Cutting Boards

Call me old-fashioned, but I still prefer a wood cutting board. I like the way a knife feels on wood better than any other surface I’ve tried. Wood also seems to have self-healing properties. Minor cuts which tend to remain on plastic seem to disappear on wood boards. Research has shown that wood is also safer to use than plastic when cutting meats because wood has antibacterial properties. Of course, it is still essential to thoroughly clean wood boards with soap and hot water after cutting meat, but any stray bacteria that remain trapped in the wood board will eventually die, whereas they thrive on plastic boards. One disadvantage of wood is that it tends to retain odors. If you cut fruit on a board that was used for onions or garlic, the fruit takes on those flavors even if the board was thoroughly washed. To avoid this, I keep two sets of boards: one for fruits and salads and another for everything else. To prevent the boards from slipping on the counter, I put a piece of rubber shelf liner underneath.