If you enjoy cooking, you know what pure pleasure it is – to chop, slice and dice with a good knife. If your knives turn your bread into breadcrumbs and tomatoes into puree, it’s time you buy new kitchen tools. Let’s see how to select a perfect knife that will never let you down.
Steel matters
Regular/carbon steel is a bad choice, if you don’t like vintage and shabby chic so much that you find rusted knives charming. Stainless steel is better, but if you are after the best knives, pay attention to a high carbon no-stain knife.
Blade
Stamped or forged? We vote for forged, because their balance and edge retention prove to be better. Another point is sharpness – strange as it may seem, a knife with a sharp blade is much safer than a dull knife, since you don’t need to force it to cut and do not run a risk of forcing it in the wrong direction.
Full tang
Have a look at the knife handle. If you can see the steel part between the two halves of the handle molding, you’re holding a knife with a full tang. You can be sure that such a know will not get broken when you’ll be cutting something firm.
Handle
It’s obvious that the knife handle must be convenient for your hand. But what is more important, it should guarantee your safety – the handle should not get slippery even if you’ll be holding it with a wet hand (and you‘ll definitely be). Also, do not underestimate a finger guard at the knife bolster – it will prevent your fingers from slipping under the blade.
Types of kitchen knives
Finally, we’ve come to the point where you don’t need to choose from many options – on the contrary, you should get just a few knives. The more knives, the better, of course, but if you don’t plan to get a collection, buy at least these three:
- Chef’s knife (a large heavy knife that is actually universal)
- Paring knife (a small knife, that is required when you need to cut or peel something small)
- Bread knife ( a knife with serrated blade)
Сare
Even perfect knives can be spoiled with wrong or no care. Here are some tips to follow:
- Wooden Cutting Board. Avoid using glass cutting boards if you don’t want to damage the blade.
- Hand Wash. Hand washing is more blade-friendly that dishwasher.
- Sharpen with proper tools. There are special sets that will not damage the blade while sharpening.