Know thy Knife!

Over the last 5 years, much of my own increased confidence in the kitchen has come, undoubtedly,  from the implemented strategies of The Stocked Kitchen.  I have also realized, however, that my knife skills are much more on point, most likely from the sheer enormity of recent cooking, but also, from sneaking peeks at every good cook around me.  The reason I think that these knife skills have actually improved my cooking ability, is because of the time savings it has provided.  Chopping, dicing, and mincing can be a daunting task, if you don't have proper and speedy techniques. I stumbled across the web series below on proper knife techniques.  I have embedded the video on the professional knife grip.  This alone has helped me to have better control and safety in the kitchen.  "Perfect practice makes perfect."

My other suggestion is that out of all of the tools in your kitchen, good knives make a big difference.  And, although counter-intuitive, sharp knives are much safer.  (If sharpening your own knives seems scary, go to your local butcher and ask them to do it.)  Eric Ripert will have a different standard of knives than us mere mortals, however, there are a few qualities that a good knife collection should have.  First off, you only REALLY need three different knives for cooking.  Although those enormous blocks of knives on your counter can look incredibly impressive (and threatening) these three are the knives you can cook just about everything you want to with.  In all of these knives, a high carbon stainless steel is good quality, takes a sharp edge, and has the benefit of stain resistance.

Chef's Knife:  The big one.  I like this knife to be BIG, non-serrated, and without wooden handles.  This wooden handle bit is personal preference, although some jalapeno juice recently soaked into a wooden handled knife of mine (unbenounced to me), and although the knife had been washed, days later my poor hands were ablaze!  This knife is the one I really run to for most things, so look at it as an investment.

Paring Knife:  The little one.  This is what I use for peeling, cutting, and cleaning fruits and vegetables. In fact it is good for any use that the Chefs Knife makes you feel like a sword wielder.

Serrated Bread Knife:  This one I use the least, but when you need it, you need it.  This is for, obviously, cutting bread, but also for making multi-layer cakes and cutting through very soft tomatoes.

So get your band-aids and butterflies ready (remember that New-Skin burns like a mother) and get to it!



Here is the link to the rest of the knife skill lessons.  (I haven't reviewed them all as of yet, but the first few seemed very encouraging.)  Enjoy you beautiful people!
XOXO,
Sarah