After your hands, a knife is the most important tool in the kitchen. If kept properly sharpened, using the knife proper will make prep work much easier. With so many choices, it can be a bit overwhelming deciding which knife to use. Not to worry, we’re here to help. We’ve compiled a list of common kitchen knives and what they’re used for.
Chef’s Knife (aka Cook’s knife)
This will be your go-to in the kitchen. Great for slicing, dicing, and chopping. The blade is a French-style and curves upward towards the tip. When you chop the knife has a rocking motion. Chef’s knives come in 8- and 10-inches. Pro’s tend to use the 10-inch blade while home cooks gravitate towards the 8-inch. But, use what feels best to you.
Santoku Knife
This is similar to a chef’s knife in regards to what you use it for. The difference is the blade. The blade is curved downward. It allows you to keep the tip of the knife in contact with the cutting board and mince items like herbs quickly. It’s available with a dimpled blade that helps prevent food from sticking and making slicing easier.
Bread Knife (aka Serrated knife)
With a serrated edge, a bread knife will make cutting a crusty loaf of French bread a breeze.
Paring
This small utility knife is used to cut smaller objects like fruit, for peeling things like sweet potatoes or coring items such as tomatoes.
Cleaver
This knife can be used for cutting meats and dicing vegetables similar to a chef’s knife. But, it’s more heavyweight than a chef’s knife and cuts with greater force through meat bones like other knives can’t.
Carving Knife
Typically used for slicing meats, you’ll be using this during the holidays. When cutting with this knife you use a sawing back and forth motion. A longer blade allows for larger pieces of meat to be cut cleanly. This knife needs to be kept extremely sharp.
Boning Knife
Boning knives have a narrow blade with a sharp point which allows for precise cuts. It’s typically used to separate meat from the bones of chicken beef, pork and other types of meat.
Fillet Knife
Similar to a boning knife, a fillet knife is used to remove bones from meat. But, a fillet knife also removes the skin from meat (like fish) and is more flexible.
There are many, many knives to sharpen your cutting skills in the kitchen. If you can only choose one type of knife, we’d suggest the chef’s or Santoku knife. These knives are perfect for the majority of your cooking needs.