For professional chefs and novice cooking enthusiasts alike, the cutting board is the centerpiece of the food preparation process, and choosing the right cutting board will have an immense impact on how effective the cook is in preparing and cooking the food. Novelty Cutting Boards has a wide assortment of cooking boards to choose from, but the first order of the day is to determine which is better, wood or plastic cutting boards.
Durability, Wear and Tear
One area in which wood cutting boards transcend plastic cutting boards is in the area of durability. If you have ever owned or used a plastic cutting board, then you probably have images of stains, knife marks and even mold. The truth is that plastic cutting boards can degrade quite rapidly, while wood cutting boards possess the durability to last for years, even being passed down through generations. This is especially true when it comes to edge-grain cutting boards, which can withstand decades of use, while maintaining their functionality and aesthetic appeal.
Cutlery and Knife Protection
While it is important to have a cutting board that is durable, it is equally important to ensure that the board does not damage your cutlery, which can be immensely expensive. The fact that end-grain wood fibers naturally separate when they come in contact with knife blades means that they are not as harmful to knife blades as plastic cutting boards. Plastic is not as harmful to knives as surfaces such as glass and porcelain; however, it still does not give way to sharp knives the way that wood does.
The Hygiene of the Board
While most people are unaware of the importance of hygiene when it comes to choosing the right cutting board. Anytime bacteria are allowed to linger, it can lead to unhealthy conditions and infections. While wood cutting boards are slightly more difficult to clean, the natural wood properties of the board work to prevent the lingering of bacteria. If fact, a study conducted by the University of California in 1993 revealed that wood cutting boards are less than half as likely to harbor bacteria as plastic cutting boards.
While plastic cutting boards are generally less expensive than wood cutting boards, they fail to measure up in the key areas mentioned here. Investing in a wood cutting board has a significant beneficial return on investment.
