Essential Kitchen Tools: Kitchen Knives
All of us will have to agree with the fact that kitchen knives are essential kitchen tools. Having the right set of knives on hand makes cooking and prepping smoother, easier and enjoyable. Any home kitchen should have four types of knives - a chef's knife, a paring knife, a serrated knife and a boning knife. Choose good quality kitchen tools and learn to care for them while you're training to be an expert cook.
A chef's knife is a multipurpose tool and you'll reach for it often so choose one that is suited to your cooking style. These kitchen knives come in 7-inch to 10-inch sizes. A smaller blade is ideal if you do a lot of chopping and slicing prep work. Choose a chef's knife that is well-balanced and ergonomically designed to reduce user fatigue. A paring knife is useful for trimming vegetables, peeling fruits and other small prepping tasks. Opt for a bird's beak paring knife as it offers excellent mobility and reach.
A knife with a serrated blade and a boning knife are the other two essential kitchen tools. A serrated knife relies on a slicing motion in which the blade is dragged across the food's surface as it moves down through it to cut food. It's perfect for slicing and cutting firm-skinned veggies like tomatoes and peppers. The serrated blade is also useful for slicing and cutting bread, which comes handy while making sandwiches or splitting cake layers. Finally, a boning knife is helpful for slicing and butchering meat, poultry and fish.
A set with these four kitchen knives can take care of all your slicing, dicing, chopping and cutting needs. Besides these knives, kitchen tools such as honing steel and a knife sharpener are excellent additions to your kitchen. Regular honing and sharpening extend the lifespan of a knife's blade. If you don't want to do the sharpening at home, look for local knife shops where you can have your knives sharpened at least twice a year.
Cleaning knives the right way also helps to get the most out of your blades. It's a good idea to hand-wash knives as the abrasive detergent, high heat, and jostling in the dishwasher may cause the blade to dull prematurely. The wooden handles can also crack and loosen when put in the dishwasher. The right way to wash a knife is to use a sponge or dishcloth and wipe gently from the top of the knife to the edge.
Authors Profile: Ronny Raula is a certified interior designer and runs his own interior decoration consultancy. Ronny especially loves decorating a home in wooden furniture and believes that nothing gives a home as warm and cozy a touch as all-wood furniture and decor. Ronny loves reading up on new design ideas, and has a special interest in space saving techniques. Here Ronny writes about Kitchen Tools and Kitchen Knives.
A chef's knife is a multipurpose tool and you'll reach for it often so choose one that is suited to your cooking style. These kitchen knives come in 7-inch to 10-inch sizes. A smaller blade is ideal if you do a lot of chopping and slicing prep work. Choose a chef's knife that is well-balanced and ergonomically designed to reduce user fatigue. A paring knife is useful for trimming vegetables, peeling fruits and other small prepping tasks. Opt for a bird's beak paring knife as it offers excellent mobility and reach.
A knife with a serrated blade and a boning knife are the other two essential kitchen tools. A serrated knife relies on a slicing motion in which the blade is dragged across the food's surface as it moves down through it to cut food. It's perfect for slicing and cutting firm-skinned veggies like tomatoes and peppers. The serrated blade is also useful for slicing and cutting bread, which comes handy while making sandwiches or splitting cake layers. Finally, a boning knife is helpful for slicing and butchering meat, poultry and fish.
A set with these four kitchen knives can take care of all your slicing, dicing, chopping and cutting needs. Besides these knives, kitchen tools such as honing steel and a knife sharpener are excellent additions to your kitchen. Regular honing and sharpening extend the lifespan of a knife's blade. If you don't want to do the sharpening at home, look for local knife shops where you can have your knives sharpened at least twice a year.
Cleaning knives the right way also helps to get the most out of your blades. It's a good idea to hand-wash knives as the abrasive detergent, high heat, and jostling in the dishwasher may cause the blade to dull prematurely. The wooden handles can also crack and loosen when put in the dishwasher. The right way to wash a knife is to use a sponge or dishcloth and wipe gently from the top of the knife to the edge.
Authors Profile: Ronny Raula is a certified interior designer and runs his own interior decoration consultancy. Ronny especially loves decorating a home in wooden furniture and believes that nothing gives a home as warm and cozy a touch as all-wood furniture and decor. Ronny loves reading up on new design ideas, and has a special interest in space saving techniques. Here Ronny writes about Kitchen Tools and Kitchen Knives.