Basic Knife Skills

Being proficient with knives is crucial to improving as a cook; in fact, it's the foundation of everything you'll do in the kitchen and a skill you'll use on a daily basis for almost everything you cook. First things first, though, make sure your cutting board is secure before you begin chopping. A simple solution to an unsteady cutting board that could cause injuries from your knife slipping is to place a damp paper towel underneath it. You can also acquire a non-slip mat to place underneath it or a cutting board with grips. The next crucial step is to check that you are holding your knife correctly.

You should place your finger and thumb at the very back of the knife and wrap your fingers around it to create a firm grip. This will allow you to chop with control and control over the process, even though it may feel awkward at first. If you place your finger on top of the knife, hold the handle too far back, or have a dainty grip, these are all incorrect techniques.

Another common mistake people make when chopping is to lay all of their fingers flat, which puts them at risk of getting cut. Instead, you should form a claw so that your fingers go in and the knife will hit your knuckles as you chop. This way, your fingertips will be protected the entire time and will actually give you support as you chop. Another common mistake people make is the slicing motion. If you chop really aggressively like this, you won't get a nice, even cut. Instead, you should rock the knife back and forth while cutting, thinking of it like a wave.

After teaching you how to hold a knife properly, we'll go over some common cuts you might see in recipes. Let's start with dicing. For an onion, which is probably the most common thing you'll dice, cut it in half first, cutting all the way through the root end. Then, peel the outer layers, being careful to keep the root end intact. When dicing, make sure the flat side is down to give you the most stability. Finally, make a few horizontal incisions into the onion.

Using your knuckles as a guide, you will turn the onion towards you, root side furthest away, and then make a few more vertical cuts with that claw. Then, you will begin chopping along and simply execute that same lovely chopping wave motion down, and voila! you have an even dice. Here's an example of a large dice; here's an example of a medium dice; and over here, an example of a small dice. Most recipes call for dice, so this should be a medium size. The next cut we'll demonstrate is mincing; for minced garlic, you want to remove the root end.

Recall that we constantly use that tiny claw. The garlic needs to be placed under the blade and mashed down before being peeled; the papery skin should easily come off. Next, use the claw once more. Repeat this process numerous times, using the same wave motion. You can stabilize yourself by placing your fingers on the opposite side of the blade, and then carefully scrape it off with the knife to mince the mints. The more flavorful the dish, the smaller the mints should be, and anything larger would be a fine chop, similar to dicing.

The most common cuts you'll find in recipes are dicing and mincing, but we'll show you a few other cuts just in case you want to get fancy. First, we'll show you how to make chiffonade, which is most commonly used with herbs. To make it look like that, first stack the basil leaves in a pile, then roll them up from the top all the way down into a really tight cigar shape. Finally, not to sound repetitive, but repeat that motion and just slice the basil leaves thinly.

When performing the chiffonade cut, it's typical to undercut. Instead, you should be sure to slice all the way down, and if you do it well, it should resemble these lovely ribbons. Although chiffonade is a really attractive cut, it's more of a vanity cut that's usually used as a garnish for food The second cut we're going to demonstrate is the Julian cut, which is most typically used with carrots but can be applied to a variety of foods. To Julian a carrot, cut it into segments around the size of two inches; for the time being, we'll just start with one.

First, you want to make a flat base. After you cut off the flat part, place the flat part on the cutting board for more stability. Next, stack the carrots like building blocks. You can also divide the stacks into two parts to make them a little easier to manage. Finally, you want to make equal 1/8-inch slices down. This should result in these lovely, evenly sized matchsticks. Julienning is a somewhat uncommon cut; it's usually used in raw recipes like slaw or fast pickles.

This method is fantastic because it prevents you from getting a huge bite out of a pickled carrot; instead, you can cut it with a julienne or matchstick, which adds just the right amount of tang. Next, we'll demonstrate the oblique cut, also known as a roll cut, which you will see why briefly you should trim the end off diagonally first. Right now, the diagonal is facing you, so you just want to rotate it so that the diagonal is going away from you. This way, you're sort of creating this triangle shape. Then, you roll the carrot again and cut it; finally, you're just going to keep rolling.

One of the best things about this cut is that even though the carrot isn't completely cooked, all the parts will cook evenly and at a fairly even temperature. It's also quite versatile—you can roast, steam-saute, and prepare it in a variety of ways—and has a fun shape. Although it's not used as much these days, it's still really attractive, and more people ought to use it now that you know how to handle and use a knife properly, you'll be more prepared in the kitchen.

In conclusion, practice makes perfect, so start out slowly and make sure you're using the right form. The more you do this, the easier it will get and the faster you'll be a pro in no time. In addition, on a basic level, you won't cut your fingers off, which is something that I think we can all agree on. However, if you want to get fancy, that will be okay too.

Bye for now.