Cooking Knives thread

[geormiet]

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g,

Assuming you're cooking small meals 4-5 nights per week, about how often will you need to sharpen your knives?

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You should steel them all the time, like once a day if you are cutting a small to medium amount.

You should sharpen them whenever they get dull, which could be months if you are steeling often.

[DcifrThs]

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g,

Assuming you're cooking small meals 4-5 nights per week, about how often will you need to sharpen your knives?

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depends. i did a bunch of research before buying 3 knives. the guys at the store (chef central) were very helpful.

their advice was the following:

- anytime you use the knife (or at most once per day after the last use), steel it as i think i've mentioned

- steeling takes nicks out of the knife that could expidite the dullening of it. this can be done by yourself at home easily.

- sharpening actually cuts away at the knife's material and shouldn't be done unless necessary. necessary is simply it gets dull. about 2-4 times a year depending on use...not more than 4 times though according to them.

as far as the more general question, i'm in the camp that thinks you don't need a whole set of knives to cook. just a few + steel.

i use a henkles chef knife, santoku knife, & paring knife. i plan on purchasing a bread knife and appreciate the selections mentioned in this thread.

here is the chef knife:


the santoku is necessary for preparing this:



cutting fish accurately is a must to get the right portions (& skinning is hugely problematic w/o a very thin sharp knife)

hope this helps,
Barron

[crashjr]

I agree with 4 star Henkels. I do not like the ergonomically correct handles of the Globals and the 5 star Henkels, but try them, you might like them.

Chicago Cutlery knives are also very good, and you can get wooden handles if you so chose.

Some of the Henkels in this shown in this thread are Pro-S series, riveted and with a full tang. The balance of these knives are pretty bad IMO.

You do not need a set. Get a sharpening steel, a 7" santuko for fruit/veggies/everyday general use, an 8" chefs knife for larger jobs (I usu. use mine to break a bird), a 3" paring knife, a set of poultry shears, and a set of steak knives. If you fillet fish or de-bone small game you need a 5.5" boning knife.

You can keep the knives' edges by learning how to use a steel. For periodic sharpening, learn to use an Arkansas whet stone. Don't use a mechanical sharpener - heating the blade affects the temper and the ability to keep an edge.

And never, never put your knives in the dishwasher.

[crashjr]

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(& skinning is hugely problematic w/o a very thin sharp knife)


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Skinning fish is pretty easy if you get the technique down. Take a knife - any knife that is at least as long as the fillet is wide. Assuming a right handed person, put the tail to your left skin-side down. Cut into the flesh of the fish close to the tail, resting the knife on the skin without cutting through it. Put the knife at about a 15 degree angle to the table. Grip the tail and pull it to the left in a steady motion, keeping gentle downward pressure on the knife. The skin will come off directly.

[MagicNinja]

anyone have any thoughts on saucepans / frying pans? Are there tangible differences? I always used to think the teflon coated pans were the expensive ones but i've noticed that steel pans made by companies such as Vue and Arcosteel are more expensive (and 'pure steel' or whatever).

There is a 40% off sale on Baccarat and Vue where I live, these brands are normally fairly expensive. Any thoughts?

[edfurlong]

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And never, never put your knives in the dishwasher.

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I'm a cook and I've heard this about a thousand times. My seven year old henkel chefs knife has probably seen more use in a month than a home cooks knife will see in its lifetime. Its probably been through the dishwasher no less than 500 times with no ill effect that I'm aware of. Its possible that it causes it to need to be sharpened slightly more often, but I doubt its by much.

[MrMon]

Regarding the knives in dishwasher rule, most of it seems based on myth or overcautiousness. All of that is best summed up by this from the Chef's Choice FAQ:

Washing sharp knives in the dishwasher can be hazardous to the knife, the dishwasher and the cook! It is too easy to reach into a dishwasher and get a nasty cut. Sharp knives can knick plastic-coated wire shelves and other utensils. The force of the water can dull knife-edges by pushing them against shelves or utensils. The combination of hot water and the chemicals in dishwasher detergent can leave stains on stainless steel cutlery that comes in contact with silver or silver-plated flatware or copper. (These stains don't effect the knife's performance.)

My reply to these problems are as follows:

a. If you are stupid enough to put a knife in the dishwasher where it can cut you, or reach into a dishwasher blind, you get what you deserve. Guess you should be kept away from all sharp objects anyway.

b. I have a pretty good dishwasher, but it's not so powerful that it's going to send my knives flying all over the place. They get placed in secure locations. I think a lot of this is based on commercial dishwashers.

c. Powerful commercial dishwasher detergents seem to be a concern as well, something you are unlikely to find at home. I use liquid Cascade, which is pretty mild, and certainly better than the powders that ground away at your glasses. I would probably think twice about using Cascade Complete that dissolves everything in the dishwasher though. That might cause problems.

d. Silver shouldn't be in the dishwasher anyway, so being in contact with stainless steel should be a non-issue.

e. Stains don't affect the performance of the knife. Exactly. The occasional rust spot can be dealt with with steel wool.

So yes, if you want to absolutely baby your knives, don't put them in the dishwasher. But my time is more valuable than some knife, even a very good one. In the dishwasher (carefully) it goes, without a second thought. Any slight extra dulling can be sharpened out, they're knives for goodness sake!

[turnipmonster]

I have both all clad pans and the aluminum pans with the blue handle that many restaurants use. the all clad saute pan was around 100 bucks, the blue handle was around 15 bucks, I prefer the blue handled one.

[geormiet]

[ QUOTE ]
anyone have any thoughts on saucepans / frying pans? Are there tangible differences? I always used to think the teflon coated pans were the expensive ones but i've noticed that steel pans made by companies such as Vue and Arcosteel are more expensive (and 'pure steel' or whatever).

There is a 40% off sale on Baccarat and Vue where I live, these brands are normally fairly expensive. Any thoughts?

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Quality of your pots and pans is more important than the quality of your knife. With a bad knife, you can still make good food, it will just take more effort and be more dangerous. With a bad pan, it would be literally impossible to make quality food.

I can't recommend any brands to you, but as a general rule of thumb heavier is better. heavier metal means higher heat capacity, so that when food hits the pan the pan will stay hot, which is what you want.

[cbloom]

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I have both all clad pans and the aluminum pans with the blue handle that many restaurants use. the all clad saute pan was around 100 bucks, the blue handle was around 15 bucks, I prefer the blue handled one.

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This is the way to go. I have a bunch of nice old Calphalon but I'm gradually replacing it with cheapo restaurant supply aluminum. $10-$20 bucks a pan, they heat up quick and make a nice sear, and when my girlfriend wrecks them I just buy another and don't shed a tear.

BTW those super thin aluminum/stainless pans you get at like grocery stores or Target or whatever are not worth the $5 you spend on them.