We get asked a few times (and not enough) why end grain cutting boards are better for your knives than bamboo cutting boards.We always, always, highly recommend a hard-wood, end-grain cutting board such as teak, oak, maple or olive wood. They’re softer and easier on your blade’s edge, helping to keep your blade sharp for years to come.
Bamboo is excellent for flooring!Bamboo is a grass and part of the Poaceae family, including other well-known grasses like wheat. It grows in tropical and subtropical regions worldwide, including Asia, Africa, and Latin America.But as a cutting board - it can do much damage to your blade. Making bamboo cutting boards involves cutting the grass into thin strips and gluing them together with a strong adhesive. Manufacturers often use cross-laminated bamboo, meaning the strips are glued together in a criss-cross pattern. A bamboo cutting board features compressed plant fibers that make it harder than wood, while a wood cutting board is just that – made of wood (often hardwood). Bamboo might be sustainable and eco-friendly but the material is harder than wood, dulling your knives faster because of the hardness.
Bamboo cutting boards are highly discouraged in the knife and chef knife community. The use of bamboo cutting boards can be extremely damaging to a blade’s edge, dulling its sharpness over time. Bamboo is 19% harder than traditional maple, oak or teak, which makes it much harder on the knives. The small grooves may catch the blade’s edge, interrupting a smooth cutting action, therefore, you will have to sharpen your knives more often.
From the aspect of hygiene and health security, both wooden and bamboo are reliable enough if you properly, neatly, and regularly take care of them. The advantage goes to the wooden cutting board because of its durability, flexibility and helping to keep your blade’s edge sharper, longer.
You should regularly and properly wash and dry your wooden cutting board making it last much longer.Mineral oil or Butcher Block Oil is perfect for keeping your wooden cutting board in excellent shape. Wood is a kind of material which does not dull the knife, and it is suitable for cutting all types of food. The wooden cutting board is softer than the bamboo cutting board, so it will keep your knife sharp enough. If you take care of your board regularly, it will last many, many years.