Having a flat and sturdy surface for prepping all those delicious ingredients that are a part of your recipe makes the cooking task at hand much more convenient. More importantly, it prevents making a mess in the kitchen and then spending way too long cleaning it all up. But then why a separate board for your raw meats?
The thing about the best cutting board for raw meat specifically is that it’s extremely efficient. When your recipe consists of seafood, poultry, or meat, food safety isn’t a choice, rather a priority. So you need a dedicated board for that to keep the bacteria present in uncooked meat from invading and contaminating your other ingredients, like the vegetables.
Then comes the part of presentation. You obviously don’t want anything that’s dingy-looking, right? So how about selecting from the wide variety of materials, shapes, and sizes we’ve reviewed for you below…
Top-Rated Cutting Boards Made for Handling Raw Meat
1. OXO Good Grips Cutting and Carving Board
The first of the lot is from a brand that manufactures some of the best-selling kitchen appliances, utensils, and other products. So it’s no surprise that they have their very own cutting and carving board as well, which is perfect for poultry and raw meats.
You can use this one on a daily basis and still expect extreme reliability and durability. The board, without the shadow of a doubt, resists odors and stains pretty well.
Key Features
2. Progressive Prep Solutions Cutting Board
Buy this dishwasher-safe cutting board for its channeled design that literally makes way for bloody meat. You can also flip the board upside down to make non-drip cuts, plus that gives you a larger surface.
Unlike wooden cutting boards, this polyethylene version doesn’t retain any food flavors even when oil is a part of the prep. You can do your daily cutting, chopping, and slicing of your favorite meats without having to worry about creating a mess.
Key Features
3. Norpro Professional Cutting Board
Are you most likely to be pleased with this professional cutting board? We wouldn’t review it if it were otherwise? On that note, let us bring to your attention that the size of the Nopro board is perfect for large cuts of your most favorite meat. Although it may be a little too big for your dishwasher. But then you can rinse it in your sink very easily.
Moreover, the cutting board is odor-resistant, non-porous, and double-sided as well.
Key Features
4. Thirteen Chefs Commercial Plastic Black Cutting Board
Certainly a very affordable option that can withstand the pounding of meat without absorbing all the juices. This commercial plastic-made cutting board has a simple design with no frills. And that is what we like the most here. That it’s perfect for cutting meats and also super easy to clean.
But keep in mind that the solid black color may be a problem because black tends to display knife cuts to a greater extent in comparison to white boards.
Key Features
5. Joseph Joseph Cut & Curve Multi-Function Cutting Board
How about your cooking experiences in the kitchen becoming less messy? If that sounds appealing, then go ahead and seriously consider buying this multi-function cutting board.
The cutting surface is perfect for carving meat as it’s angled for draining and collecting juices. On top of that, the board is designed with soft-grip sides and non-slip feet.
Key Features
6. Neoflam Poly Cutting Board
This is a knife-friendly cutting board with an excellent juice groove that collects all possible drippings from your meats, veggies, fruits, and the like. So your kitchen countertop remains clean and mess-free, which means saving a lot of time and effort post-cooking.
Furthermore, it’s got an easy-grip handle to make prepping more convenient. More importantly, the board is incredibly strong and inflexible to be able to handle tough meat.
Key Features
7. Seville Classics Easy-to-Clean Bamboo Cutting Board
A durable, attractive-looking bamboo cutting board for seasoning chicken or meat. Also, it comes with 7 bright-colored plastic cutting boards for chopping meat. These color-coded boards, no doubt, keep away cross-contamination. And all of these cutting mats have a BPA-free design and they fit into the top area of the main bamboo cutting board.
Then to make things even better, there are the non-slip silicone feet to prevent sliding. And you can use the bamboo board for serving as well, be it cocktails, bread, or crackers and cheese.
Key Features
8. HOMWE Kitchen Cutting Board
You really don’t have to be a chef to buy a cutting board or even a silicone cooking utensils set for that matter. But you certainly have to be smart when it comes to purchasing. And that means being away from cheap quality plastic and bamboo because they’re more likely to stain, attract scratches, or break. This makes the current option the perfect choice.
Even though the material used is plastic, the plastic is heavy-duty, thick, latex-free, and BPA-free.
Also, you get 3 different sizes. Needless to say, the bigger one is for your meats. But no matter the size, expect no scratches, no stains, and an easy-to-clean surface.
Key Features
Different Types of Cutting Boards for Raw Meat - What Material Is Best?
1. Plastic
It goes without saying that plastic boards are more versatile. And that’s simply because they’re non-porous. So you can wash them properly after chopping the meat and then use them for fresh vegetables as well. They don’t even retain meat juices in comparison to the other materials.
On top of that, these are dishwasher-friendly too. So even the part of cleaning is a no-hassle task.
2. Wood
Needless to say, wood is a porous material, thus it absorbs the flavors and odors of meat. Plus, cleaning a wooden cutting board is not that easy. And cross-contamination is a huge concern in case you don’t end up washing the surface thoroughly.
What about the pros? Wood looks better and is more environment-friendly than plastic.
3. Bamboo
In terms of visual appeal, bamboo cutting boards are definitely the superior choice. Also, in comparison to wood, bamboo is certainly less porous and more rigid.
The material doesn’t absorb too much moisture and is more resistant to the growth of bacteria from the meat. Lastly, it’s relatively friendlier to sharp knives as well.
Factors to Consider When Buying
Apart from the material of the cutting surface (discussed above), here are some more important features you may want to look into at the time of buying…
Shape and Size
The rectangle shape seems like the most popular choice for cutting boards. They have straight edges that are easier to just grip. And such edges also make way for smooth sliding of meats and vegetables into the pan.
What about the different sizes? The standard measurement is 18 inches x 12 inches. Professional-grade cutting boards for raw meat are much larger though. That is 24 inches x 18 inches.
So pick a size that you think is the most suitable to handle your poultry, meat, and seafood prep for cooking. The more frequently you cook or the more people you cook for, the larger the size of the board to make the undertaking more convenient.
Juice Grooves
One of the main reasons for buying a useful kitchen tool like this is to create the least amount of mess you possibly can. So for that to happen, it’s a lot neater, cleaner, and safer for cutting boards for raw meat to be designed with a juice groove. Without this particular feature, the juices from your chicken or meat are simply bound to spill all over the kitchen countertop.
So how about keeping that space and your floor as well clean and safe? So the harmful bacteria-filled juices of uncooked meat remain contained. And the groove doesn’t necessarily have to be very deep. Liquids, more often than not, give rise to surface tension that raises a barrier high enough to provide extra protection.
Frequently Asked Questions
How to clean a wooden cutting board after cutting raw meat?
First, you clean the cutting board using hot water and soap. Many people use chlorine bleach to disinfect the board after that, which you can skip if you don’t have time, patience, or bleach. And lastly, rinse everything off thoroughly.
Can you use the same cutting board for meats and vegetables?
You can use the same cutting board for meats and vegetables BUT make sure to avoid cross-contamination by washing the board thoroughly after you’re done with meat. Either way, both ingredients (meat and vegetables) are most likely to cook in the same pan or pot.
When to throw away your cutting board?
Does it have deep grooves or scratches all over? What about cracks, dents, or discoloration? If any of these obvious warning signs start to show, it’s time to throw out the cutting board.
What is the difference between cutting boards and butcher blocks?
In comparison to cutting boards, a butcher block is way more heavy-duty and larger in size. After all, it’s what professional butchers use for chopping large quantities of meat. But then these are starting to appear in homes too.
The difference here is that butcher blocks are made of thick, tough wood. Such as cherry, teak, maple, walnut, and oak. And as you may already know, wood is not non-porous like plastic, which means it holds the bacteria present in uncooked meat.
Nevertheless, butcher blocks are longer-lasting than traditional wooden cutting boards. Because of their better quality and thicker construction. And they can handle longer hours of chopping, which makes them tougher and more reliable for cutting meat every day.
Why do professional chefs use wooden cutting boards?
So here’s the trade-off. With plastic, you get easier sanitization. But then the material is more susceptible to developing grooves and cracks that become the storehouse of bacteria. And then there’s wood that, even though difficult to sanitize, isn’t prone to deep scratches. And needless to say, professional chefs at restaurants have to be very careful about that.
Also, wood seems to offer a more solid and stable base for chopping and slicing. So it’s certainly better equipped to handle raw meats.
Why should you not use a wooden cutting board for raw meat?
The simple reason for not using a wooden cutting board for raw meat is that wood is porous. Plastic, on the other hand, is non-porous. Meaning it doesn’t absorb any flavors or odors from uncooked meat. Wooden material does, along with increasing the chances of cross-contamination that often happens with raw seafood, poultry, and meat.
Conclusion
Whether it’s seafood you’re cooking or poultry or meat, a SEPARATE cutting board for these kinds of raw, bacteria-filled ingredients is a must. And we’re stressing the word “separate” because sometimes bacteria can endure hot soapy water as well. So it’s not the most unlikely to find some of it just lingering in the crevices of the board.
But then aren’t you going to cook the meat at an optimally high temperature and get rid of that bacteria? Well, that’s not the concern. The problem is that many people use the same board for chopping their vegetables and fruits too, which is not exposed to such high heat to kill the cross-contamination.
The logic is simple. And so is the whole process of buying only the best cutting boards for handling raw meat in your kitchen.