Knife Expertise- Chef’s Guide

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There are people that take pride in having expertise in using arms and dangerous weapons because there are plenty of them out there that is used by both good and bad people.

However, we’re not getting into the details about any weapon but are going to talk about one a sharp instrument that doesn’t fall under the category of weapons but is definitely used as one by bad elements of the society.

A knife is used for cutting fruits and vegetables along with many other items and looks good kept in the tools rack or in the hands of the women of the house that cook food for the men but today we are going to discuss about knife handling in detail.

Cookery Cult

To all the budding cooks out there that might stumble on this article, if you want to know the basics of knife expertise you have to start practicing at the earliest because one has to be careful while handling sharp instruments especially scissors and knives.

If you’ve ever seen or attended a culinary class, you would know that before running a knife through anything you have to hold it in the correct position because, believe it or not, they are considered the virtual backbone of a well made dish.

In order for the dish to be enjoyed by all, the food items and spices that are added for flavor have to be done so with the correct dose and precision and hence, they have to be cut with expertise.

A knife is much more than a tool for cutting food items but we’ll limit this article to that because cookery has attained cult status over the past years and today you can find more men that are expert cooks compared to women, which is why females have become demanding and want to marry someone that is a good cook.

Japanese Cooking is considered a good example where you can start to learn the basics of cooking where knife skills have to be topnotch which is why Japanese folks start cultivating their culinary skills right from a tender age and that includes both men and women.

Even though Masterchef Australia is a benchmark for enhancing the cookery cult, there are many examples of sushi chefs that have done wonders with numerous delicacies solely because of their knife skills.

Skill Set

As mentioned above positioning the knife in your hand matters a lot because it can be dangerous to you so make sure that the cutting hand has to have the right momentum for the moment as also appropriate optimum pressure every time the knife is swished on the food.

There are some chefs that are more comfortable cutting with one hand while others are ambidextrous and can go back and forth with both hands easily but the guiding hand holds the food steady.

You have to place the knife under the thumb around the blade top and clasp it tightly with your thumb following which you wrap the other fingers around the bolster.

The index finger can be kept in resting position on the opposite of the thumb and loosen the remaining fingers around the handle.

The thumb and forefinger have to be focused more while cutting food.

Be sure to clean the knife before and after the cutting is done and regularly sharpen the blade.

The knifeista.com website has a detailed account on knife skills that you can read about.