But a great knife isn't much good if the surface you're using it on is working against it. A 4.5-pound skillet helped us maintain an even downward pressure on each knife, while a ruler (in the background) allowed us to keep a consistent stroke length. My solution was an anecdotal one: Through the course of my professional career, I've been using many of these boards at work and at home for years. There are exceptions when it comes to wooden cutting boards, but, in general, this is a piece of equipment you're better off paying more for. The Best End-Grain Wooden Cutting Board: The BoardSmith Maple Carolina Slab Butcher Block, Another Great End-Grain Cutting Board: Brooklyn Butcher Block End-Grain Maple, The Best Edge-Grain Cutting Board: Brooklyn Butcher Block Long-Grain Maple, The Best Affordable Wooden Cutting Board: Ironwood Gourmet Acacia End-Grain Prep Station, We Tested 7 Plastic Cutting BoardsHere Are Our Favorites, The Criteria: What We Look for in a Great Wooden Cutting Board. At a fraction of the cost of the above boards, this acacia end-grain cutting board will do its job more than well enough. I've owned one at home for about five years now, and it hardly looks different from when it first arrived. The maple end- and edge-grain boards from Brooklyn Butcher Blocks lined up with my expectations, though the differences were subtle. Seams are frequent points of failure, which puts end-grain boards at higher risk (assuming equal construction and material quality). That said, a well-made end-grain board will still have a better chance at survival than a poorly made edge-grain one. I made sure to move the knives around on the boards so that I wasn't working the same spot over and over. Oak is one material I didn't consider at all, since I found no credible sources that would endorse it for cutting boards. It's significantly darker than maple, so if that appeals to you on an aesthetic level, it's worth considering. You may see a small benefit from the blade-protecting qualities of an end-grain board, though the difference is hardly dramatic. Eventually wood can get scratched up, too, to the point where it also becomes an unsafe food preparation surface; the bright side is that it can then be sanded back to like-new condition. 
Some looked just like the ones that had failed us before, some were works of art, and a few fell in between. I then slid each knife back and forth on each cutting board, using a consistent five-inch stroke length and 4.5-pounds of downward pressure. If you suspect you might get lazy and let the board sit flush with your countertop for long stretches of time, then you might want the feet, which will help offset your bad habits. What we liked: If the fancier end-grain cutting boards above just aren't in your budget, this end-grain acacia wood board will serve you more than well enough. As I've written in my review of plastic cutting boards, many of the assumptions about plastic being a more sanitary material than wood for cutting boards have been undermined by research. A perimeter groove to catch juices when carving meats can be added (for an extra cost) upon request, though one should keep in mind that the groove reduces usable board surface area. Did they ship a board that was dry enough to be used as kindling, or did it arrive well-oiled? I could have abused all of the boards mercilessly to see which would fail first, but that didn't seem fairone of the rules of wooden cutting board use is to care for them properly. If youre concerned about cross-contamination, its perfectly fine to have multiple cutting boards and designate one specifically for use with meats. SMIRLY Large Wood Cutting Board for Kitchen: Extra Large Bamboo Cutting Board with Juice Groove & Compartments, Wooden Cutting Boards for Kitchen, Butcher Block Cutting Board Wood, Meat Chopping Board, PREMIUM ACACIA Cutting Board & Professional Heavy Duty Butcher Block w/Juice Groove - Extra Large (17"x13"x1.4") Organic, End Grain Chopping Block. Which is better? What we didn't like: Nothingthis board is absolutely worth investing in. Give me those two things, and I'm a happy camper. MSU Extension. Yes, plastic is less porous than wood, and yes, it can be sanitized more easilyat least initially. End-grain boards, like the one at left, absorb liquids more rapidly than edge-grain ones do. Cured with Beeswax and Natural Oils - Extra Wood Moisturizer Included - Butcher Block. (As I said, there's more to it than that, but for the purposes of cutting boards, I'm limiting it to these two terms.). Maple is one of the most common materials for cutting boards, and I mostly limited much of my testing pool to that, though I did include a few teak boards and one acacia, since they're popular options on the more affordable end. 
The feet confer a couple advantages. At a solid two-inches thick, it's also as sturdy as can be. For us, that means a cutting board that is at least 12 by 18 inches, and preferably larger. Add in the lower price compared to an end-grain board, and it's a compelling option. Teak and acacia are woods that tend to be grown in Asia. Wood fares better in the minimizing-damage-to-a-knife's-edge departmentbetter than a lot of plastic options, better than composite materials, and infinitely better than glass or marble (please, never cut on glass or stone)but not all wooden cutting boards are the same in this regard. Another thing to note is how large (or small) the pieces on an end-grain board are. The wooden cutting board is the kitchen's unsung hero. Cured with Beeswax and Natural Oils - Extra Wood Moisturizer Included - Pixel Design.
Or are you going to neglect it the same way you've neglected those fancy knives you should have resharpened four years ago? Really, all of this adds up to the timeworn advice that you get what you pay for. End-grain boards are also more prone to warping and cracking, since all those exposed fibers absorb and release moisture much more rapidly (one of their purposes in the tree was to transport water, after all). How finely has the board been finished? It comes in one stock size of 12 by 18 inches, but custom orders are possible, as are added details like a juice groove and indented side handles. The board arrives from the manufacturer damp with oila great sign that it's treated with care right up until it's boxed and shipped. Unfortunately, those two qualities are hard to come by. Did the manufacturer go above and beyond on the smaller touches, beveling the edges and corners? There they remain, locked away until they die. For one thing, you can look at the outward signs of quality. We treated them right, soaking them regularly in baths of food-grade mineral oil, and leaving them to dry upright after gentle washing. That doesn't mean a fancy one won't fail you, nor that an unrefined one won't last a long time. What we didn't like: Like I said above, this board comes in just one size. Durability would have been nice to test in a controlled manner, but it's a very difficult thing to test methodically for cutting boards. Here are notes on the other models we tested for this review: All it takes to clean a wooden cutting board is hot water and dish soap. The one on the left has a smoothness and luster, while the one on the right is drier and less refined. If you were to cut them into cross-sections, you'd get rounds full of visible holes. The acacia wood is noticeably harder under a knife than a maple board, but it also seems to be more durable. A fine piece of woodwork, this maple end-grain board from The BoardSmith is thick, solid, and gets all the details right. But as scratches pile up, plastic begins to look less appealing. First, they lift the board off your countertop, allowing air to circulate. After 300 consistent knife strokes, the end-grain board (at left) has less severe scratches in it than the edge-grain board at right. After every 50 back-and-forth strokes, I would attempt to slice parchment paper with the blade, taking note of when I could detect a decrease in its cutting ability. Breaking that rule just to force a failure would only prove which board could withstand the worst treatment the longest, not which one would last longest when treated properly. One possibility is that the John Boos end-grain board's more exposed knots and cracks patched with filler could have taken a toll on the blade (this goes back to the visual inspection: a board with visible flaws may be problematic in more ways than one). Using a protective oil on your cutting board does more than just help keep it looking greatit forms a barrier against scratches and odor absorption. What we didn't like: It comes in just one size. Is the surface smooth or rough?
They get mixed reviews, with some people complaining about their unpredictable hardness levels (in the case of acacia) and high knife-damaging silica content (in the case of teak), but because they've become so common, and because they're priced affordably, I decided to include them in this review to see how they'd fare against the maple options in some real-world tests. The type of board you choose should depend on a few factors. End-grain boards are more difficult to make, which means they're more expensive than an edge-grain board of otherwise similar build and material quality. It's not ideal, since the feet themselves aren't of high quality and can come off over time, and they render one side of the board unusable. We put a range of wooden board materials, constructions, and brands to the test to find out which ones were worth the investment. What oil should you use for a wooden cutting board? SMIRLY Butcher Block Cutting Board: Large Wood Cutting Board for Kitchen, Large Wooden Cutting Board, Extra Large Cutting Board Wood Chopping Block, Walnut Cutting Board Large, End Grain Cutting Board. On the flip side, wood requires more careful maintenance and frequent oiling, and, unlike some more durable plastic boards, can never be put in the dishwasher. What's the Best Type of Wood for Cutting Boards? Extra Large Bamboo Cutting Boards, (Set of 3) Chopping Boards with Juice Groove Bamboo Wood Cutting Board Set Butcher Block for Kitchen, End Grain Serving Tray by Kikcoin, Villa Acacia Wood Cutting Board (24 x 18 x 1.25 Inch, Acacia), Sonder Los Angeles, Made in USA, Large Thick End Grain Walnut Wood Cutting Board with Non-Slip Feet, Juice Groove, Sorting Compartments 17x13x1.5 in (Gift Box Included), Ironwood Gourmet 28218 Square Charleston End Grain Chef's Board , Acacia Wood 14" Square, End Grain Wood cutting board - Wood Chopping block - Large cutting board 16 x 12 Kitchen butcher block Oak cutting board non slip cutting board with feet - Kitchen Wooden chopping board, Avosima Premium Maple Butcher Block Cutting Board-Large Wooden Cutting Boards for Kitchen, Non-Slip Chopping Block With Reversible Juice Groove (20 x 15 x 1.5 inches, 9 lbs. We've updated our Privacy Policy, which will go in to effect on September 1, 2022. That's why it's even more critical to keep an end-grain board well oiled, to prevent it from drinking every drop of water that touches it, and warping as a result.
They were big, heavy, and incredibly thick, if a little rough around the edges. Those scratches in plastic are great places for bacteria to fester. Because it's a small company, The BoardSmith can also make boards to custom specs, including different sizes and wood types. The board holds up better, too, because the fibers can reset after the knife is pulled away; an end-grain board can still develop scratches, but they won't be as severe as on an edge-grain board under the same conditions. We tested both an end- and an edge-grain maple board from them (more on the edge-grain below), and each is a work of art. When you visit this site, it may store or retrieve information on your browser, mostly in the form of cookies. I've seen which ones have failed and which ones haven't, the nature of those failures, and I've noticed what qualities the boards that have failed have had in common (spoiler: lower quality workmanship). The problem is there's no easy way to subject multiple wooden cutting boards to exactly the same heavy use over the coarse of many months while caring for them properly, which is what would be required to properly test durability fairly. When you crosscut the trunk, you expose what's called the end-grain. How to Season and Maintain a Wooden Cutting Board, We Tested 8 Fine-Mesh StrainersThese Are Our Favorites, We Tested 10 Balloon WhisksTwo Whisked Their Way to Victory, We Tested 30 Chef's KnivesHere Are Our Favorites, We Tested 10 Microplanes (Rasp-Style Graters)Here Are the Best Ones, We Tested 14 Sets of Steak KnivesHere Are Our Favorites, We Tested 16 Santoku KnivesHere Are Our Favorites, The Best Serrated Bread Knife for Your Kitchen, The Kitchen Starter Kit: Essential Tools for Every Cook, The Essential Knives Every Home Cook Needs, We Tested 11 Food ProcessorsHere Are the 4 Worth Buying, We Tested More Than 20 Pepper MillsHere Are The Best Ones. It can be handy to have both in your kitchen, but I prefer to use wood as my primary work surface. Cured with Beeswax and Natural Oils - Extra Wood Moisturizer Included - Pixel Design. I've also talked to plenty of other cooks about their experiences, expanding my understanding more. The recommended boards below excelled in all of our inspections and tests relative to their price point, and have demonstrated long-term durability based on our direct experience using them in the Serious Eats test kitchen and at home. The BoardSmith Maple Carolina Slab Butcher Block, Ironwood Gourmet Acacia End-Grain Prep Station, how to treat a wooden cutting board right, Michigan Maple's End Grain Chopping Block, Catskill Craftsmen's 19-Inch End Grain Chopping Block, John Boos Thick Reversible Maple Cutting Board, John Boos Maple Classic Reversible Wood End Grain Chopping Block, https://www.canr.msu.edu/news/cutting_boards_and_food_safety_1. Cutting boards for which the end grain is on the cutting surfacethat is, where the tree's rings are visible on the surfaceare often referred to as butcher blocks. Just by examining many of the cutting boards I ordered for this test, I was able to sort them into groups. If you can't afford a good end-grain cutting board, a good edge-grain will be your default. Our favorite end-grain wooden cutting board is the The BoardSmith Maple Carolina Slab Butcher Block. Cured with Beeswax and Natural Oils - Extra Wood Moisturizer Included, Winco WCB-1824 Wooden Cutting Board, 18-Inch by 24-Inch by 1.75-Inch, Ironwood Gourmet Large End Grain Prep Station Acacia Wood Cutting Board, 14 x 20-Inch, Brown, John Boos Block RA06 Maple Wood Edge Grain Reversible Cutting Board, 30 Inches x 23.25 Inches x 2.25 Inches, John Boos Maple Classic Reversible Wood End Grain Chopping Block, 20"x 15" x 2.25, TeakHaus Edge Grain Carving Board w/Hand Grip (Rectangle) | 24" x 18" x 1.5", Thirteen Chefs Mineral Oil - 12oz Food Grade Conditioner for Wood Cutting Board, Countertop & Butcher Block, Lubricant for Knife or Meat Grinder - Safe USP Finish on Bamboo, Marble, Soapstone, Sonder Los Angeles, Large Teak Wood Cutting Board with Juice Groove, Reversible 18x14x1.25 in (Gift Box Included), Paten Cutting Board, Wood Cutting Boards for Kitchen,Acacia Wood Cutting Board with Handle,Wooden Chopping Board with Juice Groove for Meat and Vegetables,17x12inches, CONSDAN Butcher Block Counter Top, USA Grown Hard Maple Solid Hardwood Countertop, Washer/Laundry Countertop, Table Top, Polished, Prefinished with Food-safe Oil, 1.5" Thickness, 24" L x 25" W, John Boos Block RAFR2418 Reversible Maple Edge Grain Cutting Board with Juice Groove and Chrome Handles, 24 Inches x 18 Inches x 2.25 Inches, Villa Acacia Large Wood Cutting Board with Juice Groove, 2.5 Inch Thick, 17x12 Inch End Grain Block, John Boos Block B12S Maple Wood Edge Grain Cutting Board with Feet, 12 Inches Square, 1.5 Inches Thick, Professional butcher block cutting board 24 x 18 inch extra large thick wooden double sided end-grain chopping board, Sonder Los Angeles, Thick Sustainable Acacia Wood Cutting Board with Juice Groove, Sorting Compartment 16x12x1.5 in (Gift Box Included), Sonder Los Angeles, XXL Thick Teak Wood Cutting Board with Juice Groove, 23x17x1.5 in Large (Gift Box Included), Sonder Los Angeles, XL Thick Teak Wood Cutting Board with Juice Groove, Sorting Compartments 20x15x1.5 in (Gift Box Included), Acacia 17 x 13 x 2 Extra-Large End Grain Cutting Board with Juice Groove & Hand Grips Luxury Fancy XL Thick Reversible Dark Wood Butcher Block Chopping Carving Serving Platter Tray Birthday Gift Idea, Extra Large XXXL Bamboo Cutting Board 24 x16 Inch,Largest Wooden Butcher Block for Turkey, Meat, Vegetables, BBQ, Over the Sink Chopping Board with Handle and Juice Groove, Wood Cutting Board Set - Bamboo Cutting Board with Juice Groove - Kitchen Chopping Board for Meat (Butcher Block) Cheese and Vegetables | Heavy Duty Serving Tray w/Handles (3), John Boos Block Chop-N-Slice Maple Wood Edge Grain Reversible Cutting Board, 16 Inches x 10 Inches x 1 Inches, Prosumer's Choice Stovetop Cover Bamboo Cutting Board | Premium, Sustainable, Expands Kitchen Space, Easy to Clean - with Adjustable Legs and Juice Grooves, Kenmore Kenosha Heavy Duty Acacia Wood Extra Large Cutting Board W/ Juice Grove, 24x16-inch, Mevell Walnut Wood Cutting Board for Kitchen, Reversible Wooden Chopping Board With Juice Grooves, Made in Canada (Large 18x12x1.25 Flat Grain), John Boos Block CCB183-R-H Maple Wood End Grain Round Cutting Board with Stainless Steel Handles, 18 Inches Round x 3 Inches Tall, Large Bamboo Cutting Board with Juice Groove Wooden Cutting Boards for Kitchen - 18 x 14 x 1.3" - Organic Wood Butcher Block with Slanted Sides for Easy Grab - Chopping Board for Meat and Vegetables, Mohy Bamboo Butcher Block Reversible with Juice Groove and Handles, Heavy Duty Cutting board, Kitchen Chopping Board for Meat, Cheese and Vegetables Extra Large, Thick and Durable, Bamboo Cutting Boards for Kitchen, (Set of 3) Kitchen Chopping Board with 3 Built-In Compartments and Juice Groove Heavy Duty Serving Tray Wood Butcher Block and Wooden Carving Board with Hole, Thick Bamboo Cutting Board, Large Kitchen Chopping Board for Meat, 1.4" Thickened Heavy Duty Butcher Block Cutting Board with Juice Groove, for Cutting Meat, Bones and Vegetables, 100% Organic Bamboo, DFACKTO Premium Canadian Maple Chopping Board, End Grain Wood Butcher Block Reversible, 15-inch x 10-inch x 1.5-inch, Celebrate The Lone Star State with Texas Gifts, All customers get FREE Shipping on orders over $25 shipped by Amazon. My BoardSmith board at home has bowed downward ever so slightly in the center, likely as a result of the feet, though it's very minor and not noticeable when using it. productslearn more about, The BoardSmith Maple End-Grain Cutting Board, Brooklyn Butcher Blocks End-Grain Maple Cutting Board, Brooklyn Butcher Blocks Long Grain Maple Cutting Board, Ironwood Gourmet End-Grain Acacia Wood Cutting Board, Serious Eats uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Cook a ton? Sure, you can buy a smaller board or two for little tasks like slicing a lemon into wedges, but you need at least one cutting board that will give you the space to prep a recipe frustration-free. A good wooden cutting board can last for years as your primary cutting surface, even with heavy use. This means it'll dull your knife faster than their end-grain option, but in a real-world situation where you wouldn't just run a blade back and forth repeatedly with so much pressure, it'd take even longer. Like its end-grain counterpart, it too comes in a stock 12- by-18-inch size, though it's thinner at 1 1/4 inches (being less prone to warping than end-grain boards, an edge-grain one can be made a little thinner without sacrificing sturdiness). Wood is, by its nature, prone to warping and cracking. But if you spend money on a bad one, you'll curse yourself every time you chop an onion on it. If you're confident that you can treat your cutting board right, oiling it regularly and storing it upright on its side so that both sides can air out, then I'd suggest getting one without the feet. An end-grain board will expand and contract with the weather and seasons, and will be harmed more dramatically and rapidly from over-exposure to water than an edge-grain board will. They also have a lot more glued seams compared to the long strips of wood that make up an edge-grain board. I'm torn on whether to recommend them. I know it's not the perfect way to test durability, but I trust these experiential insights more than I do an unrealistic schedule of abuse that goes against basic care guidelines. For most folks, I'd suggest splitting the difference and getting the 16-by-22-inch board, unless your kitchen is very large or very small. It took more than 300 strokes on each board before I began to notice a slight dulling on the knife that was used against the edge-grain board. We've given this brand many years of home and test-kitchen use, and our boards hardly look different from when they came out of the box. There's a lot of detail to get into here, so let's start with the most basic assertion: A great wooden cutting board should inflict minimal damage on a knife's blade, and it shouldn't be prone to warping and cracking. Strangely, the John Boos end-grain maple board performed worse than Boos' edge-grain alternative, with the knife used on the end-grain board growing dull before the 300-stroke mark, while the edge-grain was less severely dulled at that point. The edge-grain board (top) has end-grain sides, while the end-grain board (bottom) has edge-grain sides. After viewing product detail pages, look here to find an easy way to navigate back to pages you are interested in. But on average, that's how it'll go. Second is how heavily you plan to use the board. Wooden cutting boards of this size should be at least an inch and a half thick, if not thicker, to lessen the risk of warping. As long as theyre kept clean and allowed to dry properly, wooden cutting boards are definitely safe. We also like the Ironwood Gourmet Acacia End-Grain Prep Station, which is our budget-friendly pick. Compare the finishes on these two boards, both maple. In my home use, it's never bothered me too much, and the board has tolerated use on only one side without showing any detrimental wear or warping as a result, but if you wanted, you could just take them off and try to sand away any remaining adhesive. If you've never used a spacious cutting board, you don't know what you're missing. Cookies collect information about your preferences and your device and are used to make the site work as you expect it to, to understand how you interact with the site, and to show advertisements that are targeted to your interests. The board I have at home has them, while the board I ordered to test for this review did not (I requested they be left off). Cherry is another popular option, though it's softer than maplesome say it's too soft to be an ideal cutting-board wood. Better end-grain boards use bigger pieces of wood to minimize the number of seams and stagger the courses so that the seams don't all converge in a cross. Cutting boardsand especially end-grain onesneed to be made well if they're going to have a decent chance at a long life. Your recently viewed items and featured recommendations, Select the department you want to search in, Thick Butcher Block for Chopping Meat & Veggies, Ziruma Extra Large End Grain Teak Wood Cutting Board (24x18x2 in.) How the pieces are arranged is also telling: Is it in a classic bricklayer's pattern, which offsets each coarse of wood from the next, or are they aligned, such that all the seams meet like four-way intersections? Daniel joined the Serious Eats culinary team in 2014 and writes recipes, equipment reviews, articles on cooking techniques. And just like The BoardSmith board, all the outward signs of quality craftsmanship are theregorgeous, flawless wood, finely cut edge and corner bevels, and more. More affordable than an end-grain board, this edge-grain number from Brooklyn Butcher Block is thinner and lighter, but still solid and very well made. They seemed fine for many months, then, within a couple weeks, two of the three formed fatal cracks. Discover more about the small businesses partnering with Amazon and Amazons commitment to empowering them. You can't see this because the fibers are practically microscopic, but if you could zoom in, it'd look like a knife sliding between brush bristles, which close back up as soon as they knife is lifted away. How can you tell if a cutting board is well made or not? What we liked: I've owned this end-grain maple cutting board from The BoardSmith for about three years now, and it just gets more beautiful with time. We Designed the Ideal Cutting Board Just for You. On an edge-grain board, the knife comes down sideways onto the tree's fibers, splitting them like broken strands of spaghetti. Top subscription boxes right to your door, 1996-2022, Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates. Edge-grain teak, however, utterly trashed the knife and got eliminated. Sounds like an end-grain board is better then, right? Note that an end-grain board will have the edge grain visible on its edges, and an edge-grain board will have the end-grain visible on its edges. Leave the board standing upright while air-drying to help avoid warping or pooled water.. If a company is cutting these obvious corners, there's good reason to suspect they're cutting other ones as wellones that relate directly to the longevity of the board. There are lots of oil, wax, and oil-and-wax options on the market to protect your wooden cutting board, but food-grade mineral oil is always a great option. ), U-QE Wood Cutting Board, Wood Chopping Boards for Kitchen with Deep Juice Groove Organic Acacia, 17x13 Inch Butcher Block for Meat and Vegetable, Wooden Serving Board with Inner Handles, Bamboo Cutting Board 17 x 13 x 2 Extra-Large XL with Juice Groove Hand Grips Multipurpose Big Thick Reversible Wood Butcher Block Chopping Carving Serving Platter Tray Birthday Wedding Gift Idea LA M, John Boos Block CHY-R01 Cherry Wood Edge Grain Reversible Cutting Board, 18 Inches x 12 Inches x 1.5 Inches, John Boos Block RA03 Maple Wood Edge Grain Reversible Cutting Board, 24 Inches x 18 Inches x 2.25 Inches, John Boos MYSB Mystery Butcher Block Oil, 16 Ounce Bottle, Ironwood 3" End Grain Union Stock Yard Professional Chopping Butcher Block, BILL.F Chopping Board 18" Large Acacia Wood Cutting Board for Kitchen with End-Grain,1" Thick Large Chopping Butcher Block 18x13x1.0 in, Extra Large Organic Bamboo Cutting Board with Juice Groove - Kitchen Chopping Board for Meat (Butcher Block) Cheese and Vegetables (XL 18 x 12"), Dofira Butcher Block Cutting Board, Thick Wood Cutting Board for Kitchen with Handle, Chopping Board for Meat, Cheese and Vegetables 14 x11x1.5 Inches(Gift Box Included), John Boos CB1054-1M2418150 Cutting Board, 24 Inches x 18 Inches x 1.5 Inches, Maple with Juice Groove, Ziruma Large End Grain Teak Wood Cutting Board (20x15x2 in.) The main test I wanted to run for this review was the knife-dulling one, to see just how much end- versus edge-grain and different wood types damaged a factory-sharpened edge. Youre seeing this ad based on the products relevance to your search query. Unlike many other lower quality wooden products, cutting boards don't have a lot to hide behind. Read our. A tree trunk grows vertically, and its fibers run along that length, providing channels through which water and nutrients flow from the roots to the branches and leaves. They were also relatively affordable, which was appealing given that I was running up a pretty steep bill on new kitchen gear. It arrives with the finest luster of all the boards, buffed to a shiny finish with beeswax and mineral oil before being shipped out. Ziruma Large End Grain Teak Wood Cutting Board (20x15x2 in.) While they didn't perform as well as the maple end-grain Brooklyn Butcher Block board, they did well enough to keep them in the running. Walnut is another highly regarded option. Think of it like a bunch of plastic straws all glued together: They're just like the fibers running up and down the length of a tree trunk. This will wear down the blade somewhat faster, and it'll lead to gashes in the wood that won't heal so easily. End-grain boards, where the tree rings are visible on the work surface, are ever so slightly more gentle on your knives, since the blade can slip between the exposed individual fibers. In retrospect, their rough-around-the-edges build quality was a warning sign.