I Have No Knives


 

JasonJ

New member
Except for just a few hand me downs and my wife's Rachael Ray knives (she has two of those big choppers).

Did my first smoke yesterday with spareribs and the Rachael Ray knives were pretty okay for some of the big work, but I really need to get some knives to do the more tedious stuff.

Problem is I know zero about knives. I know some have specific uses, but I haven't seen anything in searches that is sort of a knife 101.

Can someone point me in the direction of something like that so that I can read up on what knives I need to buy and which ones to use for certain tasks?
 
This is an excellent DVD.
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Mastering Knife Skills

A must for every home chef, MASTERING KNIFE SKILLS demystifies the arcane art of using a knife, based on a system so simple that it can be applied to literally anything edible on the planet. Filmed at the acclaimed KITCHEN ON FIRE cooking school in Berkeley, MASTERING KNIFE SKILLS features Chef MikeC., one of the Bay Area s most popular instructors, with appearances by award-winning cookbook author Chef Olivier Said. An action-packed 45 minutes, divided into bite-size chapters for easy navigation, each step has been vented through hundreds of knife skills classes taught by MikeC. since 2002. A sell-out wherever the class has been presented, it was recently named by SAN FRANCISCO Magazine as one of the best-ever for honing your inner chef.

Then, once you have an idea on how to USE a knife, go to a good store and TRY several knives yourself. Find what fits your hand. You want a knife, that when you grasp it, you're thinking, "Dang, this is an AWESOME knife! Give me something to chop!"
 
This may be a crazy suggestion, but I suggest you look into the edgepro apex sharpening system.

But its not a knife...you say.

I know.

I have a bunch of fairly expensive knives (and quite a few inexpensive ones too) so I bought the apex as a way for me to maintain their edges. As a consequence of owning it I've tried to put an edge on just about every knife I've come across and I learned a lot about knives. My spendy Japanese steel easily take an extremely acute edge and keep it, while some of my cheaper knives seem harder to sharpen and harder to keep sharp.

what's the point, you are going to want a decent sharpener at some point when you start to spend big bucks on steel, so get the apex now and some inexpensive steel like forschner or dexter russel (who both make big butcher knives and long slicers perfect for bbq tasks). The apex will come in handy keeping these knives in good working order. When you're ready to upgrade you'll know what you want in a knife and have the ability to keep it razor sharp.

One or two decent knives and the apex will be the best investment you can make in the kitchen. And do not be intimidated by sharpening your own knives, the apex is fool proof.

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content"> "Dang, this is an AWESOME knife! Give me something to chop!"

</div></BLOCKQUOTE>

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sometimes I wonder if I really like cooking...or cutting things with a pretty knife?

ever notice the people who complain about cooking or don't like to cook have the worst knives? I'd hate to cook in their kitchen too if the best blade they have looks like the last time it was used was to open a can of cat food.
 
I have a so-so quality full set (paring through chef's knife) that I find I can deal with for now but went with a few Forschner knives (boning, scimitar, and slicer) when I threw my hat in the ring for a local club rib competition a few years ago. I don't use the boning or scimitar knives as much lately but the 12-inch gratan slicer gets regular use because I really like brisket flats when smoking for groups.

I haven't decided which route to go if/whenever I wear out the basic set I'm using.
 
It was late when I wrote my post so I was kind of off on a tangent. Let me see if I can clarify my position:

having the ability to keep any blade sharp is more important that buying a sharp knife. A good sharpener and an inexpensive knife will, in the long run, out perform an expensive knife.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by j biesinger:

having the ability to keep any blade sharp is more important that buying a sharp knife. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Couldn't agree more.

Jason, If you have a Bed, Bath and Beyond store near you go check out the Calphalon Katana series knives. They have a great handle design, and they have a Damascus blade (Damascus style blade clad with 33 stainless steel layers for distinctive style, exceptional rigidity and rust resistance) . Darn nice knives, and the price isn't bad. IMO, you get alot of knife for a little money. I plan on picking one or two up to add to my collection. The handle, as to how the knife fits and feels in my hand, is most important to me. That's why Shun Classic is a favorite of mine, just love the fit, feel and balance of the Shun Classic. The Katana design is great also. Best advice I can give you is buy what you can afford, but how the knife feels in your hand should be top priority when buying a knife. JMO
Go out and handle some different brands to see what fits you. HTH
I buy most of my knives here. Cutlery and More.
 
Cool - we've got a BB&B about an hour from here. I'll have to swing by there next time and check them out.
 
Here is a question I have about knives. We got a knife set as a Christmas present years ago. I have no idea what kind they are but I know they are pretty cheap. Every knife has a serrated edge so trying to sharpen them is pointless. I have tried and they don't keep an edge. Everyone says not to get a set of knives,just a chefs knife,a paring knife and a bread/slicer. IF I need those plus some steak knives,a boning knife and a steel, why not get a full set of good knives all at once?
 
It's not really "just a chefs...", etc., it's more an admonition not to buy a complete set of knives from one manufacturer. Two reasons, mainly: first, you may be buying knives you don't really want, or don't need, or already have; two, in an effort to keep the visuals cohesive, manufacturers make their knives look alike, save for variations in blade design, depending on the blade in question. The effort to make the knives look alike and thus be a set is not always very good for the cook in terms of the key knife variables we judge.

It is usually better, as a cook, to look for each knife you need and judge it by its own merits (blade design, edge, length, weight, handle feel, balance) rather than whether it looks good in or completes a set.

A few examples of this: Steels in sets are not usually the steels one really should use. It depends on the knives in question but there are often better steels for less money that do the trick. Bread knives from sets are usually straight. Most people find offset bread knives to be better for bread. Boning/fillet knives in sets tend to be just that: a boning/fillet knife. If not a beginning or novice cook (or if wishing to move beyond), a better choice is to have a stiff boning knife, a semi-flexible fillet knife and/or a flexible fillet knife. There are many more examples. Often, different knives from different manufacturers better fit the bill than knives from the same manufacturer. This isn't always the case (it depends on what you a re looking for) but, imo, it is worth approaching knife-buying from this vantaqe point. That way one is focused on the qualities of each knife one purchases, not whether the knives 'go together'.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">why not get a full set of good knives all at once? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Kevin's reply is on point. Let me second a few things so you have another viewpoint.

every set I've seen includes a crummy steel, usually grooved. You'll want a smooth one and possibly a ceramic hone.

They will sell you a knife that you will likely never use or rarely use. so is it really a deal?

Certain knives are worth investing more in than others. I have a couple nice knives (chef, petty, santoku) and the rest are fairly inexpensive (fillet, slicer, paring, bread). If they were all of the same make, I wouldn't have been able to afford the set or had to settle for a lower quality.

I know most people want to buy something good, once, and not have to worry about it ever again (I'm that way too, if only I could buy a car that didn't need an oil change ever). But the reality of a knife is that it must be maintained. Rather than investing a big chunk of change in a block of knives, consider the apex (I'm starting to sound like I work for them or something) and a couple of knives. That way you start out learning the sharpening part and in the process, develop an idea of what you want and don't want in a knife.

I suppose most don't care that much about their knives to invest this much time and effort, but then you're just denying your ancestry. Humans wouldn't have gotten to the top of the food chain without a sharp knife!
 
Buying a chef's knife, a parer and maybe a slicer is a good way to start, but most people decide to get at least one or two others, according to their preference. I like my chinese cleaver, for example, for certain tasks. It's just personal preference, but you won't find one of them in a set.

In addition to allowing you to get exactly the styles you want, buying separately lets YOU decide where to put the emphasis of your budget. There's a lot to be said for buying a good chef's knife, for example, but many people find they can get by with a somewhat lower quality level in a paring knife.

When you buy a set the manufacturer makes the decisions, and usually that means the chef's knife, the one you will probably use the most for food prep, will be of the same construction and materials as those you use much less.
 

 

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