Chopping Board

Chop, chop on the chopping board!

• Chopping boards are robust platforms used for cutting objects with a sharp tool, to prevent damage to the bench or table surface.
• Chopping boards are most commonly used in a culinary environment, for chopping food, but they can be used to cut materials such as plastic.
• Chopping boards are most commonly made of wood or plastic, but can be made of rubber, metal, glass or marble.
• Chopping boards should be sturdy but relatively soft, unlike glass, marble or metal, so the cutting object is not damaged.
• Serrated cutting knives damage chopping boards easier than smooth cutting knives.

• Throughout history, wood was most likely used like modern chopping boards, to cut meat on, and wood is good choice of material for this purpose, as it tends to eliminate bacteria due to its antiseptic characteristics.
• Chopping boards range in a variety of hardness, thickness, size and colour, but are often rectangular in shape.
• Chopping boards sometimes use colour coordination to determine food used on the board, to prevent cross-contamination.
• Chopping boards should be examined for wear regularly, particular for cracks or cuts, which can hold bacteria or cause knives to become blunt.
• Modern chopping boards are said to originate from the idea of butcher’s blocks of the 1880s, which were used for the purpose of cutting meat.

Bibliography:
Cutting Board, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cutting_board

History of Cutting Boards, 2011, Cutting Board Care, http://cuttingboards.creatingyourperfecthome.com/2011/04/26/history-of-cutting-boards-2/