Paring Knives
Types of Knives
Knives are an integral part of the kitchen, but there are a plethora of knife types so we have put together a brief document outlining the role of each type of knife.
If you would like to find out about the components of a knife and the blade materials, pleae visit our user guide here.
Chef’s Knife
A much-needed and the most versatile knife is the Chef’s Knife, which should be between 6 to 12” in size (8” ideally). This can be used for chopping, slicing, mincing and dicing, and since it is used the maximum, it has to be comfortable to use.
Perfect for cutting, peeling, coring and shaping fruits and vegetables, the Paring Knife is between 2 to 4” in size. Like the Chef’s Knife, they are all-purpose knives but meant for smaller tasks.
If you have both the Chef’s Knife and the Paring Knife, you may not need the Utility Knife, which is medium-sized (4 to 7”), and are more like large Paring Knives, used for a variety of jobs.
The Vegetable Knife, though not a full-fledged category by itself, is used for both fruits and vegetables. Their blade sizes vary anywhere from 2 to 4.5”, with a stub-like handle. This kind of knife usually comes without a bolster and possibly has several varieties.
Serrated Knife
The Serrated Knife is 7 to 10” in size and meant for foodstuff that is hard on the outside but soft inside. Slicing bread in a back and forth movement, the ‘bread knife’ is also good for tomatoes and peaches.
With sizes ranging from 6 to 12”, the Sandwich Knife is similar to the serrated knife. It is sharp yet shorter in length with a shorter blade. However, it does have a serrated blade that’s ideal for bread, soft fruits and vegetables, and foods such as pizza, pies, sandwiches etc.
Cleaver
The Cleaver is a heavy knife with a broad, thick blade meant for cutting meat and chopping bones. Anolon Knives’ hand-crafted cleaver and Zwilling JA Henckels cleaver are worthy of note.
Japanese in origin, Santoku is perfect for chopping, dicing and mincing. While the knife ideally is 5 to 7” in size, smaller sizes are also available. These knives have lighter, shorter, harder and thinner blades than the chef’s knives and are the best for sushi and sticky food because of its ‘granton edge’ release pattern blade.
Typically a large knife of 8 to 15” size, the Carving Knife is meant for carving meats like hams, roasts, poultry and large meats. This knife is thin, especially at the spine, which facilitates thinner and more perfect slices.
A narrow knife of about 5 to 6” length, the Boning Knife is used to separate meat from the bones. There are two types of Boning Knives- Stiff boning knives for boning beef, and a flexible one for poultry and fish.
Fillett Knife
The 6 to 12” Fillet Knife is great for filleting fish, thanks to their narrow flexible blades.
There are several other specialty knives too. For instance, the Mincing Knife or Mezzaluna, a half-moon shaped knife meant for mincing, of course; the Oyster Knife and Clam Knife to break open the hard shell of an oyster or clam; the Devein Knife to remove the large vein that runs down the length of a shrimp; the Cheese Knife to easily cut through soft and hard textured cheese; the Tourne or Peeling Knife to peel, trim and dice; the Chestnut Knife to score chestnuts ahead of roasting, etc. The options are numerous but you may not need all of these and can replace one for another most of the times. It is always a better idea to gradually enhance your collection as and when the need arises.
A Few Tips
A knife’s quality is determined by the blade, tangs and handle. Once you decide to enhance your knife collection, consider getting a suitable storage component, such as blocks, racks or sheaths. While there are knives you can clean in the dishwasher, it is advisable to hand wash them, since dishwashing exposes knives to harsh detergents and extreme temperatures. It is also important to wipe your knives dry before storing. For a long lasting edge, it is best to go for polyethylene Cutting Boards for least amount of resistance to the blade’s edge. Finally, if you are going for a set of knives, go for one with Sharpening Steel as it ensures that the hardness of the blades will be the same as the steel’s. Manufacturer
About the Author
Blue Shoots love our cooking at Blue Shoots Ltd and understand that to be a successful cook it helps to have the right cookware and kitchen accessories . As a specialist cookware shops it is our aim to bring you a wide selection of quality kitchen appliances and kitchen gadgets at online, affordable prices.
How much does a cut have to bleed, or how deep does it have to be, before stitches are necessary?
Let's just say I used the Henckels paring knife again tonight and cut my thumb quite badly, despite the experience last weekend of using it, cutting my thumb, and listening to my husband play Bryan Adams' "Cuts Like A Knife" for the entirety of me making breakfast.
If I don't award a Best Answer to someone tomorrow, can you tell my cat I love him very much?
Thank you to all who answer. I hope you are not typing one handed and bleeding profusely.
My fear and distrust of modern medicine tells me that you will be fine if you just rub some butter on the wound, or adopt a dog and let him or her lick it. It if does not stop bleeding soon, wrap a tight rubber band around your wrist.
If it is too late, and your thumb is already detached from your hand, then there is good money to be made by claiming that you found it in Wendy's chili.
Best case scenario is that your cut heals and leaves a scar in the shape of something that pleases you.
I admire Henckels knives. I believe that a large part of brilliant cooking is in the cutlery. My only beef with Henckels is that if they are such fine knives, then why were they never utilized to separate the conjoined twins that appear as their logo?
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