How To Choose a Kitchen Knife

I am thrilled to post this article from Cooking Instructor and Knife Expert Peter Hertzmanm who is the author of the book above, Knife Skills Illustrated - A User’s Manual. If you are thinking of purchasing your first knife or finding one that’s right for you, read the article below in its entirety. It offers some of the best information I have ever read on the subject.

If you enjoy the article, please check out my Novice2Pro Interview with Peter here. Not only will you learn more about knives and knife skills, Peter offers some great tips on writing and publishing your own book. And then of course you are going to want to go out and purchase his book Knife Skills Illustrated.

Here’s what Martin Yan, one of Peter’s early teachers said about his book, “Peter Hertzmann’s Knife Skills Illustrated is the ultimate reference guide that no home cook should be without.”

And then Molly Stevens from the Food Network said, “Knowing how to slice and dice with precision and efficiency is not a natural gift - it’s an acquired skill that starts with good training and develops with practice. Here Peter Hertzmann provides the step-by-step instruction that every cook needs on how to properly handle kitchen knives (he even tells you which knife to use when). Opinionated and thorough, this book lays the foundation for success in the kitchen.”

And these are just two of many great testimonials from celebrity chefs. But I think after you read this informative article about choosing the right knife, you will convinced. And don’t forget to check out my own articles on this subject, How to Choose & Buy Kitchen Knives and How to Choose a Chef’s Knife

How To Choose & Buy a Kitchen Knife

How to choose a knife for one’s personal use is a multifaceted challenge involving much honest soul-searching. Or one can just buy a knife that feels good. I firmly believe that each of us should “test drive” any knife we plan to buy in a real-world environment before purchase. Ignore advice from friends, store clerks, Internet buddies, and experts like me. Return well-meaning gifts, and never purchase a set of knives.

Grab a couple of carrots, march off to your knife store, and insist that you want to try any knife before you purchase it. If the store has a policy against testing, find a different store.

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 A 2-slice Viking Professional Toaster “Caught My Eye”

Right now there are some very good holiday deals going on and here’s one that “caught my eye”. A bright red Viking 2-slice Professional Toaster that’s $100 off the regular price at Cooking.com.

We have a decent, inexpensive toaster now that works ok but this one has a lot of style and looks like it’s built for the long haul. I’m not going to spend $250 on any toaster. I don’t care if it toasts 5 bagles and 10 slices of bread but take off $100, I’d think about it.

According to Viking, this toaster is professional-grade and offers restaurant quality toast (I didn’t know there was a difference). The toaster is built with plenty of insulation to keep the heat in thus maximizing the toasting process. Made of stainless steel with “hydraulic engaging and lifting action levers” (sounds like a truck’s lift-gate) and wide slots to accommodate bagels, the toaster features Viking’s exclusive design and tooling. Ok, I’m interested and it would look very cool next to my red blender and red food processor.

One reviewer said, “We’ve had a lot of toasters, and this one is by far the very best. Bread, bagels, English muffins, pop tarts, frozen waffles, it handles them all very well and toasts evenly…If you can spare the cash, it is a great toaster and should be the last toaster we ever have to buy. It also looks great on the counter.”

It also comes in white and a 4-slice Model .

I’ve already purchased a bunch of Christmas presents for my wife and me at Cooking.com so I can recommend using them. They offer competitive prices and good service even around these busy holiday times.

Right now there are a bunch of great deals going on some of my favorite cookware and kitchen items plus they have some special shipping deals. Here’s the link to their Special Values page including KitchenAide, All-Clad Cookware, Calphalon, Henckels and a lot more. I’ll be offering some more gift ideas over the next couple of days in my “Caught My Eye” category.

I’m not sure about your, but I find shopping on the Internet and staying out of the frenzy at the malls much easier. Either way, Happy Holidays.

Caught My Eye

While browsing through my endless stream of catalogs, this Esperienze Wine Decanter “caught my eye” in the Wine Enthusiast. I am a huge fan of wine decanters and have several.

Not only are they elegant to pour wine from, they serve a very useful purpose by exposing wine to air and thus allowing a young wine to soften and an older wine to open up. With older wines, there is often the need to “decant” them to separate the wine from the sediment at the bottom of the bottle.

I’ll work on an article about the whys and how’s of decanting wine and post it on my web site but for now I just wanted to share with you this very beautiful and useful decanter that caught my eye.

The Esperienze Wine Decanter is from Luigi Bormioli and is designed by Federico DeMajo. Made in Italy, this decanter is lead free and has been designed with tiered concentric circles (ripples) at the bottom to help facilitate the combination of air and wine. When you pour wine from the decanter, it flows over the ripples allowing more oxygen to be introduced to the wine.

If you are decanting an older wine, I’m guessing some of the sediment will get stuck between the ripples making it easier to decant. Either way, it’s a gorgeous looking decanter and I know just who I want to give one to this holiday season.

Measures 9 ½ inches high and weighs 88 ounces.

You can find it at the Wine Enthusiast by clicking this link: Esperienze Wine Decanter .