very bad for your knives! They dull them very quickly.
I've got one old wood cutting board that came from my parents when I moved into my first apartment, it's at least 30 years old. I also have a large board from Ikea that was about $20. It has a lip and stays on the edge of the counter. I use it for cutting fruits, vegetables, bread - even making bread by hand this week. I have a couple of beautiful wood boards that are so beautiful I don't want to use them! I've also got some plastic boards for onions and meats/poultry that I stick in the dishwasher. I'll replace them at some point with wood, but there are so many other kitchen things to buy!
Alton Brown makes a good point, along the lines of - if the scientists can't get the germs out of the wood to count them, how many are going to get out of the wood and onto your food?
One of my dream items: a big a** John Boos board. :)
i use an epicurean cutting board too. i don't have a dishwasher, but i like that i can leave it in the sink. well, i like that if my partner leaves it in the sink it won't be destroyed is what i mean.
does anyone use cork? it looks like i would be great for knives but i'm curious if it's really absorptive.
as for clean meaning without grease or without bacteria, does this mean all of us who don't have dishwashers (i can't afford one and i'm not allowed to have one) are just fucked then? does bacteria latch onto cutting boards so if you wipe them, the bacteria stays? i don't care if the bacteria dies, only that it's off the plate/board.
Plastic for sanitation and health reasons for an family that has lots of immune system issues. We can bleach them when we need and recycle when they get beat up enough.
We have plastic cutting boards and wash them in the dishwasher. I love the idea (yes, I'm nostalgic) of a heavy wooden cutting board like my grandparents always used but have always worried about being able to properly clean it.
When using a wood or bamboo board, how do you ensure it's properly cleaned without using the dishwasher? Is soapy hot water sufficient after fish or poultry, or should it be followed up with a bleach/water solution?
I have written several blogs concerning "Wood vs. Plastic". I did some research on several studies about this subject which showed that, overall, wood is more durable, kinder to knife blades, and safer to use than plastic. Wood is self-healing, the grain reseals itself after each pass of a blade. This property is also why wood is so much easier on knife blades. Bacteria are naturally absorbed into the grain where they eventually die or are too far from the surface to affect the food being processed. I recommend choosing boards made from Maple, Walnut, or Cherry.
*********There are several certifications of plastic cutting boards, one Being NSF, that certifies the plastic has passed requirements to come in contact with your food.*********