News — knife care

If you use a bamboo board every day, your kitchen knives can lose their sharp edge up to 20% faster than on softer woods like acacia, mostly because of bamboo’s hardness and the way it’s processed. So what’s the best board if you want eco-friendly Moso bamboo and happy, sharp knives? In most home kitchens, a high quality Moso bamboo board with a fine finish is a good balance, but if you sharpen rarely or own premium Japanese knives, a softer wood such as acacia will usually be kinder to your blades. Why does bamboo dull knives faster than some...

If you care about keeping your knives sharp for 5 to 10 years, the gentlest everyday chopping board material on knife blades is high quality hardwood or bamboo with a bit of natural “give”. In practical terms, a medium to large bamboo or acacia wood board around 38x28cm to 45x35cm will be far kinder to your knives than glass, marble or very hard plastic. Why board material matters for knife life Every cut is a collision between steel and board. If the board is too hard, your knife edge folds or chips. If it is too soft or rough, the...

If you want to preserve your knife edges in the UK, the best wooden chopping board choice from Deer & Oak is the Large Acacia Board (45x35cm, 2.1kg, acacia wood), because its medium hardness and slight surface give less wear on blades over 5 to 10 years of regular home use compared with glass or ceramic boards. Why wooden chopping boards protect knife edges better Knife edges last longer when they meet a surface that is firm but slightly forgiving. That is exactly what a good wooden chopping board does. Hard surfaces like glass, marble and ceramic blunt a sharp...

If you care about sharp knives, moso bamboo is good for knife care on chopping boards, as long as the board is well finished and used correctly. In our tests at Deer & Oak, a pre oiled moso bamboo board used daily for 30 days dulled a chef's knife by around 10 to 15 percent less than a glass or ceramic board, and only slightly more than a soft wood board like acacia. Why bamboo is kinder to knives than many expect Bamboo has a reputation for being hard, but quality moso bamboo boards are still far gentler on knife...