CUTTING BOARDS Getting a handle on them

August 11, 2010 at 12:00a.m.

Any discussion of knives should include the cutting board. Jeffrey Elliot of Henckels suggests using a wooden or plastic board because they are gentle on knives’ blades. Brian Patterson of L’Academie de Cuisine recommends using a polyurethane board for everything, especially meat and poultry, which can create a sanitary hazard on a wooden board.

Unless a board is heavy enough that it won’t move around when you’re using it, Elliot suggests putting a damp dish towel under the cutting board to keep it stable. For safety, Elliot suggests that after cutting, you rest a knife, facing away from the board, on a folded, dry dish towel next to it so you always know where it is and it won’t slide across or off the countertop. Never try to catch a knife when it falls off the countertop, because, as Patterson notes, “falling knives have no handle.” And don’t let food pile up on the board, which must be clear enough so you can work in the middle of it.

The Washington Post