Dish-Gracepoint Kitchen tool of the month: Cutting board

The kitchen tool of the month for dish-gracepoint for the month of October is a cutting board to complement the chef's knife from last month. There are many good cutting boards out there and many of them can do the job adequately. Here are some things to consider:

1. Thickness - Many plastic boards tend to bend over time, a thick board will last longer

2. Weight - I generally like thick heavy boards, but you need to find a compromise between durability and convenience. A heavy board may be a hassle to take out and move around for smaller tasks. We also use a smaller one for those times.

3. Material - Wood vs plastic. I'm going to post on the differences later. Plastics tend to be cheaper and lighter. In addition, if the board is too hard, it can dull the knife and even damage it.

4. Size - Make sure it's big enough for whatever you need it for. Having an extra large cutting board makes food prep a lot easier.

5. Purpose - In a kitchen sometimes there are different cutting boards for different tasks: red for raw meat, tan for cooked meats, white for dairy, blue for seafood, green for fruits/vegetables and yellow for poultry so that cross-contamination could be prevented.