Hinoki Cutting Boards: Which Size and Thickness to Buy, and How to Keep One Flat

A hinoki board is the pale, lightweight cutting board you see in many Japanese home kitchens. Hinoki is Japanese cypress, a softwood, so a sharp edge sinks into it a little instead of hitting a hard surface. That is the main reason people who buy Japanese knives look for one.

The trade-offs come with the same wood. It is hand-wash only, it darkens and scars faster than a hardwood board, and a thin board can warp if you leave it lying wet. This guide covers the boards from Tosaryu, a woodworker in Kochi, Japan, whose boards are stocked by several Japanese kitchen shops in the US, and it uses the maker's own care instructions rather than general wood-board advice.

What a hinoki board is good at, and what it is not

Hinoki is light for its size, it smells faintly of cypress when wet, and its surface gives slightly under a blade. Tosaryu says the wood's natural oils help it resist mold and shed water quickly, and its boards come with a stand so they can dry on their edge instead of lying flat.

A hinoki board is a good fit if:

• you use a thin Japanese knife for slicing and push cuts, and want the board to be easy on the edge
• you are fine washing it by hand and standing it up to dry every time
• you want a board light enough to carry to the sink with one hand

Skip it if:

• your board has to go in the dishwasher
• you chop through bones or use a cleaver; Uptown Cutlery, which sells Tosaryu boards, says hinoki is not for meat cleavers or aggressive bread knives
• you want a board that stays spotless; light softwood shows knife marks and darkens with use

If you are still choosing the knife itself, start with our guide to santoku, gyuto, and nakiri knives.

How the three Tosaryu boards compare

Our picks

Pick #1: Tosaryu Hinoki Cutting Board with Stand, L

This is the board to start with. At 14.4 x 7.9 inches it is long enough for a 7 inch santoku or an 8 inch gyuto blade, and at 0.6 inches thick and a little over a pound it is easy to rinse and flip. A small wooden stand is riveted to one end; twist it down and the board stands on its edge to dry, twist it back and the board lies flat.

Best for: one board that handles most daily cutting in an average kitchen. Avoid if: you regularly break down large vegetables like whole cabbages or squash and want more width. Main drawback: at 0.6 inch thick it needs the rinse-both-sides, dry-on-its-edge routine every time; Toiro Kitchen's care notes say warping and cracking can happen with any natural wood board. On September 25, 2026 it was $48 at Tortoise General Store, $50 at Toiro Kitchen, and $51 at Hitachiya USA, and Hida Tool listed a same-size Tosaryu stand board on sale for $36.90.

Pick #2: Tosaryu Hinoki Cutting Board with Stand, M

The same board, cut 0.8 inch narrower and shorter: 13.6 x 7.1 inches. That small difference matters in a galley kitchen or when the only place to rinse the board is a single small sink. It still takes a 7 inch santoku comfortably and weighs about a pound.

Best for: small kitchens where every inch of counter depth counts. Avoid if: you have room for the L; the M saves little space and gives up some cutting area. Main drawback: availability. On September 25, 2026 the only in-stock US listing we found was Hitachiya USA at $43, where it is sold as the "Large" size.

Pick #3: Tosaryu One-Piece Hinoki Board with Stand, 1.2 inches thick

Hida Tool describes the thin stand board as five pieces of hinoki joined together. This one is a single 1.2 inch plank, so it weighs about twice as much as the thin L at a similar size: about 2.2 lbs for 14.2 x 7.1 inches. The extra weight makes it less likely to shift on the counter. It also has a stand for drying.

Best for: cooks who prep a lot at once and want a board that stays put. Avoid if: you have to lift the board over a high sink edge or store it in a narrow gap; the 17.7 x 9.4 inch size weighs about 3.5 lbs. Main drawback: weight and price. On September 25, 2026 MTC Kitchen listed it at $46 for 14.2 x 7.1 inches and $94 for 17.7 x 9.4 inches. The board in the photo is a 14.6 x 9.4 inch size from the same line that we did not find for sale in the US.

Pick the size from your sink and counter

Measure two spaces before you order: the clear counter in front of where you cut, and the inside of the sink where you will rinse the board. A board should sit fully flat on the counter. If part of it hangs over the sink or the edge of the stove, it rocks when you cut.

• A 14.4 x 7.9 inch board (the L) needs about 15 inches of clear counter width and 8 inches of depth.
• A 17.7 x 9.4 inch board needs about 18 inches of width, which is more than many apartment counters have between the sink and the stove.
• If the sink is smaller than the board, you can still rinse it on its edge, but a thick board is harder to maneuver that way.

Knife length matters too. A board noticeably longer than the blade lets you finish a slice without the tip leaving the wood. The knife care guide covers why a board that is too small makes cuts harder to control.

Dry it on its edge: why the stand matters

Tosaryu's care steps are short, and most of them are about water. Its instructions say to:

• wet the board lightly before you cut, so juices and smells soak in less
• rinse both sides after use, not only the side you cut on, which helps keep the board from warping
• wipe off the surface water with a dry towel, then let it air-dry standing on its stand
• put a dry cloth under the stand, or wipe the board before standing it up, so water does not collect along the bottom edge
• keep it out of direct sun, away from air-conditioner drafts, and out of the dishwasher, all of which can crack the wood

Hida Tool's copy of the Tosaryu instructions adds one more: use a scrubbing brush rather than a sponge. For meat and fish, Hitachiya USA says to wash with soapy water right away, not hot water, because heat makes proteins stick harder, and only then rinse with hot water.

Dark spots, warping, and oil

A hinoki board will not stay the color it was in the box. Here is what the maker and its US sellers say to do about the changes you will see:

• Gradual darkening: normal. Hida Tool's Tosaryu instructions suggest a periodic spray of food-safe alcohol to slow it.
• Black spots along one edge: usually water pooling where the board stands. Dry the bottom edge and use a cloth under the stand. Hitachiya USA says black mold on the surface can be scrubbed off with medium-grit sandpaper. Do not use bleach; it discolors the wood.
• Warping: Tosaryu says to lay a damp cloth on the hollow side overnight, then let the board dry in the shade.
• Oil: not needed on a new board, according to Tosaryu. The maker suggests olive or linseed oil on the end-grain edges, the sides that show the growth rings, to keep them from drying out and cracking in winter.

Because the wood is soft, a heavily scarred board can be planed or sanded back to a fresh surface, as in the photo above. That is a job for a woodworker or a sanding block, not something you need to do often.

Hand wash only, and the dishwasher-safe exception

Every board in this guide is hand-wash only. Tosaryu, Hitachiya USA, Toiro Kitchen, and Shun all say not to put their hinoki boards in the dishwasher, and Tosaryu gives the reason: the heat can crack the wood. Toiro Kitchen's instructions add that you should not leave it soaking in water.

Some hinoki boards sold in Japan are labeled dishwasher-safe, like the one above. If a dishwasher is non-negotiable in your kitchen, buy a board whose maker says so on the label and follow that maker's instructions. Do not assume an unlabeled hinoki board can take it.

One board or two?

One hinoki board is enough for most people. A second board helps if you cook more than once a day, because one can finish drying while you use the other. It also lets you keep a separate board for bread or fruit. If you add a second board, it does not have to be hinoki; a small board that can go in the dishwasher pairs well with a hinoki board that cannot.

Other hinoki boards you can buy in the US

Shun, the knife brand sold in the US by Kai USA, also sells hinoki boards made in Japan. Shun's advice for warping is to flip the board and use the other side. On September 25, 2026 shun.kaiusa.com listed:

• Small, 10.75 x 8.25 x 0.5 in, 10 oz: $34.95 (regularly $44)
• Medium, 15.75 x 10.75 x 0.5 in, 21 oz: $54.95 (regularly $69)
• Large, 17.75 x 11.75 x 0.75 in, 46 oz: $89.95 (regularly $112)

The Shun Medium is almost 3 inches wider than the Tosaryu L if you want more cutting area. For knives to pair with any of these boards, see our santoku picks.

Frequently asked questions

Ready to buy?