New Chef’s Knife
John Liu
4 years ago
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Comments (23)
ediej1209 AL Zn 7
4 years ago
Lars
4 years agoRelated Discussions
My New Experimental Grafting Knife
Comments (6)Marc, if someone is using it to cut away from them, they must be very experienced since the knife is working strongly against them. If you are cutting toward yourself with a grafting knife the flat part of the blade faces the wood, and as the cut gets longer the flat blade rests perfectly flat along the wood and helps guide the progress of the cut by the alignment with the already-cut flat surface. Basically, it makes it super easy to make a very flat cut and if you have two flat cuts you get great stock/scion alignment. If you are cutting away you only have the short bevel area against the wood and unless your hands are very good the knife will wobble up and down and you will get a jagged cut. Scott...See MoreWhat do you call this type knife and suggestions
Comments (41)Johnliu, that was a great write-up, very educational. Count me as someone OCD about my knives. I also want to emphasize that one's "taste" in knives is very individual. So, for me, regarding ceramic knives - I know they are really sharp, and maintain their sharpness much longer than steel knives, and are easier to care for (as long as you don't drop them). Having said that, I cannot stand the hard sound they make when chopping - that sound and how they feel as they strike the cutting board gives me the shivers. Obviously, this is a very personal thing! One more thing that John briefly mentioned that I want to expand on a bit is the type of cutting board. If you care about your knives, or care about the investment of $$ you've made in your knives, you should not use a plastic cutting board. They will dull your knives in just a few uses. You should use wood cutting boards. No one knows where the idea came from that plastic boards are safer - researchers at the University of Wisconsin have studied this perception that plastic cutting boards are better, and were unable to ascertain why people think this. Their findings were that wooden boards are safer. "The [University of Wisconsin] researchers purposely contaminated wood and plastic boards with bacteria and then tried to recover those bacteria alive from the boards. They also tested boards made from seven different species of trees and four types if plastic. They incubated contaminated boards overnight at refrigerator and room temperatures and at high and typical humidity levels. They tested several bacteria, Q Salmonella, Listeria and enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli Q known to produce food poisoning. The results consistently favored the wooden boards, often by a large margin over plastic boards. The scientists found that three minutes after contaminating a board that 99.9 percent of the bacteria on wooden boards had died, while none of the bacteria died on plastic. Bacterial numbers actually increased on plastic cutting boards held overnight at room temperature, but the scientists could not recover any bacteria from wooden boards treated the same way. A major question is why wood is so inhospitable to bacteria. The researchers have tried unsuccessfully to recover the compound in wood that inhibits bacteria, and is continuing the research."...See MoreGOOD Knife Sharpener?
Comments (27)Chicagoans, we used to have a guy who came through here too (Oak Park), with a cart and bells. We haven't seen him in some years, so I am guessing he retired or passed. He was great though. We would run out of the house too, like a kid after the ice cream man. ETA: I was just reading about him, and it's probably the same guy (Tony Del Ciello). And he is still around. I guess we have just missed him the past several years....See MoreGot a new Chef's Knife!
Comments (21)Eek! S, that's bad. I was taught long ago, and by I know not whom, that if you drop a blade or anything sharp, jump back. I do it by instinct. I used to be worried about ricochets, but knives don't bounce. :) Nothing to be done, however, if the knife chases you. ;) M, I agree with you! That happened in not-my-kitchen, with not-my-dull-knife. I can't sharpen other people's knives. They're usually sharp there, so I never thought to bring my own. I was in another kitchen which had a knife block on the counter. I didn't know about knife blocks back then. It had a steel. The knife had a wonky edge. I didn't think it would be a problem if I used the steel, lightly. It's not like sharpening someone else's knife. The edge bent! I was able to straighten it out, but I could have made curlicues with the edge of that knife with the matching steel!! Interesting about the onions! I don't usually have big onion issues and thought it was because I keep them cold. Maybe it's the knife, too. :)...See Morelindac92
4 years ago
Islay Corbel
4 years ago
plllog
4 years ago
bragu_DSM 5
4 years ago
bbstx
4 years ago
2ManyDiversions
4 years agoLars
4 years agolast modified: 4 years ago
WalnutCreek Zone 7b/8a
4 years agoWalnutCreek Zone 7b/8a
4 years agoJohn Liu
4 years agotwoyur
4 years agobragu_DSM 5
4 years ago
annie1992
4 years agobragu_DSM 5
4 years agoWalnutCreek Zone 7b/8a
4 years agolast modified: 4 years agoplllog
4 years agoediej1209 AL Zn 7
4 years ago2ManyDiversions
4 years agojakkom
4 years agoJohn Liu
4 years ago
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John LiuOriginal Author