Product Review: Bamboo Style's® Premium 3 Piece Bamboo Cutting Board Set

Disclosure: I originally received the Bamboo Style's® three-piece bamboo cutting board set at a reduced price or for free. All opinions are my own and reflect my honest experience using it.

Long-Term Update: Years Of Homestead Kitchen Use

I still use these bamboo cutting boards two to three times every week. They are working tools in my homestead kitchen, not boards that have been saved for display. I use them while preparing meat, homemade cheese, vegetables, fruit, herbs and just about anything else that needs to be sliced, chopped or served.

After years of regular use, two of the three boards remain in excellent condition. One board has developed a crack. That is an important part of an honest long-term review: most of the set has held up beautifully, but the durability has not been perfect across all three pieces.

A cracked cutting board should be retired from food preparation when the damage creates an area that cannot be cleaned thoroughly. The crack does not erase the good performance of the other two boards, but it does mean that particular board is no longer suitable for the same kitchen work.

Bamboo Style's® Premium 3 Piece Bamboo Cutting Board Set is made of high-quality bamboo. They are thicker than most cutting boards and are food safety tested to ensure they do not contain any nasty chemicals. This is good news because it means you do not have to worry about what nasty chemicals the food you cut on Bamboo Style's® Bamboo Cutting Board might come into contact with.

I frequently use a plastic cutting board a friend gave me. It is pretty sliced up by now so when the opportunity came along to trial Bamboo Style's® Premium 3 Piece Bamboo Cutting Board Set I jumped at the opportunity. The cutting boards come in three different sizes - 9.5 X 13, 8.5 X 11, and 8 X 6. This is real advantageous because sometimes you simply don't need to dirty up a large cutting board for a small project. Other times, a small cutting board just isn't large enough. The 8 X 6 size was ideal for cutting up lemons.

How I Use These Boards On The Homestead

• Meat preparation: Trimming and portioning meat before cooking or preservation. I keep raw-meat work separate from produce, cheese and ready-to-eat foods to reduce cross-contamination.
• Homemade cheese: Cutting, portioning and serving firm cheeses, including recipes such as my homemade Parmesan cheese.
• Garden vegetables and herbs: Chopping fresh harvests, trimming herbs and preparing vegetables for meals, freezing, dehydrating or canning.
• Fresh fruit: Slicing lemons, apples and other fruit for recipes or preservation projects. My apple canning recipes are one example of the prep work these boards handle.
• Everyday kitchen work: Cutting bread, assembling snacks and handling small jobs when the largest board would be unnecessary.

Having three sizes lets me match the board to the job. That is useful in a busy homestead kitchen because I do not need to wash the largest board after slicing one lemon, and I still have enough working room when processing a larger batch of food.

My First Impressions Of The Bamboo Boards

The cutting boards are very lightweight, which surprised me given their thickness.

The one I used showed no knife marks after cutting up the lemons - unlike plastic cutting boards. The finish is very smooth and it quickly accepted cutting board oil but did not just soak it up leaving just dry wood behind. I have another wood cutting board that I put cutting board oil on at the same time I put it on Bamboo Style's® Premium Bamboo Cutting Boards. The other wood cutting board quickly soaked up the cutting board oil leaving nothing behind. Even after washing the cutting board I used, I could still tell the cutting board oil was there.

How I Care For Bamboo Cutting Boards

Proper care of a cutting board is important - otherwise you are sure to have problems. The most important thing you can do before you use a wooden cutting board is to wipe it down with cutting board oil, allow it to sit for 24 hours and then wipe the excess oil off. This helps preserve your board and make sure it lasts for many years. Depending on how much your cutting boards are used, they will need periodic conditioning with cutting board oil. Always follow the care directions provided with the board and the conditioning product.

• Hand-wash the board promptly after use.
• Do not leave bamboo soaking in a sink full of water.
• Dry it thoroughly and allow both sides to receive air.
• Apply a food-safe cutting-board oil when the surface begins to look or feel dry.
• Keep raw-meat preparation separate from foods that will be eaten without additional cooking.
• Retire a board from food use if it develops a deep crack, groove or damaged area that cannot be cleaned effectively.

Another thing I really like was the fact that the paper inside the plastic was not glued down. This meant I did not have to spend my valuable time trying to remove glue. The packaging on the cutting boards was very minimal which I loved. They were - on the other hand - quite well packaged for shipping. This was a good thing because there was no chance the cutting boards could have been damaged during shipping.

There are a number of benefits Bamboo Style's® Premium 3 Piece Bamboo Cutting Board Set offers. They are extra thick for durability, 15% stronger than maple yet 33% lighter than oak. Cleaning and routine maintenance is easy. The fact that the cutting boards are made of natural bamboo means there are no dyes or colors to worry about. At the time of my original review, the product information listed these additional features:
-FSC Certified - To Ensure Sustainable and Ethical Harvesting
-Doesn't Dull Knives
-Socially Responsible - 100% Renewable Resource
-Free of Fertilizers and Pesticides
-Anti-Bacterial Properties

My Long-Term Bamboo Style's Cutting Board Review

These boards have proven far more useful than the original lemon-cutting test suggested. I still reach for them two or three times a week for meat, cheese, vegetables, fruit and ordinary meal preparation. The different sizes remain genuinely convenient, and the two undamaged boards have held up beautifully.

The cracked board keeps this from being a perfect durability story. I would not continue using a damaged board for food if the crack cannot be cleaned completely. Still, having two of the original three boards remain in excellent condition after years of frequent use is a strong result.

The boards are also attractive enough to use for serving cheese, bread, fruit or snacks when their surfaces are clean and in good condition. For my homestead kitchen, they have earned their storage space because they are lightweight, versatile and used regularly.

Frequently Asked Questions

How often do I use these bamboo cutting boards?

I use the set two to three times a week. They handle everyday meal preparation as well as larger homestead jobs involving garden produce, meat, fruit and homemade cheese.

Did all three boards last?

Two remain in excellent condition. One developed a crack after years of use. That damaged board should be retired from food preparation if the crack is deep or difficult to clean.

Can bamboo cutting boards be used for meat and produce?

Yes, but raw meat should be kept separate from produce, cheese and foods that will be eaten without additional cooking. Wash and dry the appropriate board thoroughly after every use.

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.