Basic classification of kitchen knives

There are so many different types of kitchen knives, each with their own unique purpose and design. Firstly, there is the Chef Knife, which is an all-purpose knife that can chop and mince all kinds of ingredients, and is generally between 8 and 12 inches in length, making it a must-have in the kitchen. Slicing Knife is specially designed to cut thin slices of meat or large pieces of vegetables, the knife body is long and thin, the blade is straight. The Bread Knife is great for slicing bread or fluffy foods, with a long, serrated blade that cuts through chewy bread with ease.

The Cleaver is used for chopping bones and hard ingredients, and has a heavy blade for hard chopping. The Paring Knife is a compact knife for peeling and cutting small fruits and vegetables, with a short, flexible blade for easy handling. Utility Knife is between Chef Knife and Fruit & Vegetable Knife, suitable for medium-sized ingredients, generally between 4 and 7 inches in length. The Peeling Knife is designed for peeling and de-peeling and has a curved tip for round or irregular fruits and vegetables. Filleting Knife and Sashimi Knife are used for boning and filleting fish, respectively; the former is thin and soft, while the latter is thin and sharp and cuts perfectly thin slices.

Characteristics of knives made of different materials

Knives are also made from a variety of materials, commonly stainless steel, ceramic, carbon steel and high-end alloy steel. Knives made of stainless steel are corrosion-resistant, easy to clean and relatively economically priced, but the quality of different grades of stainless steel varies, with lower quality ones tending to lose their sharpness. Ceramic knives are very sharp and lightweight and will not rust, but they are brittle and need to be used carefully and not dropped on the floor or used to chop, smash, pry or pick at hard objects.

Carbon steel knives are sharp, easy to sharpen and maintain good sharpness, but carbon steel knives are prone to corrosion and oxidative discolouration, and should be wiped dry and coated with lard to preserve them after each use. High-end alloy steel, on the other hand, is a high-carbon, low-painting stainless steel with excellent compromise characteristics, both hard and tough, not easy to rust and can stay sharp for a long time, the hardness can reach an amazing 67HRC.

The correct use of knives

When using knives, it is important to choose the right grip. The press grip is used for chef's knives, Santoku knives, paring knives and slicing knives. The push-cut method is used for harder and coarser vegetables, roots and fruits; the chopping method is used for finer cuts of vegetables; and the pressing method is used for relatively softer foods such as tofu.

There are three types of holding methods: press-cut, fine-cut and chopping. The press-cut method is used for meat and cartilaginous fish; the fine-cut method is used for cutting ingredients into fine pieces; and the chopping method is mainly used for cutting large bones. The peeling grip is used only for peeling fruit. The knife is held in the right hand with the blade facing inwards towards the left hand, moving in the direction of peeling. The carving grip is used only for carving cuts, with small and delicate movements.

Always be safe when using knives! Avoid pointing knives at others, change blades and clean knives regularly, and maintain kitchen hygiene.

I hope these tips will help you become a little kitchen expert! If you have other questions about the kitchen or experience to share, welcome to leave a message in the comments section! Let's share the joy of food cooking together!