- Why is this a jpg?
- No need for the horizontal onion cuts
- Nice guide nevertheless
I just use a small knife and a big knife. This covers all use cases. Yes they also cut bread because I keep them sharp.
I see the diagram: the first knife is for cutting bread. The second is for cutting fillets. The third is for cutting… chefs?
This chart is missing a knife that I have. The blade hooks forward instead of backwards, like a bird’s beak.
Since it’s small and the tip extra pointy, I use it for precision cutting. I’ve also found it useful for thin slides of cheese, since the blade is also not as thick as the other knives in my set. Still, I’m wondering what its actual purpose is for.
Santoku knife. I was just about to comment the same thing.
I have that one too but that’s not the knife I’m talking about. It’s about the size of a paring knife and it hooks forward. Almost like a scythe but not nearly as dramatic or a curve.
(When I get home from work I can upload a picture if anyone cares to help out.)
I’m pretty sure it’s just called a bird’s beak paring knife.
Reading further about it, it’s intended for tasks while holding the object you are cutting, rather than using a cutting board. Like peeling an apple in your hand.
Ah okay that makes sense. I prefer a peeler, but I can see purists preferring such a knife. Thanks for the info.
I use a couple of damp paper towels under the chopping board to hold it still, then when I’m done I use the damp paper towels to wipe the knife, board, and bench
Have you never heard of cross-contamination? Using the same towel that touched the counter to wipe the knife and cutting board as well is disgusting as fuck.
For your sake (and the sake of any guests you have over), I hope you’re talking about a workshop knife, not the kitchen. I hope you never get a restaurant job, either.
No, you are wrong. Countertops can be cleaned just as well as your kitchen utensils can. People make dough on them all the time.
Not with meat, or course. When chopping vegetables.
Some people regularly wipe down their counters, or just fucking disinfect their work surfaces before they start cooking. Non-toxic disinfectants like Mean Green will work in 2 minutes, and you can spray it before you start pulling out your pots and pans. Then just wipe the counters really quick, and you’re good to go.
Of course this is done in idiocy imperial. Fuck your 'Murican “we need to be special so we use this objectively shitty thing to be different”. Only 3% of the world has a use for this, while the rest 97% are fucking tired of having to do extra work to convert.
What the fuck are you on about? What do you need to convert in this?
I guess things like dicing = 1/4" cubes
Yeah, because saying “6.25mm cubes” is so much more efficient /s
“Pick the right blade.” Santoku. The answer is Santoku.
Nah chef’s knives are better, more versatile.
It might be a matter of preference/taste?
I don’t like the curved point of mine, I think I’ll go for a chef knife instead
If you use wooden cutting boards / blocks, rub some mineral oil into them every once in a while. This will reduce the water they absorb and make them less likely to warp or split.
There are but two necessary knives. A chef’s knife and a paring knife. Sharpened appropriately. Usually not even a paring knife but sometimes the small size is beneficial.
I’d include a santoku in there, and probably some scissors. Sometimes you just need the straight edge of a santoku, instead of the curved edge of a chef’s knife.
And sometimes serration is necessary. You’ll blunt your chefs knife on certain sourdough crusts, or crush softer breads, but a bread knife will glide right through.
Bread knife would like a word. Chef knife technically works but bread knives are usually longer and work much better at cutting without smooshing.
Scissors too. A good pair of kitchen scissors makes slicing small vegetables like green onions much easier.
Holy shit I never thought about using the scissors on actual food, I’ve only ever used them to open packages containing food
Also great for cutting a pizza.
Sharpen your knife. If it’s not able to cut bread or tomatoes without smooshing it needs sharpening.
Bread knives are so much nicer to cut bread with though. But yeah, a chef’s knife and a paring knife are all you “need”.
I can cut bread and tomatoes. A bread knife does a better job with bread.
And a filet knife does better with fish. And a boning plus a slicing knife does much better with meat. Not my point but that’s ok.
A butter knife could cut them all too.
I definitely need a bread knife to properly cut good bread, if only for the teeth. The bread I eat is more dense and has a hard crust compared to say American wonderbread. I also like to dry out some of it and then double toast slices for that extra crunchiness. No way a smooth edge can deal with that.
I was a professional cook (up to sous chef) in fine dining for a decade. Guess I’m just an amateur yet.
Well good for you, i guess you cooking anecdotally in fine dining invalidates my experience entirely. All of a sudden the bread parts itself on my chef knife like the red sea for moses.
Perhaps you just need to learn to use the knife properly. Knives also need a steel which should be used regularly. Blunting a knife on a crust shouldn’t be a thing if you keep your blade sharp. That’s the point.
I use a bred knife to slice cheese off a block every day. Line it up and push down, one hand on handel the other on the spine at the top. It works better than any other knife to slice cheese blocks.
This post makes it sounds like I am committing a war crime.
The chopping technique is not really that necessary. It’s great for chopping lots of veggies at speed, but if you’re just cutting veggies for a single meal then there’s not that much benefit unless you’re already highly practiced and that’s your default.
What’s far more important is just being cognizant for each cut you make. Walk don’t run.
The chopping technique is about eliminating risk, mostly. Sure for a single meal and being aware you’ll be fine. But getting into the habit of a good technique means you’ll be fine even when you’re tired or distracted
If you want to spend the time and effort to practice that technique, go for it. But the benefits don’t really make it worth it for most people.
into the habit of a good technique means you’ll be fine even when you’re tired or distracted
The technique described in the image is not the only “good technique”. A person could reasonably develop their own “good technique” simply by being cognizant of their cutting.
A chefs knife will do for everything. Keep it sharp enough and it’ll even slice bread. As for the onion horizontal cuts are unnecessary. Offset radial cuts are fine (as you move away from the centre vertical cut you angle it more).
What’s the x axis on those graphs? I can’t zoom in enough on this picture to read it. I did look it up, but I only found versions with the exact same resolution
I think it says “Number of Cuts,” but it’s really hard to tell.
It’s not your fault; even if you could zoom in, there’s not enough resolution to make out any details.
Your Lemmy app is probably preventing you from zooming images beyond a 1:1 pixel ratio, preventing you from zooming them past their native resolution. Voyager doesn’t have that issue, if you were considering a different app.
I have absolutely no idea. I grabbed the first illustration that showed what I described (poorly).
What would this kind of knife be called? Japanese brand, and I use it like a chef’s knife, it can rock, but it’s like upside down from an American chef’s knife.
It is so damn sharp though, I can get the thinnest slices.
The chopping/grip advice is missing a critical component: your two farthest forward knuckles on your non-knife hand should be contacting the knife blade at all times. This gives you precise control and you know exactly where the cutting surface is. It takes a lot of practice to do properly, but that is how the pros do it. I recommend this video from Jacques Pepin for an example: https://youtu.be/nffGuGwCE3E
This should be noted that the knife part is only for western style knives. Same with the cutting technique. That’s only for a curved type blade.
I can’t even find a proper curved blade in most western kitchens I’ve visited…smh
Are you saying that the chef knives they have are too straight for your liking? As you want more rocking motion. Probably best bet is a custom knife.
A chefs knife is fine. I’m saying most people buy shitty knives that are not chef’s knives.
