Wednesday’s In the Know: Everyday Essential Kitchen Knives

Last week I spoke to the #1 most important skill that every home cook should have. Do you remember??? Knife skills! If you missed it, you can check out my YouTube tutorial on knife skills via this direct link The Table Together with Tiffany Lewis.

Today I want to carve some light (pun intended) into the everyday essential knives every home cook should have!

Chef Knife:

A chef knife is going to be your workhorse! Make sure you purchase yours from a reputable cooking store that allows you to try it. As I tell my students, you would never buy a car that you had never test drove. The same should go for knives! It should feel good in your hand, the length of the tip should be ideal, not too long or too short, and the handle should fit ergonomically in your hand. If you have big hands or long fingers, you may want a wider/bigger grip where a small petit hand may want a smaller more narrow grip. “Test drive” them all and see what feels right for you! This is a personal choice and should feel right for you! Looking good is a bonus, but trust me, looks fade quick if it’s not a perfect match…similar to relationships, wouldn’t you say?

Pairing Knife:

A pairing knife is used for smaller tasks, like trimming the tips of green beans or topping strawberries! Again, this should feel good in your hands.

Slicer:

Your slicer has serrated “teeth” that are meant to grip onto tough or waxy items. For example, to slice bread or cut tomatoes or grapes in half. You can find long and short serrated knives which both would great. The choice really comes down to your intended use. I have both, using the longer serrated knife for slicing bread and my smaller serrated knife for halving tomatoes and grapes. 

Carving Knife:

This is a long knife blade that is intended for carving. From whole roasted chicken, turkey and spiral glazed ham, the long blade reaches across the protein helping you to carve it in smooth clean strokes.

Carving Fork:

An essential tool to help carve proteins, it holds the protein in place as you carve. Without the carving fork, its easy for the bird or protein to move making it not only dangerous, but a lot more difficult!

Favorite Brands:

Personally speaking, I have used a lot of knives in my days and it depends on what feels right for me. Again, what feels right for me might not feel right for your but regardless of what feels right, it is critical that you choose a reputable company that excels and takes pride in their product from the blade to the bolster (handle), like Global. From there, you can make your selection based on their incredible suite of knives knowing with 100% confidence your knife is one of the absolute best on the market!

For other terrific tips and hundreds of recipes, visit my website (thetabletogether.com). While there, consider “subscribing” and I will send a new tip or blog post directly to your inbox every Tuesday and Wednesday morning!

P.S. Make sure you check out my YouTube channel, The Table Together with Tiffany Lewis, solely dedicated to bringing all of these fantastic tips and recipes to life!

Cheers to starting a new tradition around The Table Together!

Sincerely,

Tiffany Lewis

Founder and true believer in the power of bringing people around The Table Together!