The Butcher Block, a slice of history.
The annals of history maintain that the “Butcher’s” Block, as it was originally known, dates back to pre-history.
The butcher’s block was originally made from soft wood. A section of sycamore log was the go-to. The board’s size however was limited by the size of the log and often, a drying log would split, creating a rather serious culinary hygiene problem.
With the advent of more modern tools, hardwood blocks could be pieced together and made into various sizes, these were progressively made smaller as a result
The cast offs from the “blocks” or “boards” were also used to eat off of and some people referred to them as trenchers. Trenchers, originally, were pieces of stale bread used as a substitute to modern plates. Wood trenchers quickly became the replacements of these edible plates.
Today butcher blocks are reappearing in both restaurant and upper-scale residential kitchens and are in high demand.
The majestic presence of a 300 lb hardwood butcher’s block in a modern kitchen beckons to feel the cold steel of a hand hammered blade run across its surface and brings us back to the days when sustainability was a way of life.
Pardon the pun but no matter how you slice it, there’s no substitute for the functional beauty of wood.