I recently acquired a chef knife. Alton Brown says I should never use a glass surface to cut, but when I need to cut chicken I don't want to use the wood block because it will be contaminated.
how do I go around this conundrum? What should I use to cut chicken with my new knife?
I believe that there are two major options:
Either of these will provide a perfectly appropriate surface for you to use your knives against.
From a food safety point of view, both can be excellent, although they have different pros and cons.
There is some evidence that wood cutting boards actually inhibit pathogen growth. They can be sanded down for maintenance, and sanitized with a light bleach solution, but should not be placed into the dishwasher, which may be an inconvenience for your lifestyle. Some larger wood cutting blocks are also a very nice aesthetic statement.
Plastic cutting boards can be very effective, and can be placed in the dishwasher, and are easy to sanitize. Some people are concerned that once they get deep cuts within them, this can harbor pathogens even through cleaning cycles, so they have a limited lifetime. They also are not as pretty as wood, although often far lower in cost.
Most sanitation guides will recommend that you reserve one cutting board for meat (or in a large kitchen, one for meat, one for poultry, and one for fish), and another for vegetables. This is often easiest with color coded cutting boards, which plastic makes easy.
My personal preference is for the very thin, flexible plastic cutting boards. They are inexpensive, easy to move around, dishwasher safe, and can be rolled up to easily dump the product into a pot or container. They may not have an infinite lifespan, but they are very inexpensive.
Since you do not wish to use your good cutting block for chicken, I recommend the thin, flexible style of cutting board--you can use your block for vegetables, bread, and so on.
I typically use white nylon cutting boards for all my food prep. They're cheap, you can buy 'em big or small, they won't roll a knife edge, and they work for everything from fruits and vegetables to salad greens to sushi to chicken. When you're done with all that, throw it in the dishwasher with a hot water rinse and it's good to go for the next meal.
I generally save my wood boards for bread, precooked food and presentation. However, there is a reason that a joined, pressed wooden surface is called butcher block. It's perfectly safe to prep meat on wood, provided you ensure three things happen:
For wooden cutting boards, the best way to sterilize it is by using hot water to wash it, which will kill the pathogens. Cleaning the board and the knife does not change the taste of the meat.
It seems strange that facts known about plastic and their friendly ability to leach harmful chemicals into our foods, and thus into our bodies, hasn't truly made an appearance in the world of cooking. I find it very difficult sometimes to find what types of plastics (resin identification codes) are used with a product or if it's even BPA-free. I won't go into the effects of these chemicals in our bodies, but with that being said, I strongly recommend bamboo board. Even if you could care less about the environment, using a bamboo board is safer for you. Maintenance is little to none. If you care about how the board looks, you can apply a wood/bamboo oil to it every now and then. If you're afraid of bacteria, just make sure you wash with soapy warm water and dry it in a place that isn't dark and humid (which shouldn't be difficult) -- better yet, if your sink is near a window, crack open the window and let the UV rays take care of the rest.
Alternatively, you could get a cork cutting board (not at all expensive) designated just for chicken or meats, then, assuming you rinse and dry your knife, you should be good to go.
Get cheapest plastic boards for cutting meat. Treat them as a disposable item. As soon as they display signs of wear, replace.
You can also go with two boards: one for cutting vegetables and the like, and the other for meats. Meat has enough germs in it that the little from the board won't change much - it's all about the thermal processing that sanitizes it. Vegetables you eat raw don't provide nearly as good growth environment for the really harmful germs, so you won't risk as much. Only chopping veggies on meat-contaminated board you run at a risk. That way the only problem is steak tartare.
Alternatively, look for some swift and efficient knife honing solution, use the glass board and spend some extra time maintaining the knife.
