geekhack
geekhack Community => Off Topic => Topic started by: tp4tissue on Wed, 16 July 2014, 05:20:29
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Cutting boards..
All of the wooden ones (bamboo, pine, cherry) I've used warp after a while.. I dry them after each use the best I could, but it seem inevitable..
Thoughts??
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Stop buying thin-ass, end-grain cutting boards. Wood cutting boards will be damp, it's unavoidable, but they shouldn't ever warp unless they are too thin. Get a nice thick long-grain board, or just get a plastic one. All the kitchens I've worked in at 3/4 star hotel and resort restaurants use plastic boards for most things, and usually have one big(real big) and thick long-grain board that could survive a nuclear blast.
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Stop buying thin-ass, end-grain cutting boards. Wood cutting boards will be damp, it's unavoidable, but they shouldn't ever warp unless they are too thin. Get a nice thick long-grain board, or just get a plastic one. All the kitchens I've worked in at 3/4 star hotel and resort restaurants use plastic boards for most things, and usually have one big(real big) and thick long-grain board that could survive a nuclear blast.
I've avoided plastic because of that whole controversial poison materials thing.. I'll give it another look. thx NT
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UHMW is perfectly food safe. I have worked with it in numerous food grade facilities. Also NT, end grain cutting boards do the least amount of damage to the edges of your knife. And depending on construction warp the least of wood cutting boards. Although for a proper built one you will pay money for it and all wood cutting boards will require maintenance to reduce warpage. I haven't looked into it yet (though I need to) but I believe this mostly works out to when you wash them to make sure both the top and bottom get wet so that the water isn't soaking into one face, and applying a food grade oil to maintain the the proper and even moisture in the wood. The_beast might be able to shed some light on the subject though.
Kitchens typically use the UHMW cutting boards just due to cost and they are zero maintenance.
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I have a glass cutting board.
Anything that you can score will potentially breed germs.
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I have a glass cutting board.
Anything that you can score will potentially breed germs.
UHMW is FDA approved for direct contact with food. It resists the growth of bacteria and fungi. You don't need gouges, cuts, or score lines to grow bacteria. I have seen mold growing on glass. How often do you have to hone/sharpen you sharp knives with that glass cutting board?
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I have a glass cutting board.
Anything that you can score will potentially breed germs.
UHMW is FDA approved for direct contact with food. It resists the growth of bacteria and fungi. You don't need gouges, cuts, or score lines to grow bacteria. I have seen mold growing on glass. How often do you have to hone/sharpen you sharp knives with that glass cutting board?
Not that often. I have one sharp knife that is serrated - that's been going strong for at least 10 years. A couple of others are supposed to be permanently sharpened or something, don't use those much though. It's not like it gets used every day though.
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Never could use those serrated knives.
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Cutting boards? pfff.. I chop my food midair.
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Chopping food? Huh. I always eat it raw.
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I use those things in my face, I forget what they're called...
OH YEAH! Teeth.
But in all seriousness, I too recommend glass. Very easy to clean, is "safer" than plastic, and zero chance of warping. Plus you could get one with a picture of something on it (the ones at my mom's house have horses on them).
Kinda like this one, just a different image.
(http://www.chinawholesalegift.com/pic/Family-Product/Kitchenware/Cutting-Board/Tempered-Glass-Cutting-Board-1418345463.jpg)
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I use those things in my face, I forget what they're called...
OH YEAH! Teeth.
But in all seriousness, I too recommend glass. Very easy to clean, is "safer" than plastic, and zero chance of warping. Plus you could get one with a picture of something on it (the ones at my mom's house have horses on them).
Glass cutting boards are no more food safe than UHMW. Plus I wouldn't risk the breakage. That and they are hard as hell on the edge. Doesn't matter what they knives are made from. Any knife will dull from normal usage. A good knife however will only need to be honed. Though ceramic knife edges can't be sharpened to my knowledge. So if they chip or dull you basically have to either deal with the chip or throw it away and buy a new one.
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Any surface you cut into will dull any knife, it's just the rate at which it happens that is the issue.
It boils down to what you care about more: your knives or your cutting surface.
And I just had the realization that I need a cutting board for my apartment...
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I use those things in my face, I forget what they're called...
OH YEAH! Teeth.
But in all seriousness, I too recommend glass. Very easy to clean, is "safer" than plastic, and zero chance of warping. Plus you could get one with a picture of something on it (the ones at my mom's house have horses on them).
Glass cutting boards are no more food safe than UHMW. Plus I wouldn't risk the breakage. That and they are hard as hell on the edge. Doesn't matter what they knives are made from. Any knife will dull from normal usage. A good knife however will only need to be honed. Though ceramic knife edges can't be sharpened to my knowledge. So if they chip or dull you basically have to either deal with the chip or throw it away and buy a new one.
they sell this motorized grinding wheel for the kyocera ceramic blades.. so.. i'm assuming it works.
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Any surface you cut into will dull any knife, it's just the rate at which it happens that is the issue.
It boils down to what you care about more: your knives or your cutting surface.
And I just had the realization that I need a cutting board for my apartment...
Cutting boards are designed to be the disposable-ish product. Hence why end grain cutting boards are as popular as they are. They simply don't get damaged the way long grain or UHMW cutting boards do. The reason is because with end grain the knife edge doesn't actually cut the fibers. It passes between them for a short distance. I would rather replace a $30 cutting board every few/5 years than a multiple hundred dollar 10" chefs knife. I will also probably never have a ceramic knife in my house due to not wanting to have the risk of it chipping, same reason as well with glass cutting boards.
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I dig PE, so I'm backing Melvang on his UHMW version.
about the glass ones: I think they could work if you sharpen / straighten your blade every time you use it like you're supposed to.
If you are that worried about germs in the cracks, invest in an autoclave or something. Also ditch the phone, etc. etc.
about serrated "knives". All the ones I've ever seen get dull and are a pain to sharpen the serrations off of and you have to buy a new one.
ceramic knives: I'd just buy another one, they are pretty cheap now anyways. It's like $3 to $20 depending on size.