Kitchen Knives June 04, 2014, 04:18:04 pm Yahoo Message Number: 146741Well my knives are old, dull, and falling apart. Any cooks out there that can recommend an excellent quality knife set? I bake fresh bread occasionally and barbeque almost every night. Need something that will hold an edge.Thanks, Bob
Re: Kitchen Knives Reply #1 – June 04, 2014, 04:52:41 pm Yahoo Message Number: 146742If you have any cash left after buying the Wenger multi-tool, you might look at these:Sabatier Elephant Logo Carbon-Steel Kitchen Knives image Sabatier Elephant Logo Carbon-Steel Kitchen Knives Large selection of high quality Sabatier kitchen knives for sale. View on www.thebe...Not the knock-offs, but the real French-made 'Elephant Logo' Sabatier (Thiers Issard) knives; buying open stock is usually the best way to go, adding to your set as your needs dictate.Note: these are *carbon steel*, not stainless, so they have to be cared for diligently! Sabatier makes a line of high-carbon stainless steel, too, but nothing holds an edge like carbon steel.You might also look at Wusthof knives and/or J.A. Henckels; they're the 'blockier' German-style knives, also pricey, but widely available. I suggest not bothering with their 'bottom' lines; junk, IMO. This is a good source:http://www.cutleryandmore.com/cutlery.htmLamson Sharp is a USA company, but offers less selection:http://www.lamsonsharp.com/products/cutleryIf you like Japanese-style knives, the 'Shun' brand is best, IMO.Some people like ceramic knives; if you do, Kyocera is probably a good choice.Joan
Re: Kitchen Knives Reply #2 – June 04, 2014, 04:56:48 pm Yahoo Message Number: 146743Yahoo's 'improvements' strike again!The website for the Sabatier carbon steel knives is:Sabatier Elephant Logo Carbon-Steel Kitchen KnivesIf the URL is jammed up again, email me and I will send it privately so Yahoo can't screw it up!Joan
Re: Kitchen Knives Reply #3 – June 04, 2014, 05:20:10 pm Yahoo Message Number: 146744Thanks Joan I am going to order the 6 piece set. Quality knives make cooking so much easier especially slicing fresh bread or fruit. Will NOT be ordering that gaudy Swiss Knife Larry posted. What a joke.Bob
Re: Kitchen Knives Reply #4 – June 04, 2014, 05:32:23 pm Yahoo Message Number: 146745Which six-piece set? ;-)Joan
Re: Kitchen Knives Reply #5 – June 04, 2014, 05:54:39 pm Yahoo Message Number: 146747Joan, This is the one I want: Sabatier Carbon 6 piece Block Set 2It's on back order right now so it may be awhile before I see it. Looks like quality and I love that. Cheap stuff doesn't pay off in the long run as I found out with my Sams Club knives. Looking for a new bread maker also. Mine died after 22 yrs.Bob
Re: Kitchen Knives Reply #6 – June 04, 2014, 06:16:07 pm Yahoo Message Number: 146748This thread is way verging off LD topic, but I cannot resist the opportunity to give my by now thirty year old cooking knife rant. Why should you take my advice into account? I'm a 1982 California Culinary Academy graduate, restaurant worker, including a stint at a real live Japanese owned sushi bar, taught cooking and knife skills classes, and I keep looking for excuses to buy more/new knives, and I can't find any. I worked in cookware stores and was paid to sell expensive knife sets to people who had absolutely no need for them, or skill to use them.Carbon steel knives have become a niche product for a reason - they are a pain to maintain. Yes, they will quickly take a very sharp edge, and just as quickly loose that edge. They will also rust in the blink of an eye. Your steel and whetstone will need to practically live on the counter. At the sushi bar, the chef had everyone sharpen their knives twice a day, before lunch and dinner service. It is not easy to use a whetstone.Forged knives are overrated, a lot of marketing hype masking no particular performance gain over a good stamped steel knife. I prefer a light, nimble stamped chef's knife over a heavy forged knife any day. And watch out, a knife may *look* forged, but it may be actually sintered, not necessarily a bad thing, but I'm all for truth in marketing. Stamped steel knives are much lighter, a good attribute for RV life.Here's what I have in my RV, duplicated from what I have in my stick house.Forschner Victorionox 8" chef knife, suitable for all but the largest watermelon or head of cabbage. A lot of chefs I know have used this brand day in and day out. This knife does 80% of the work in the kitchen.Forschner Victorionox serrated bread knife, the longest one you can fit in your storage system, used only for slicing bread.Boning knife, thin blade, useful for cutting chicken wings into drummettes, or deboning loin lamb chops and removing tendons and silverskin. Not used often, but works great when needed. Paring knife can substitute.Paring knife, a style that suits your hand. I have two, a French style Forschner, and a Chicago Cutlery Bio Curve for close work that I would love to be able to find again.A pair of small scissors, *not* poultry shears, just a little pair for snipping all kinds of things. My other "sharp" tools consist of a Parisienne scoop (melon baller) currently in heavy rotation as a strawberry huller, and a small microplane grater for lemon zest and ginger puree. That's it. OK a cheese plane, too.I store these knives in a drawer block which lives in the cabinet underneath my MB sink. I have a shortish ceramic steel that fits in my drawer. A metal steel is too heavy. I know lots of people swear by the magnetic knife racks. I'm sure they work fine, but they just *look* precarious to me, and I also prefer the uncluttered look in my kitchen.Forschner knives are available at restaurant supply stores.OK, rant over. Please buy what you need, not a set assembled just to enrich the knife company.Think I'd better go make some (hand sliced) coleslaw now!Best regards,Kathy Lautz 1999 MB Blue
Re: Kitchen Knives Reply #7 – June 04, 2014, 07:04:54 pm Yahoo Message Number: 146750Very good input from a Pro, thank you!. I changed my order to just a general purpose Forschner Victorionox knife and the serrated Bread knife. Don't need the carrying block as I already have a knife carrier inside kitchen cabinet. Now I need a good sharpener. Kitchen starting to shape up nicely with the Stainless Steel sink. Just a few more items and I'll be set.Bob
Re: Kitchen Knives Reply #8 – June 04, 2014, 08:05:52 pm Yahoo Message Number: 146751"If you like Japanese-style knives, the 'Shun' brand is best, IMO"Joan Renee has own a Shun kitchen knife for years and it is the sharpest knife in the house...when I can sharpen it. The thin, multi-layered Damascus-style blade has an edge too hard for normal Arkansas stones to touch, even diamond sharpeners work slowly on its edge. The edge is brittle and has several tiny chips but it doesn't seem to matter much. It's still my favorite for super thin slices. Cuts fingers extremely well.Larry
Re: Kitchen Knives Reply #9 – June 04, 2014, 11:08:51 pm Yahoo Message Number: 146757Kathy,thank you for posting. I heard about this knife on an NPR kitchen show a year or so ago. I asked for one for Christmas. The answer I got was "we want to get you a good knife, not a cheap one".It was under the tree in 2013. Left it home on our current trip, more's the pity. Not a great cook, but appreciate good tools.joel
Re: Kitchen Knives Reply #10 – June 04, 2014, 11:31:55 pm Yahoo Message Number: 146758I'm not a chef. I don't even like to cook very much. But I do like to eat and since food doesn't magically appear whenever I get hungry, I've resigned myself to having to prepare my meals.I don't like fussing with my kitchen implements of destruction any more than I like cooking, so I kept it simple.I bought a couple Global knives about 11 years ago. They're one piece stainless steel, easy to maintain, durable, very sharp, easy to sharpen (I bought their sharpener), nicely balanced and feel good in my hand. For me, it at least makes the food preparation task that much easier.http://www.global-knife.com/global/index.htmlhttp://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_c_0_6?url=search-alias%3Dgarden&field-keywords=global%20knives&sprefix=global%2Caps%2C347I don't know if they would work as well for someone with very large hands, but they fit my hands nicely. They work well for me and will last my lifetime and maybe the lifetimes of future descendants.On several occasions, when visiting a friend or relative and helping in the kitchen, I would have to go out to my rig in the driveway and grab one of my knives to do whatever chopping or cutting chore I had taken up. It amazes me that some people who do a lot more cooking than I do, don't have a single reasonably sharp, quality knife in their kitchen!Nancy McKenna http://nancysroadtrip.blogspot.com/ As an Amazon Associate Lazy Daze Owners' Group earns from qualifying purchases.
Re: Kitchen Knives Reply #11 – June 05, 2014, 07:40:51 am Yahoo Message Number: 146763I hear 'ya Nancy. Global does make a very nice knife, pricey but durable and sharp. Some people like them because the all-metal construction allows them to be put in the dishwasher. [Shudder.] We do not have that temptation in our LDs. Cooking for one, problematic enough as it is, compounded by our miniscule kitchens and refrigerators, requires a certain type of ingenuity and commitment. Thanks for your encouraging words.Kathy LautzFrom steamy Memphis TN
Re: Kitchen Knives Reply #12 – June 05, 2014, 12:10:42 pm Yahoo Message Number: 146769The Tormek T7 is obviously not going to be a must have for most LD'ers (though it's a lot more practical than that Swiss Army knife!), but for the those who want the very best in knife and tool sharpening, it is a very capable tool. I bought it primarily for wood turning tools, but it's used for most everything with an edge.Problem with whetstones and many other hand sharpeners, unless one is a practiced professional, it's almost impossible to maintain optimal edge angles. The result, over time, is that the knife edge angles tend to get "rounded over" and become harder to sharpen until the excess material is removed from each side of the edge.The T7 quickly restores and razor sharpens a perfect edge, removing any nicks, and again allows for the use of a steel or whetstone to touch up the edge in the kitchen.bumper
Re: Kitchen Knives - now sharpening Reply #13 – June 05, 2014, 01:03:28 pm Yahoo Message Number: 146771The Tormek T7 is the ultimate sharpening machine, we had a similar one at the woodworking class I took many years ago. A Tormek is a little too big to carry in the LD, instead I use a set of three Arkansas stones for shaping and sharpening kitchen knives, wood plane blades, wood chisels and other cutting blades. http://www.amazon.com/Smiths-TRI-6-Arkansas-TRI-HONE-Sharpening/dp/B00062BIT4/ref=sr_1_4?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1401985608&sr=1-4&keywords=knife+sharpener+system#productDetails This ancient method of sharpening is a lot slower than the Tormek, less likely to remove too much materal, in inexperienced hands. It's also small enough to carry in the LD Learing to keep the the blade at the right angle can be done using guides. With practice, you should learn what the proper angle feels like. I was lucky enough to learn the basics from a master Japanese-American cabinet maker I worked with at LAX. Wish I could have been his apprentice for a few years. In addition, a good steel needed to roll the blade's micro edge, keeping it touched up between sharpenings. Also carry a hand diamond knife sharpener, for field use. http://www.amazon.com/Smiths-DCS4-4-Inch-Diamond-Sharpening/dp/B00009YV6L/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1401986627&sr=8-8&keywords=diamond+sharpener+stoneStay sharp!Larry As an Amazon Associate Lazy Daze Owners' Group earns from qualifying purchases.
Re: Kitchen Knives - now sharpening Reply #14 – June 05, 2014, 02:09:00 pm Yahoo Message Number: 146773Good recommendation, Larry. And fortunately in the fine print it says that the TRI-6 can be used with water as the lubricant. Oil? Way to messy for an RV, requiring thorough scrubbing after use with soap and water, according to the same fine print.Kathy L.
Re: Kitchen Knives Reply #15 – June 05, 2014, 03:14:01 pm Yahoo Message Number: 146775We take our knives to a pro to have them sharpened. Between the household, daughters, RV and my knives there are just to many to keep up with. I do have a wet stone and honing tool. The stone has guides to keep the angle correct. I found it at REI.The pro we found through a knife distributer in a local mall. She makes the rounds to stores, flee markets and farmer markets. She is part of a group and they will make house calls if there is enough work. Alternative ways to find a professional knife sharpener is to ask a chef, barber, hair dresser, or dog groomer.To the original poster. I really like our Wusthof set. They handle well, hold an edge and do not cost that much. The scissors come apart to make cleaning easy. I like the scissors so much I am thinking of getting a second set for the house and a set for the RV.I will note that recently saw a review on knife sets (don't ask I was channel surfing) on America's Test Kitchen. They mentioned that knife sets were made more for the people selling knives than for the people needing to use knives. Just as the reviewer said we have unused, or little used knives in the set. They suggested that people instead buy individual knives from a good manufacturer. Start with a butcher knife, a long bread knife, and pairing knife. I also like a boning knife and scissors like the ones I mentioned above. For the RV I think the knife block is a wast of room and really like the magnetic holder others mentioned in another thread. Until I get one of those installed I am using hard plastic knife guards similar to these, http://smile.amazon.com/Messermeister-4-Piece-Edge-Guard-Set-Black/dp/B002KKC312/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1401992115&sr=8-3&keywords=knife+guard and http://smile.amazon.com/Victorinox-47302-Cutlery-BladeSafe-6-Inch/product-reviews/B0000CFBB6/ref=dpx_acr_txt?showViewpoinHave fun, be safe John As an Amazon Associate Lazy Daze Owners' Group earns from qualifying purchases.
Re: Kitchen Knives - now sharpening Reply #16 – June 05, 2014, 03:37:45 pm Yahoo Message Number: 146777"And fortunately in the fine print it says that the TRI-6 can be used with water as the lubricant. Oil? Way to messy for an RV, requiring thorough scrubbing after use with soap and water, according to the same fine print."Kathy L. While oil is great for a set of stones stored in the garage, water is what I use since I usually end up shapening in the kitchen or LD. Do use whatever the stone's manufacturer recommends, for best results.Larry
Re: Kitchen Knives - now sharpening Reply #17 – June 05, 2014, 04:52:48 pm Yahoo Message Number: 146779One big plus to good knives is that you can get rid of that composting toilet.Jim C
Re: Kitchen Knives Reply #18 – June 06, 2014, 10:38:00 am Yahoo Message Number: 146786Glad you've found a pro you're happy with. Hang onto them. Everyone else, be careful, though. Not all "pros" with a rapidly spinning stone and some jigs know what they're doing. All that power goes to their heads. At a cooking school I worked at once, we sent out perhaps a dozen expensive 8" chef knives (they were all either Wustoff or Henckel) to be sharpened. This was the sharpening service that the neighboring high-end grocery store butcher shop used and recommended. Every single one of those knives came back ruined. They had taken off 2-3mm of steel, formed another ugly convex bevel and left the heel protruding which prevented the typical rocking motion of a chefs knife. It was a crime.When trying out a new knife sharpening service, start with one knife, one you don't use very often, not your favorite, and see how it comes back. Find a service that may start with an electric wheel, but finishes and tests the edge by hand. Only then, should you hand over your favorite knife to their tender ministrations.Having verged way off LD topics, I suppose we should go back to discussing Ford E-450 engines, grey and black tank issues, and TPMS. Unless you want to talk about cutting boards for awhile. :-)Kathy L.
Re: Kitchen Knives Reply #19 – June 07, 2014, 09:59:14 pm Yahoo Message Number: 146803Kathy,Yes, please. I want to hear your recommendations on cutting boards! I've learned a lot about knives from this discussion. There's more? I have a wooden one and a plastic one (cutting boards). Which ones do you like?Betty J. 2011 MB
Re: Kitchen Knives Reply #20 – June 07, 2014, 10:28:35 pm Yahoo Message Number: 146804In the RV I use only plastic cutting boards. I have three, tiny, everyday size, and larger. I look for the softer plastic, I don't like the ones that make a loud sound when being chopped upon. Glass? Never. Immediate cleanup after a chopping task helps keep the boards from staining.I have a couple of wooden ones at home (in my storage unit) that I mostly use to slice baguettes and pizzas and as a cheese board.Now, has anybody figured out where to knead bread dough in an LD kitchen? This has me stymied.Kathy L.
Re: Kneading bread Reply #21 – June 07, 2014, 11:04:07 pm Yahoo Message Number: 146805About cutting boards... in my midbath I replaced the tiny, nearly useless countertop extension by the sink with a 15" x 17" maple cutting board. It was easy to do--I used the same hinges and support bracket, and just screwed them to the underside of the cutting board. I do 90% of my prep work on this handy surface, covering it with a thin plastic cutting sheet on the rare occasions when I need to cut up raw meat."has anybody figured out where to knead bread dough in an LD kitchen? This has me stymied."I use this no-knead recipe. It does call for putting the bread on a surface and folding it over a couple of times before second rise--that's as close as I ever come to kneading. I do it on the aforementioned breadboard/counter extension.Andy BairdTravels with Andy
Re: Kneading bread Reply #22 – June 08, 2014, 01:18:51 am Yahoo Message Number: 146808I solved the problem by carrying along my bread machine, which does an admirable job of kneading for me. I shape the dough into sandwich buns, pizza, and cinnamon bread or rolls, put it into the proper pan, and bake in the regular oven. I also have baked bread outside in my six-quart Nesco roaster when it is too hot to turn on the gas oven.Why don't I just let the bread bake in the breadmaker? Sometimes I do, but we find that a loaf-shaped hunk o' bread is uninteresting. On the rare occasion where I have needed to knead (ahem), I put something into the sink to do it on. The angle is much easier on the arms than a counter top, or even the dinette table, and it keeps the flour confined.Also, large, rectangular glass cutting boards are definitely the way to go for me. Mine are tempered and can be used to put hot pans on, if need be. I put one over each sink and let it spill across the flip up (Rear Bath model - so it is the really small flip up). This gives me plenty of chopping space. If the stove isn't being used, one of the tempered glass cutting boards, or one of the other blocks, is plopped down there to give me room to set things down without having to watch too closely at what I am doing. I use one of the glass chopping boards to put the dish drainer on, too, and prop the back end up, so it drains directly into the sink.When not in use, I put the glass chopping boards upright on the dinette seat where I sit. If you tend to lean back, put a pillow in front of them. I rarely do; that is my "desk" to use the computer, so I am usually leaned forward and not even touching the boards. If that doesn't suit your needs, you can stand them on end against the wall of a closet quite easily as well. I keep several wooden trivet-type of cutting boards around, too, to receive hot pans on the dinette table to get them out of my way. Keep the pans covered, and food will stay at eating temperature for a lot longer than you might think.Here is the brand I use, but there is a plethora of hits if you Google tempered glass cutting board .http://www.mcgowanmfg.com>The ones I am using now are about six years old, and there is one in front of the toaster oven, and one to the left of the stove. But the one I use most is one that I purchased in 1987 when we bought our house in California. I used it multiple times per day there; had it in our fulltime rig for another seven years; and still use it the same way now in my home kitchen. It has never shown the first sign of failure in any way.I thought I would curl up and die when I saw how teeeeeny tiny the Rear Bath kitchen was, but I've made the above improvements and couldn't be happier. PS: I cook about 99% of our meals from scratch with all fresh ingredients, so there is actually quite a bit of prep work involved. Just move things around to suit whatever you are trying to do at the time. Be flexible - just like those nylon cutting sheets! ;-> And, yes, I have some of them tucked away, too! ;->Virtual hugs,Judie http://dorrieanne.wordpress.com
Re: Kneading bread Reply #23 – June 08, 2014, 09:08:17 am Yahoo Message Number: 146811Hi, Andy, I know you love your cutting board mod. I'm reluctant to prep in that spot as in my 1999 MN there is carpet directly below, and I know how much debris ends up on my kitchen floor even with scrupulous care. Now whenever I get around to replacing the flooring . . . . Re no-knead bread, I've shopped for a suitable pan, but so far, nada. And secondly heating that little box of tin that passes for an oven up to 450 degrees just makes me nervous. And I think I'll wait for cooler weather, although pumping up the AC might be a weird strategy to deal with the heat. Still I shall be inspired by your success. Must also seek out fresh flour and yeast. Regards, Kathy L.
Re: Kneading bread Reply #24 – June 08, 2014, 09:18:09 am Yahoo Message Number: 146812Hi, Judi, Sounds like you have good success with your boards for several different uses. For me, I just don't like to actually chop on them as I think it's hard on the knife edge. Plus, chopping on a glass surface makes an unpleasant noise. I don't know where I'd put a bread machine. I like my already miniscule counter as clear as possible. I've thought about kneading in the sink. What do you put in there to cover the drain? Kathy L.
Topic: Kitchen Knives (Read 9 times)
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