Help me build a culinary tool kit

[edfurlong]

I hate the weak ass springs in oxo tongs. The dirt cheap restaurant flavor are much easier for me to work with.

Fish spatulas are great for delicate stuff.

[SamIAm]

I'm surprised you don't need a microplane. It should certainly be part of a culinary toolkit. (Brand matters on this one.)

[markum9]

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I've had this knife set for 4 years now and am very happy with it. Cook's Illustrated, which does robust testing of products and recipes, rated them the best value. Almost as good as the really expensive knives, but for about half the price. IMO cutco knives are crap.

http://www.cutleryandmore.com/details.asp?SKU=4596

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Half? This whole set costs what one premium knife costs, can they really perform that well? I may get a set just out of curiosity.

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I guess I should add that I've never actually owned a really expensive set so I'm just going off Cook Illustrated's review where they tested them against some hard-core professional knives. I got them based off a recommendation of a guy who's really into cooking and the whole culinary scene. I cook almost every day and while I don't do any fancy knife-work, they do everything that I need them for, and they've stayed sharp the whole time.

Amazon reviews if anyone's interested:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/custome...customerReviews

[SomethingClever]

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I'm surprised you don't need a microplane. It should certainly be part of a culinary toolkit. (Brand matters on this one.)



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I can confirm that this item is a must-have.

[Aloysius]

I third the Microplane rec. That thing makes me want to grate cheese all day.

Gildwulf - here's a good EDF thread discussing cooking knives.

I'm not a professional chef by any stretch, so take my recs with a grain of salt. But I really like my Shun Santoku (I use it as an all purpose chef's knife) and the 3.5" Wusthof paring knife SamIAm recs in the linked thread I picked up and must say it is pretty awesome.

But my gut says that for your class, go with some cheapo Dexter-Russell knives - they're great knives and you'll probably have access to sharpeners (which is my only issue with the knives, they lose their edge pretty quickly, well that and weighting cause it's a plastic handle).

SamIAm - I randomly picked up those Oxo tongs at Target a while ago and I am happy with them.

-Al

[slappy0]

http://www.genuineginsu.com/ LDO

Seriously you can cut a car in half with it and still slice a tomato like this ..

[slappy0]

Seriously on knives .. go to a restaurant supply store and test for the feel of a couple of brands.

You are looking for a cheap comfortable handle with good balance. Good blades>>>fancy handles, and learn how to keep them sharp.

You can easily spend 5x as much for a fancy knife .. and see the same blade with a more basic handle right next to it.

Witness ..
edit (Twin Master line)
pics here .. http://www.hendrixequip.com/searchresult...amp;order=RowID
I use Henkel's restaurant grade knives which typically run $20-30 for chef's knives .. vs .. the higher end stuff which can easily top 100. (Same steel) They have a rubbery yellow handle that fits well in the hand and provides for a good grip even with wet or slippery hands. Biggest benefit is that if you completely destroy one .. they are much cheaper to replace if you have to.

[ElSapo]

Suggestion: Mark your equipment as your own. Taping the handles is a start but if you can, permanently engraving is better. It's an industry where things have a tendancy to disappear.

[NhlNut]

I wouldn't buy all that stuff before the first class. Wait and see what you will really need. Things like a pastry brush or a cooks fork aren't really used often.

Definitely get good tongs. So useful.

You also might need a stem thermometer.

[offTopic]

Apron, towels, shoes, but not potholders/oven mitts?

3rd/4th/5th the tongs...get good ones.

I have the Oxo peeler, and like it a lot.