Starbucks 'Trenta': How The New Size Compares To Your Stomach
Famous Death Row Last Meals
Ever since I went away to college, I have found myself accumulating cooking utensils. It started out innocently at first. A spatula here, a wooden spoon there. But then suddenly it turned into 12 wooden spoons, seven different rubber scrapers and a cacophony of whisks, slotted spoons and hand beaters. And then came the knives. I acquired a terrific knife from a boyfriend as we were breaking up and it changed my cooking life drastically. It was a world away from the nearly dull knives I grew up with in my parents' house and there was no going back.
I now have a minor obsession with good, sharp knives. A couple of weeks ago, I found myself surfing a restaurant supply website on a Saturday night (it is an exciting life I lead) looking at knives. I couldn't help myself, I placed an order. They arrived Monday and they are better than any new toy I got as a child (not that you would give sharp knives to children). I'm finding myself looking for excuses to chop and slice, just to get another opportunity to take these puppies out for a little exercise.
One of the nice things about buying knives from restaurant supply companies is that you don't have to pay a whole lot of money to get good stuff. Both the knives I bought hovered right around $20 and are fantastic. And they make cooking even more of a joy than normal.
photo by Marisa McClellan
Jane Seymour's Modest And Modern Style
Broke Stars: 11 Celebrities Who Went Bankrupt
LOOK: Amazing Underwater Photos Of Dogs
Adele Five-Year Break? Singer Plans to Focus on Relationship, Write 'Happy Record'
Social Security Is Failing Even Faster Than We Thought
PHOTOS: How You Can Get The 'Miracle' Dress
Man Says Starbucks Discriminated Against Him Because He Has Half An Arm
Chris Brown, Grammys 2012: Embattled Singer Slams Critics
Janice Dickinson's Outrageous Style
Ford's clever Sports Illustrated Swimsuit ad features phantom model
3 Economic Misconceptions That Need to Die
Photos Of Dead Lacrosse Player's Injured Body Shown To Jury
Trace Adkins Reunites With College Crush, 30 Years Later
Van Gogh's Starry Night modded into beautiful interactive light and sound show (video)
PHOTOS: Model Falls At Dennis Basso Show
'Hooker Teacher' Forced To Resign, Now Can't Find Work
Lauren Scruggs Goes On Ski Vacation
WATCH AND LAUGH: Cops In 2-Hour Standoff With Empty Car
New Clues, Details Emerge In Powell Case
Woman's Dead Fiance Is Behind Her Disappearance: Cops
Stephen Wiltshire Draws Cities From Memory
PHOTOS: Remembering The People's Ballerina
We Meant There WERE Nukes In The Fire
8-16-2007 @11:36AM Dan said... Can we get a link to the store / knives you bought?
Reply
8-16-2007 @12:00PM wintem01 said... "And then came the knives. I acquired a terrific knife from a boyfriend as we were breaking up..."
Acquired from where, his sternum? Sounds like his life changed a bit, too.
Reply
8-16-2007 @12:06PM Marisa McClellan said... Dan, I've added the links to the post, so you can see the knives I bought and where I bought them.
And just for the record, there was no foul play in at the end of that relationship. The boyfriend and I had been living together, and as we split possessions got shuffled and somehow I got left with his very awesome chef's knife. He rarely cooked anyway.
Reply
8-16-2007 @1:16PM Alexi said... And here I thought that you had to shell out serious $$ to get a decent set of knives. I'm ashamed to be using a set that I got free with the purchase of a portable grill. :/
Reply
8-16-2007 @1:14PM Marisa McClellan said... Alexi, that whole "you have to spend lots of money to get good knives" is a total myth. The important thing is really to keep your knives sharp. If you don't feel comfortable sharpening them yourself, a lot of kitchen supply places will sharpen knives for very little money.
Reply
8-16-2007 @1:20PM John Kelly said... One nice thing about stopping in at a restaurant supply house or cutlery shop is you get to have the experience of holding the knife you will be working with. No knife will be right for every one and the feel (balance, grip, etc.) can make a huge difference down the line as to how pleasurable a knife will be.
While great knives can be had for a handful of cash, very good knives can be had for not much money. The inexpensive Dexters and the like are the backbone of every restaurant kitchen and would be a treat in most American kitchens compared to what you would normally find there. There is no sadder place than my friend’s knife drawers.
Reply
8-16-2007 @1:31PM Dr. Electro said... ... and then she was hooked. "Yes! I admit it! I'm an addict!" she cried out at her chopaholics anonymous meeting. "But don't try to stop me!"
Another one bites the dust. I know, I'm an addict, too. But it's my father's fault. He was a butcher when I was a small boy and his knives fascinated me beyond any toy he could have given me. I learned several tidbits of knife lore from Dad, such as: Never let sharp knives stand in water, always wash them, dry them and put them away. Or: Sharp knives cut food, dull knives cut the cook.
I learned the difference between a blade cut shoulder steak and an arm roast. I cut pork chops on the band saw. (glee, bliss) I sliced broad cut chili meat.
I've been hooked all my life and nobody can ever change me. :>
Reply
8-16-2007 @1:33PM wintem01 said... Just joking, Marisa. No ill thought intended.
Reply
8-16-2007 @2:19PM MJ said... Funny I was just looking at these knives on clearance at homegoods. Got a cleaver for $7.00!
Reply
8-16-2007 @2:35PM Marisa McClellan said... Hey wintem01, don't worry about it at all, there was no offense taken. I just wanted to explain.
Reply
8-16-2007 @4:17PM andre_sala said... Gotta love Grocery Guy's post earlier today about his quest for the perfect chopping machine, AKA the "Jesus Knife."
http://groceryguy.blogspot.com/2007/08/grail.html
He also posted a kickass knife-care video we did together a while back...
Reply
8-16-2007 @6:04PM jsmylie said... I just recently learned about how delightful it feels to wield a really good knife in the kitchen. My brother, the real cook in our family, got a new set of knives for Christmas. When I got sick of him ranting about how much better they were, he had me cut an onion--first with our knives, then with his.
Haven't looked back since.
Reply
8-16-2007 @5:38PM logicalmind said... Yeah, cheap knives can be made sharp but they don't last long. For years I used cheap, but high quality, forschner knives and was pretty happy. I had sent them to be sharpened for a while then learned to sharpen knives myself. I noticed that within a couple of weeks my knives needed to be sharpened again. For a birthday gift I asked for a Mac chef's knife to see what the difference would be. The Mac knife stays sharp much much longer. Where I would get a couple weeks out of my sharpened forschner's I get a few months of sharpness out of my Mac knife.
It really has everything to do with the hardness of the metal in the blade. The harder the metal the longer it holds a sharp edge.
Reply
8-16-2007 @6:16PM Stephanie said... My favorite knife is one I got from my great-aunt. Very old, but a really great, durable knife.
But the teasing you got about getting the knife when breaking up with your boyfriend reminds me of when we gave a knife set to my sister and her boyfriend, many years ago. Before we let them open the gift, we started asking if they were getting along well. Were they sure? Really sure? Really, really sure?
It was fun.
Reply
8-16-2007 @9:34PM Robert said... Want to keep the knives extra sharp?
I use the EdgePro Apex. It is the best knife sharpener I have ever used. It is totally worth the money, even for a $20 knife.
Reply
8-17-2007 @2:02AM Larry May said... After you have your knives, you will need to have them sharpened frequently. I couldn't find anyone sharpening lives locally anymore (Boston), but found an internet company that's been in business for years. I sent off my knives and they did an absolutely perfect job with almost instant turnaround.
http://www.holleyknives.com/index.html
Reply
8-17-2007 @7:44AM Colin said... When I first moved out on my own years ago, my parents took me on a shopping spree at the restaurant supply store. One of my best buys were a handful of Dexter-Russell knives. They are very good quality and very inexpensive. I cringe when I see what people spend on knives with fancy wooden handles.
I take these knives everywhere I'm going to have to be in a kitchen because it's so frustrating having to cut with As Seen on TV crap.
Reply
8-17-2007 @12:28PM Ben said... My wife got me a nice Santoku for Christmas last year and it's been wonderful to have something like that in my kitchen. I don't think I'd let her use it for the first 4 months I had it. (She now has Santoku privileges...)
Reply
8-20-2007 @9:30AM Larry Hamby said... One thing which hasn't yet been discussed is the tremendous difference between stainless steel and carbon steel knives in terms of their being kept sharp at home.
Good quality carbon steel knives can easily be kept razor-sharp at home; stainless steel is too hard and requires special equipment to keep it sharp.
I have three French carbon steel knives which are more than ten years old; they have been machine sharpened once and steel-honed regularly -- ands their weight alone will sink them through a tomato.
Unfortunately, it is becoming increasingly difficult to find good carbon steel blades. I understand that they have been outlawed in France for use in restaurants.
IMHO stainless steel has only one advantage: it looks pretty!
Larry
Reply
8-21-2007 @9:36AM Jen Montgomery said... I have Shun knives. They are freakin' awesome. A wonderful investment. They cut through a lobster (shell still on) like butter, while my former Faberware bent and slipped off of the lobster.
Reply