As tailors don’t joke with their needles and carpenters don’t joke with their tape measure, good cooks or chefs don’t joke with their knives.
If you have ever wondered why your meal never looks as aesthetically pleasing as a chef’s own, even after following the handbook word for word, this is the answer: it’s the knives. The type of knife you use for each meal prep will determine whether your meal will rival Gordon Ramsay’s.
Each type of knife has its specific use, from the chef’s knife to the utility knife and the mighty cleaver. There are different types of knives for different types of meal prep procedures.
Chef’s Knife
This is the most commonly used knife. Every household kitchen has this knife. It is also called the all-purpose knife. It works well for chopping, cutting, and crushing garlic. Some people even use it to slice nuts. The chef’s knife is your go-to knife for all meal prep procedures. Every chef has to love this knife. Its versatility probably earned it its name.
According to reviews on Amazon, the Victorinox Swiss Army Chef’s Knife is one of the best chef knives you can get. It is easy to use and it gets the job done, as simple as that.
Paring knife
If a chef knife had a baby, it would be the paring knife. The paring knife is a miniature version of the chef’s knife. Although it is not used for slicing and chopping, it works well for peeling. Using a knife as big as the chef’s knife for peeling could be time-wasting or dangerous to your fingers.
But the paring knife is small enough to handle and precise enough to give the result you are looking for. Next time you want to peel a potato or dice some garlic, this is the knife.
Amazon shoppers love the WÜSTHOF Classic Paring Knife for its efficacy. Many reviews say the buy is worth every penny.
Bread Knife
This one is easy to identify. Having a serrated edge and long blade, the bread knife is the best knife to use when you want to cut bread…easy guess. It requires very little or no effort at all for cutting. Therefore, it is better suited for cutting soft foods like bread or tomatoes.
Its technique of cutting ensures the food being cut maintains its structure. When used to cut bread, it does so without tearing the bread apart or causing it to get squeezed. A chef’s knife or paring knife cannot give this result. The downside, however, to using this knife is that it can be challenging to sharpen.
According to Amazon reviews, the Mercer Culinary M23210 Millennia Bread Knife is one of the best bread knives. You can also get the Chef’s Choice 4643 Manual Knife Sharpener. It works well for serrated knives.
Utility Knife
The utility knife is also commonly used. It is a convenient knife with the chef’s knife’s versatility and the paring knife’s precision. It is “versatility in a compact form”.
The utility knife is used for slicing soft vegetables and tender pieces of meat; some people even use it for deboning. It can be used for cutting through sandwiches, too…if you’re going for a clean cut –something the bread knife cannot give.
If you’re looking to get your very first utility knife, try the Chicago Cutlery Utility Knife. Word on Amazon is that it has a high value for money.
Santoku Knife
The Santoku knife originates from Japan. Although it is less popular than other knives, this knife does wonders. As its name insinuates, it has multiple uses. It is not to be confused with the chef’s knife, which is slightly bigger and heavier.
Falling in love with the Santoku knife is easy. But it becomes easier when using the Kai Wasabi Santoku Knife. The Santoku knife is the best option to give your food an aesthetic look or to get thinly sliced pieces of meat or vegetables. It also works well for mincing and chopping.
Carving Knife
Usually, the carving knife comes with a carving fork (it looks like a large fork with a missing tine). As the name suggests, this knife is perfect for carving –that is, cutting around the bone in roasts and other types of meat. It also works well for cutting thin slices of meat without tearing the meat or destroying its aesthetic.
Its blade is flexible and easy to handle, making it more convenient to achieve a desired outcome…even if it requires cutting around cartilage and bone. Your chef’s knife or paring knife cannot serve as a perfect replacement.
One of Amazon’s top-rated Carving knives is the Hammer Stahl Carving Knife and Fork Set.
Boning Knife
While the carving knife carves the meat around the bone, the boning knife cuts the meat off the bone. The thinner the blade, the better the maneuverability.
This thin-bladed knife effectively separates the meat –or fish –from the bone without making a mess of it.
The boning knife comes in two types. It is either flexible or stiff. The flexible ones work well for deboning techniques requiring less effort, like filleting. The stiff ones work best for more energy-demanding processes like separating a piece of meat from a bone. Having both types is ideal but going for one of the two also works.
The Ultrasource 449029 Boning Knife is one of the most loved boning knives on Amazon. The reviews from its users reveal that it is an excellent choice for deboning procedures.
Cleaver
If you have been to a slaughterhouse or an abattoir, you would be familiar with this knife. It is not a very common knife choice for households. In fact, it is not common at all. But if you work with food very often, then you may want to add it to your list of kitchen utensils to get.
The cleaver gives you total control of whatever you’re cutting, especially meat. It can cut through soft bones neatly (chicken bone) in one strike. It is power and precision in one.
The Chinese-style cleaver even replaces the need for other knives like a boning knife and, shockingly, a paring knife. This cleaver type has a lighter and thinner blade than the regular cleaver.
The LA TIM’S Meat Cleaver Knife is highly rated by Amazon Shoppers with most confirming that it exceeds their expectations.
Cooking can be stressful. Not having the right equipment to use can make it even more stressful. Knives are one of the most essential cooking utensils. Having the right type for each process makes your cooking less stressful and ensures you get your desired result for each meal prep.
