Also, 5.6 lbs of wood won't go sliding around on you while you’re wielding a cleaver. “Wood has a lot of give, so your knife edge can sink into it with minimal dulling, and the cuts ‘heal’ after your knife passes through,” explains Morocco. Weighty, wooden cutting boards like this are great for repetitive tasks like chopping fruit, because the material is softer and easier on your knives. This cutting board weighs around 5.6 lbs. Plus, it doubles as an ideal serving platter for showcasing a fresh fruit spread with some hunks of cheese and requisite prosciutto coils. Unlike regular, flat cutting boards, one side of this handsome board slopes down into a little juice trench that’s been carved into the wood and holds an impressive ⅔ cup of juice (which you can and should save for a refreshing treat). This pretty walnut cutting board from Our Place is our top pick if you chop a lot of juicy fruits. Who it’s best for: If you’re the kind of home cook who is a dishwasher devotee, isn’t quite ready to invest in a more durable board, or wants to cut up raw chicken one day and mince garlic the next, then plastic boards are the pick for you. Plastic boards tend to warp more easily than rubber, can get irreparably scuffed, and “develop deep grooves that make them less sanitary over time,” Morocco says. They’re also probably not the move if you’re looking for a super long-lasting purchase. Plastic is also a less absorbent material than wood (and about the same as rubber), according to Morocco, which means they won’t harbor bacteria so easily.Ĭons: Cupps notes that plastic boards “can also be slippery, which isn’t safe.” Morocco recommends laying a damp dish towel, paper towel, or nonslip rubber mat under your plastic board to keep it steady. Pros: The main selling points of plastic cutting boards are that they’re lightweight, sanitizing them is easy-most are dishwasher-safe, though very hot temps could result in warping-and they’re cheaper than most wood and rubber boards. It all depends on what kind of cook you are, and on your priorities: Are you the kind of person who’s down to spend the time and care on maintaining a gorgeous wood board that’s destined to become an heirloom? Or are you more the fast and on-the-go kind of cook who needs something they can throw in the dishwasher at the end of the day? Here’s a breakdown of the differences between cutting board materials and what that means for you as you’re making your choice between them. The right cutting board for you may be different from the right cutting board for your friend, or your sibling, or the guy who lives two doors over. What kind of cutting board is right for you? Best Composite Cutting Board: Epicurean All-in-One Cutting Boardīut first, let's take a look at the different cutting board materials and what they're best used for.Most Fun Plastic Cutting Board: Fredericks & Mae Cutting Board.Best Sustainable Plastic Cutting Board: Material reBoard.Best Plastic Cutting Board Overall: OXO Good Grips Carving & Cutting Board.Best Less Expensive Rubber Cutting Board: Asahi Rubber Cutting Board.Best Rubber Cutting Board Overall: NoTrax Sani-Tuff Premium Rubber Cutting Board.You can jump straight the board of your preference or read all our reviews:

The experts all agree: The best cutting boards are made from wood, rubber, or plastic.Īhead, we'll break down each of the best cutting boards. We tapped the pros for their recs-executive chef Suzanne Cupps, who chopped a helluva lot of veggies during her time at 232 Bleecker, along with BA food director Chris Morocco and cookbook author and contributor Andy Baraghani. Whether you’re adding to your current chopping board collection or just looking to replace a warped old thing, you’ll need to know which boards are the most durable, gentlest on your knives, and pretty enough to adorn your countertop. What types of cutting boards are there? What materials and features best suit your needs? Do you more than one board in different sizes? And, of supreme importance, what should you do with that frosted glass board Great Aunt Mabel gifted you 35 holidays ago? So it’s the kind of tool that’s worth putting some real thought into and asking some questions about. Whether you're just learning the ropes in the kitchen or regularly take on multi-day cooking projects, a cutting board is likely your most-used piece of kitchen equipment, right up there with your chef’s knife and prep bowl. And you may think that a board is a board is a board, but the very best cutting boards offer a better slicing, chopping, and overall prep experience. A good cutting board is essential to any home cook's kitchen.

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