How Do You Know if Wood Is Teak or Walnut
What Is the Best Woods for Cutting Boards?
past Elliott Bell 
The choice of wood for your cut board dictates how it fares against knives, stains, and moisture.
- When choosing a good cutting board, you should consider dimensions, woods hardness, wood grain, and toxicity.
- All wood cut boards are fabricated from i of three types of grains: face grain, edge grain, or end grain.
- The chief types of woods for cut boards are maple, walnut, cherry, beech, teak, and bamboo (which is actually a hard grass).
The history of the forest cutting board is the history of cooking itself. For as long as people accept been cutting their food , they accept needed surfaces to cut on. And wood was perfect for the chore. Trees were ample, readily available, and soft enough non to damage their tools (as compared to, say, a stone). Over the centuries, wood cutting boards became a fixture in many kitchens.
These days, wood cutting boards are polished and plentiful. In that location are shop aisles and web pages full of options, and locating the correct cutting board for a fair toll is no easy task — though we know our favorite .
Heavy or light? Maple or bamboo? Feet or no feet? These are the nearly important features to go on in mind as you consider all your cutting board options.
What to Look for in a Skilful Cutting Lath
When dealing with wood — an organic, textured fabric — there are things similar firmness, porosity, toxicity, and grain. These characteristics dictate the usability, food safety, and lifespan of a cutting board, and are what you should look for in your search for the perfect one.
Dimensions
Cutting boards come in many sizes — from a palm-sized 6x8 inches to a gigantic 24x18 inches. Many sources will tell y'all that when information technology comes to cutting boards, bigger is better. And they're correct.
Although good for slicing cheese and mincing garnishes, small cut boards are limiting. Using anything bigger than a paring knife on them tin result in some awkward knife gripping or even a dangerous accident.
Check if a cutting lath is big plenty past laying the pocketknife diagonally beyond its surface: There should be an extra inch of board on both sides of the knife. This ensures at that place'due south enough space for the knife to slice to its full length with room to spare for the ingredients.
Wooden boards don't vary much in thickness, falling somewhere between 1/two-two inches. Withal, if given the selection, the general rule is: The thicker the wood lath, the less likely it is to warp or split. Thick boards take longer to absorb liquid, which helps them retain their shape through time. They're also heftier and better able to hold their place on countertops, creating a safer work environment in the kitchen.
Hardness
At that place are two major types of wood — softwood and hardwood. Softwoods are typically evergreen, cone-bearing trees, such as hickory, cedar, pine, and redwood, while hardwoods are leaf-bearing trees that produce fruits or nuts, like cerise, mahogany, maple, oak, and teak. Hardwoods tend to grow slower and are, therefore, more dense, which makes them the best choice for cutting boards.
If all this tree talk is confusing, don't worry — in that location's a exam for it. The Janka hardness test, created by Austrian wood researcher Gabriel Janka in 1906, measures the relative hardness of wood. Calculated by pounds of force (lbf). Numbers at the low finish of the spectrum indicate a softer wood (balsa takes the lowest spot at 22), while highs of 4,000-5,000 announce a harder wood (the Australian buloke is 5,060).
A woods that is besides soft will be easily scratched and damaged. Too difficult may cause a pocketknife to come downward hard on the surface and mayhap deadening with repeated use. For one that is just right, a expert number is anywhere between 900-1,500. That includes cherry (995), walnut (1,010), bamboo (1,180), and maple (1,450).
Forest Grain (or Porosity)
The small pores on closed grain forest preclude liquids from seeping in, while the larger pores on open grain forest absorb liquid.
Another decisive cistron is wood grain. Technically, wood grain refers to the direction, size, and surface appearance of a cut board's wood jail cell fibers. Tangibly, it's what makes a slice of woods either smooth or coarse.
Look for wood that is airtight grain, which means information technology has smaller pores (invisible to the naked eye), and a smoothen finish. Open up grain forest has larger pores that hands blot bits of food and liquid, quickly turning into a breeding basis for bacteria, mold, and stains.
Wood that holds onto liquid is also more prone to warping or deforming over fourth dimension. Warping is caused by the millions of micro-movements wood makes every time it absorbs and releases moisture. Given forest's organic composition, some parts will blot and release faster than others, which causes stress and modify in the wood'southward shape.
Toxicity
Non all wood is food safe. Wood toxicity takes the class of irritation, rash, runny nose, swelling, and even poisoning or intestinal disorders. A proficient rule of thumb is to stick to varieties that are already known to produce edible fruits, nuts, leaves, or sap (i.e., cherry, maple, walnut).
Exotic forest, although pretty, are best left out of the kitchen — they haven't yet been cleared for culinary employ, and in that location's always a possibility their toxins may be absorbed into food.
Aside from the wood, all cutting board components — mucilage, conditioners, finishes — should exist verified as non-toxic. Avoid substances that claim to "fights odors," equally well equally anything that contains triclosan or petroleum distillates .
Actress Features
Some cutting boards go the extra mile and offer a few nifty added features. Y'all can find boards with handles for easy carrying and storage, as well every bit ones with textured grips on the bottom side to foreclose any slips and slides while chopping.
For cooks who work with a lot of raw meat or fruit, there are cutting boards with "juice grooves" or trenches around the perimeter of the board, which are very effective for collecting any liquid runoff.
Some cutting boards even come with feet. This is both artful and practical — not only is the raised surface perfect for presenting hors d'oeuvres and cold cuts, information technology also makes cleaning and drying the board much easier. Keep in heed that feet are just recommended for heavier styles that have enough weight to go on the lath in identify.
The Best Choices for Cutting Board Wood
The best type of wood for cutting boards are hardwoods with a closed grain.
Based on the above criteria, you want a hardwood with a closed grain. This is the winning combination for a cut board that's durable, scratch-resistant, and won't get grimy. The best wood species for this can be whittled down to the following few:
Maple
Maple is the industry standard when it comes to wooden cutting boards — specifically hard maple or carbohydrate maple woods. At i,450 lbf on the Janka scale, information technology provides an fantabulous cut surface that wears well against daily chopping but doesn't ruin a good cutting border. Its dense closed grain and small pores are also effective for blocking bacteria.
While maple's neutral color and subtle grain are a natural match for every kitchen, it's hard to hide stains on its lighter-toned surface — we wouldn't recommend leaving freshly sliced beets or turmeric roots on a maple cutting lath.
Ash
Ash is an excellent cutting lath material. Though it's band-porous, Ash rates nigh ane,300 lbf on the Janka scale and makes a hard, durable cut surface. It also usually has a pleasantly calorie-free tone that makes it a beautiful addition to your kitchen.
Acacia
While non as common, Acacia performs very well in the kitchen. Strains of this fast-growing hardwood range from effectually 1,170 to i,720 lbf and college on the Janka scale, which makes them sturdy enough for years of daily use. Acacia boards also tend to be less expensive and tin can come up in a diversity of shades.
Walnut
Walnut is another heavy favorite and is almost the exact reverse of maple. It'due south 1 of the softest closed grain hardwoods, at 1,010 lbf, which is great on knives but besides more prone to scratches. Walnut is prized for its rich, dark hue that tin effectively mask everyday stains, as well as lend a chic look to your countertop.
Red
If going by color lonely, carmine is the pick of the agglomeration. A thick slab of deep red wood looks amazing no affair what you practice with it.
Beech
Beech is a tree that hails from Europe and has many similarities to maple. It's almost every bit hard (at 1,300 lbf), only as hard-wearing, and effective at warding off clay. Beech has a creamier, soft-pink tone, which slowly stains to a beautiful blood-red with fourth dimension.
Teak
Teak cutting boards rose to popularity a few years ago. A tropical orangish-chocolate-brown hardwood grown in Southeast Asia, teak's resistance to mold and warping — even in moisture environments — makes information technology perfect for gunkhole fixtures, outdoor article of furniture, and recently, kitchen cutting boards.
Thank you to teak'southward closed grain and rich natural oils, h2o is unable to seep in. And every bit compared to other types of wood, there'southward much less need for any added mineral oil or conditioning.
Teak is high in silica (the same substance establish in sand and glass) and has a hardness of 1,070 lbf. This makes it a relatively sturdy and scratch-resistant surface, but may also tiresome your knife blade with frequent apply.
Bamboo
Bamboo is the environmentalist's choice. Technically not a wood merely a difficult grass, it is sustainable, renewable, and needs no chemicals to grow or harvest. (A bamboo sprout reaches total maturity in 3-6 years, while maple trees accept over 30 years.)
Bamboo has a hardness rating of 1,380 lbf — greater than many varieties of wood. It is high in silica and resistant to h2o and scratches, but it'south also relatively difficult on knives.
All the same, bamboo cutting boards — with their light hue and fine grain — make a beautiful, modern serving tray. And when you lot're not using your beloved chef's pocketknife — like when y'all're slicing bread or cheese — bamboo cutting boards are a great option.
The Types of Wood Grain
Cut boards can be made with three dissimilar surfaces — face grain, edge grain, and terminate grain.
Any piece of lumber has three surfaces: face grain, border grain, and end grain. The choice of grain determines the cut board's appearance, as well as the upshot it has on your kitchen knives.
Face Grain
Face grain is considered the most bonny because it shows the full fibers of the forest. Long, narrow slats are glued together at their shorter ends, with the grain running horizontally along the board (similar to a wood tabletop or cupboard door).
Face grain is the virtually affordable of all the grains. Withal, it's as well the most susceptible to scratches from a knife'due south bract. Since cutting is done beyond the grain, any impairment on the lath is as well very piece of cake to see.
Edge Grain
Edge grain is a step up in both quality and price. It's similar to face grain in construction (the grain runs horizontally), just uses the thicker sides, or "edge" of the woods. The resulting board all the same shows a off-white corporeality of scratches only is more durable and less decumbent to warping than confront grain. An edge grain cut lath can be a good place to beginning, specially if you're looking for a lighter, thinner model.
End Grain
This is the preferred pick amid many professionals for its hard-wearing characteristics and traditional chopping block silhouette. Rather than long slats, terminate grain cutting boards take the smallest side of the wood slats (the side with the tree rings) and arrange them in a checkerboard pattern. Together, the many pieces make up the cutting lath surface.
In finish grain boards, the forest fibers are exposed to create a "self-healing" surface. A pocketknife'south edge essentially goes in between the fibers, and when the knife lifts, the fibers close correct support. This take hold of-and-release mechanism reduces the corporeality of scratches on the lath and is also much gentler on knives.
End grain boards, however, often come up with a greater corporeality of glue seams (to connect the numerous woods pieces) and added maintenance. The fibrous surface causes oil to evaporate very quickly, and requires more conditioning to go along it in fine cutting grade.
How It All Stacks Up
In that location's so much more to a cutting lath than just providing a apartment surface. From board size to pore size, it'due south all the tiny features that will make or break a seemingly skillful cut board. Start with your ideal in listen. What will you be cutting? How often will y'all apply it? Do you want your lath to double as a serving platter? From there, you're sure to notice the perfect wood cutting lath .
Source: https://misen.com/blogs/news/best-wood-for-cutting-board
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