How to Choose the Best Cutting Boards for Preparing Meat

How do you select the Best Cutting Boards for Meat Preparation? Which one is best when it comes to contamination risks?

We at Northfork Bison are meat-prep experts. We’ve been butchering meat since 1997. We’ve tried a lot of cutting boards. Cutting boards, like most other kitchen equipment, can vary widely in quality and price. There are hardwood boards, plastic boards, and glass. Which is the best? bacteria resistance is a big concern for consumers. What’s the difference between them?

You’ll need at least two cutting boards, one for meat, fish, and poultry and the other for everything else. If you’re feeling particularly extravagant, a third board may be used to carve meat. For example, if you use the same cutting board to chop a tomato for your salad after chicken, you run the danger of bacterial transference from the chicken to the tomato. That is clearly undesirable.

Here are some things to watch for while shopping for a cutting board for meat preparation.

Table of Contents

Cut groove (a groove to catch any juices that flow out of the sliced meal)
Edge that won’t slip (you may also lay a wet towel under your board to prevent it from sliding)

Handles for easy lifting and carrying (a bonus but not a requirement)

Which wood cutting boards are the best for preparing meat?

A well-used wood cutting board with numerous grooves

There are many types of wood boards available. Teak, maple, and walnut are examples of traditional hard woods. The bamboo cutting board (which is a grass rather than a wood) is another option.

The material of a cutting board varies depending on the type of wood. Nothing compares to high-quality woods like teak, maple, or beech. Western maple is a close second, with eastern hard rock maple being the gold standard. Western maple is about 15% softer than maple and is ideal for cutting food. Cherry wood is 20% softer, making it perfect for cheese or breadmaking.

Pros and cons of Wood Cutting Boards

Pros:

Wood is more forgiving on blades than plastic or glass.
LED lights are kinder to the environment and better looking than traditional lights. We have so much plastic as it is.
When there are too many grooves as a result of knives, a wood cutting board may be sanded and shaved down.

The most important reason for utilizing a wood cutting board while preparing meat is that germs may enter the surface of wood cutting boards, but they perish rapidly under the wood’s surface.

Cons:

Not dishwasher safe
Needs to be oiled on a regular basis (use mineral oil; it will not go rancid)

Cleaning tips for wood cutting boards

Just about the most inexpensive thing in your pantry cleans and disinfects your board nicely. (… but I digress) Just add a few drops of vinegar to a damp cloth, wipe down any dust or dirt from the surface, then air it out for at least 15 minutes. Cleaning with white vinegar is quick and easy.)
Baking soda is also an excellent solution for removing stains from your chopping board. Sprinkle and scrub with boiling water to remove dirt from your cutting board.
Use warm soapy water to wash your board.
Do not let boards soak.
After cleaning, let your hair dry on a dish rack to help it air-dry.
To disinfect the boar, spritz it with vinegar or rub it down with a half a lemon.
You may also use bleach. 1tbsp of diluted bleach in a cup of water is sufficient. Fill a spritz bottle with it.
Traditionally, butchers used salt on their butcher blocks to keep them smelling fresh. The salt drew the moisture out of the wood and prevented bacterial growth.
Use a half lemon wedge to clean the board of odors.

Bamboo Cutting Boards

Pros :

You can’t say that about plastic! Green and environmentally safe Green, long term and earth-friendly.. It’s one of the fastest growing plants on Earth – That’ something you just don’t hear often from someone else…
Just make sure the bamboo chopping board’s manufacturer uses non-toxic treatment processes or has organic practices.
It is practically maintenance-free. Simply wipe dry and avoid soaking it.
Bamboo cutting boards are extremely long-lasting and hard. The unique texture of a bamboo board makes it ideal for chopping fruits, vegetables, meat, and poultry due to its firm but porous density.
Water won’t get in when you have a thick wood, which is where germs thrive and live. And it won’t bend or fracture like other common wood might.
Even though a bamboo cutting board is harder than maple or oak, it is less expensive.
Bamboo is a grass that grows quickly and constantly.
It doesn’t react to knife marks.
It’s simple to clean with soapy water.

Cons

Both the larger and smaller plates can go in the dishwasher.
It’s all a non-issue, provided you apply oiling. Mineral oil is an excellent option.

Plastic cutting boards

The laminate cutting board with grooves around the edges is ideal for meat, fish and veggies.

Pros

It is dishwasher safe.Cons

For a while, plastic was preferred because it was thought to be non-porous and dishwasher safe. That appears to be the case at first, but this is not the case. When bacteria are housed in wood, according to study, plastic wins over wood.
Plastic, on the other hand, is difficult to keep clean. Bacteria may be found in the tiny cracks and fissures of plastic. The microorganisms remain present after wood has been destroyed.
Cutting boards made of polyethylene, on the other hand, are less likely to dull your blades.
Plastic is a major component of cutting boards. Some people find it extremely annoying to cut on plastic, which creates a horrible racket. You may really feel your knives being destroyed while you do so.
Once a plastic cutting board has been damaged by knives, it’s very difficult to clean and disinfect it.

Glass cutting boards

Don’t even try it. Your knives will be damaged if you use glass, ceramic, or marble. It’s true that non-porous cutting boards are simple to maintain; there’s no need to oil them. When you cut meat, poultry, or veggies on a glass cutting board, it’ll slip and slide around without sticking.

Never, ever, ever place your wooden cutting board in the dishwasher.

If you find that your wood cutting board is becoming too dry, or if you place them near a source of heat (such as the stove burner – they will burn),
Allow it to dry thoroughly after rinsing the stain.
In the dishwasher, never put your cutting board.
After you’ve sliced meat, clean your cutting board right away.

When is it time to toss your cutting board?

Take a look at your cutting board. Is it showing signs of wear and difficulty to clean grooves? However, if you really like your wood chopping board, you may sand or shave it down to create a beautiful new smooth surface.

In conclusion, wood is the best material for a cutting board to use when preparing meat. Plastic is also fine, but if grooves begin to show, it’s time to toss it. Glass boards are nonporous, therefore germs cannot grow on them. They’re easy to clean in the dishwasher and won’t get scratched by using soap and water. Unfortunately, glass isn’t ideal for cutting or chopping.

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