It would seem that nothing could be simpler than an ordinary kitchen knife - a handle and a blade. However, not everything is so obvious, and correct application this instrument is a whole science! Different types kitchen knives intended for miscellaneous work and differ from each other in shape, because each of them is adapted for the most comfortable use.
What types of knives are there?
1. Utility knives can be of different lengths, have a straight or wavy blade without any characteristic features. They are designed for rough cutting of vegetables.
2. bread knife has a long, durable blade of equal width. The wavy cutting edge saws through the bread crust and cuts the pulp without crushing it. This knife is also suitable for cutting watermelon or melon.
3. Vegetable knife It has a short, strong blade and a comfortable handle, the cutting edge is smooth and straight, and the tip is pointed. It is used for peeling or cutting vegetables and fruits.
To make the cut perfect, it is better to make it with one movement of the knife.
4. Cleaning knife- small, lightweight, with a concave blade and a sharp tip. The curved blade is convenient for processing rounded surfaces of vegetables and fruits, and the sharp curved tip is for cutting out damaged areas.
5. Slicing knife It has a long blade with a narrow blade and a smooth cutting edge. It is designed to accurately cut ham into thin slices, fried meat, smoked fish.
6. Meat knife curved shape with a blade widening towards the tip. This shape allows you to concentrate force on one or another part of the blade to cut stringy, tough meat.
7. fillet knife- the narrowest and longest, designed for cutting thin and even pieces of meat or fish. To make the cut perfect, it is better to make it with one movement of the knife.
8. Knife for cutting meat from bones has a characteristic blade that varies in width, which widens at the base and tapers to a pointed tip, the cutting edge is curved. This blade allows you to penetrate everywhere.
9. Chef's knife equipped with a wide and heavy blade that allows you to chop cabbage, vegetables or herbs.
10. Japanese chef's knife Unlike the usual one, it has a lowered tip and a straighter cutting edge. It is used for sushi and sashimi, as well as for slicing mushrooms and ginger root, cutting meat and fish.
11. Soft cheese knife has indentations or holes in its straight blade to prevent cheese from sticking. At its end there may be a two-pronged fork for transferring slices from the board to the plate.
12. U tomato knife the blade is long, not wide and wavy, so that it can easily cut through the thick skin without crushing the soft middle. This knife is suitable for cutting any fruits and vegetables with hard skin and delicate pulp.
13. Kitchen hatchet Convenient for cutting large pieces of meat. Unlike other knives, an ax cuts with movements not along the cut, but deep into it.
How to properly care for knives
Good and high-quality kitchen knives are not cheap, and any housewife wants the tool to serve her for as long as possible. The key to the longevity of a kitchen tool is proper care.
1. Knives should not be stored with other cutlery, otherwise they will quickly become dull. A good option Knives can be stored on a magnetic board on the wall or a special stand.
The key to the longevity of a kitchen tool is proper care.
2. You should wash knives immediately after use and do not throw them in the sink with other utensils - this can cause them to corrode and become dull. Special attention It is worth giving space at the base of the knife blade - food particles can remain on it and lead to the growth of bacteria. It is better to immediately wipe a clean knife dry.
3. You should not check the readiness of hot dishes with a knife: a strong temperature difference can cause the blade to become brittle and dull.
3. It's better to avoid cutting boards made of marble, ceramics and glass - they greatly dull knives. It is more correct to use boards made of bamboo, hard wood or plastic for cutting food.
4. Don’t forget to periodically sharpen your knives. You can take them to a special workshop for sharpening or do it yourself at home. You can learn how to sharpen knives at home from a short video:
How to learn how to master a knife
Surely every woman watched with delight how professional chefs deftly, quickly and beautifully cut different products, but repeating this seemed unrealistic.
It turns out that in fact there is nothing complicated about this, you just need to learn how to hold both the knife and the product itself correctly and at the same time perform smooth movements. But proper use of a knife can make the cooking process easier and even bring pleasure from cutting food. How to learn how to deftly wield a knife - watch in a short video:
How do you store your knives?
Vote
Without exaggeration, the knife is called the very first kitchen utensil in history.
Nowadays it is difficult to imagine a kitchen without knives; every housewife has several of them, the most various types and sizes. Which knife is used for what is determined by its shape.
Knives can be divided into 2 groups: basic knives that almost everyone has, intuitively selected for basic needs, and additional knives that make cooking easier.
Which knife is for what?
Main group:
Utility knife:
It has a sharp, wide, hard blade, 15-30 cm long. It is multifunctional and is used for cutting most products: from vegetables and bread to minced meat and bones.
Paring knife:
Small in size, the blade is narrow and short, 5-11 cm long. Used for peeling vegetables and fruits.
Bread knife:
It has a narrow blade, often serrated, 13-23 cm long. It makes it possible to easily cut bread, loaf or cake.
Additional knives:
Chef's knife
The blade length is approximately 21-23 cm, has a heavy handle, thick, wide and long blade with a central point. Very convenient for shredding cabbage, cutting vegetables, herbs, as well as frozen meat, poultry and fish
Potato peeler:
A small knife has a concave blade and a lowered tip, about 7.5 cm long. It is convenient for peeling, picking out eyes, cutting out damaged ones, and so on.
Utility vegetable knife:
It has a narrow blade, 13-20 cm long, with a smooth or serrated cutting edge. Designed for cutting vegetables and fruits with uneven hardness: hard skin and soft core, such as tomatoes, lemons, etc.
Knife for "bones"
The blade is narrow and elongated, 10-18 cm long, flexible, with a sharp tip. Designed to separate meat from bones and veins from meat. Very convenient for cleaning fish, processing meat and chicken, cutting meat joints, removing fat, tendons and so on.
Steak knife
A small knife, has a narrow blade 10-15 cm with a wavy edge and an upward tip. They are used during meals to cut prepared meats and other foods.
Cheese knife
A small knife with a smooth, serrated cutting edge. Often the tip is made forked in order to transfer already cut pieces. Large holes in the knife blade help separate the cheese from the blade.
Knife for decorative cutting .
A knife with a shaped blade is used for decorative cutting of vegetables, fruits, as well as cheese and dough.
Mushroom knife
It has a short blade and a brush on the handle, which can be used to brush off spruce needles, leaves and other debris from hats. 
Pizza knife
cuts sharp edge a wheel that rotates on a handle. The wheel can also be made of special hard plastic, to which the dough sticks less.
Zesting knife
Allows for subtle shooting upper layer peel.
Hatchet
This is a knife with a heavy, wide, hard blade. Used for chopping thin bones, chopping beef, fish or poultry.
Kitchen scissors.
They are used for a variety of purposes: from cutting greens and opening packages to cutting poultry and fish.
A kitchen knife is one of the essential tools in the arsenal of any cook. Both the speed of work and the safety of the cook depend on this item. A good knife should have several qualities at once: be comfortable and sharp, not dull for a long time, or sharpen without problems. There are many products on the market different manufacturers, which differ in cost, appearance and manufacturing materials. How not to get confused in the wide range and what to look for when choosing the right model?
Types of kitchen knives
Depending on their purpose, kitchen knives can be divided into several types. One of the most popular tools that every kitchen has is utility knife. Its blade length is usually 12-15 cm. Thanks to convenient size This model can be used for slicing almost any product. 
Vegetable knife with a small blade up to 10 cm long can also be found in the arsenal of every housewife. As a rule, it is used for peeling potatoes, onions, apples and other vegetables and fruits. 
Another popular model is Chef's knife, which is often called chef's or French. It has a long (from 15 to 30 cm) and wide (from 2 to 4 cm) blade, which does an excellent job of cutting meat and fish, chopping fruits, herbs and vegetables, including large ones such as cabbage or pumpkin. Due to its impressive dimensions and noticeable weight, this model is mainly preferred by men. 
A utility knife, a vegetable knife, and a chef’s knife form a “chef’s trifecta.” Having such a set in the kitchen, the housewife can easily cope with most operations. If you are not a supporter of minimalism, your arsenal can be replenished with other models.
For slicing bread, pastries, and tomatoes, special serrated knives. Their cutting edge is not smooth, but is equipped with sawtooth or wavy teeth, which are usually located only on one side of the blade. Thanks to this shape, the knife cuts the product at several angles at once, without the cook having to put any effort or put pressure on the tool.
Such sharpening has its own characteristics: the cutting edge remains sharp for a long time, but if it becomes dull, sharpen it at home serrated blade will not work. In addition, the serrated blade leaves “ragged” edges, so it is not suitable for slicing sausages. To ensure that the holes between the teeth do not become clogged with food residues, such a knife will have to be carefully looked after. 
One of the most common tools with serrated sharpening is bread knife. Thanks to the long, wide blade with wavy teeth, it carefully cuts both the dense crust and the soft center - without creasing or crumbling the loaf. 
The other model also has a serrated cutting edge - tomato knife. The blade of this tool is narrow and not too long - about 10 cm. Thin teeth easily cut the peel of the vegetable without squeezing the pulp or causing juice to leak out. This model is convenient to use not only for tomatoes, but also for slicing citrus fruits, kiwis and other vegetables and fruits with thick skins and delicate cores. 
Another type of tools with serrated sharpening is steak knife. One half of its cutting edge is smooth, and the other is serrated. Thanks to this shape, the knife easily cuts meat fibers, regardless of the degree of frying of the piece.
A special one is designed for filleting pork, beef, poultry and fish. meat knife or boning knife. Its narrow blade, about 15 cm long, has a sharp tip - with this tool you can easily separate bones, remove veins, and cut thin and even pieces of fillet. 
Other kitchen tools needed for working with meat are: hatchet knife. This massive model with a thick and wide blade is designed for chopping bones or cutting frozen pieces. 
Beautifully cut sausage, ham, smoked fish and other delicacies the housewife can use a slicer or slicing knife with a long (up to 30 cm) blade.
To serve a perfect assortment of the finest slices of Maasdam, Emmenthal, Parmesan, Edam and Dor Blue, you will need special cheese knives. They may look different. The model for hard cheeses resembles a spatula with a slot in the center, and for the product for soft cheeses, a thin metal string plays the role of a blade. They also produce universal cheese knives. Their cutting edge is serrated, and large holes are made in the blade to prevent the slices from sticking to the metal or being crushed. The tip of such a tool bifurcates and is slightly bent upward - with the help of this kind of “fork” it is convenient to place pieces of cheese on a plate. 
There are others special models- For example, fish scale scraper or Pizza knife, which has a rotating toothed disk instead of a blade.
Blade materials
The properties of a kitchen knife directly depend on the material from which the blade is made: its hardness, wear resistance and ability to hold an edge. The most common blades are made of steel, which can be stainless, carbon or high-carbon.
Knives with blades made of carbon steel (Carbon steel) are attractive in price, retain an edge for a long time and cut well even when dull. Their disadvantages include the fact that upon contact with this metal, some products acquire a characteristic “iron” taste, as well as susceptibility to corrosion. To maintain the neat appearance of such a knife, it should be washed and wiped dry immediately after use.
On instruments from of stainless steel
(Stainless steel) do not stain or rust, but they require regular sharpening. If a stainless steel knife has a serrated serrated blade, then it will not be possible to sharpen it - you will have to replace it with a new one. 
Knives with blades made of high carbon steel(High carbon steel) are distinguished by high hardness, sharpness and do not rust, but are more expensive than “simple” analogues.
Premium products include models made from multi-layer Damascus steel with a characteristic wavy pattern on the surface. It appears due to the combination of hard and soft, corrosion-resistant types of metal in the blade. These knives are different high quality, hold an edge for a long time, but are quite expensive.
In addition to steel, kitchen knives with ceramic blades. These products do not lose their sharpness over time, are not susceptible to rust and do not impart an off-flavor to food. 
The main disadvantage of ceramics: high fragility. This type of tool is primarily designed for cutting soft foods - if you try to cut even a small chicken bone with it, the blade may break. For the same reason, ceramic knives are not recommended for use on glass cutting boards.
Handle materials
A comfortable and high-quality handle is no less important for a knife than the blade. It should fit comfortably in the palm of your hand, be strong and durable. There are instruments on the market with handles made of different materials: wood, plastic or metal.
Models with metal handles durable, have long term service, are not afraid of moisture and mechanical damage. The main disadvantage of such a product is its rather noticeable weight. 
Wooden handle It is pleasant to the touch, does not weigh down the knife and does not slip in the hand, but requires careful care. Over time, wood can crack and absorb moisture or grease. To extend the life of such a tool, it will have to be thoroughly washed and wiped immediately.
Unpretentious, lightweight and durable models with plastic handles . To prevent slipping and make the knife more comfortable, manufacturers often place it on top of the plastic. rubber cover. Such tools also have their own peculiarity: in some models it is not visible how deep the blade goes into the handle. If the blade does not reach its end, but is secured at the edge, the knife can quickly become loose and become unusable.
Criterias of choice
When planning to purchase a kitchen knife, consider several factors. First, decide which model you need -
The main tool in every kitchen is, of course, a knife. It largely depends on him whether our work in the kitchen will be a joy, or whether it will become a boring, difficult and unloved burden. As a rule, we buy 2-3 knives and use them for almost everything. But we eat a variety of foods, and it is unlikely that it would be rational to use one knife to cut bread, frozen meat, and peel an apple.
In stores and on the Internet in pictures we see huge variety kitchen knives, the appearance and purpose of which is sometimes simply baffling. In order not to make a mistake with your choice, not to pass by “your” knife, or, conversely, not to purchase the “wrong” knife that will be sent to eternal storage in the back of the closet, you should get an idea about the main types of knives - their design features and what they are intended for.
Utility knives
The most popular inhabitant in any kitchen is utility knife. It has a fairly wide blade, smoothly tapering towards the tip, and a sharp tip. Its length can be very different, usually ranging from 25 to 35 cm, the length of the blade is 12-20 cm. It is he who, as a rule, does the bulk of the work in the kitchen: you can use it to peel and cut meat, vegetables, and herbs.
Chef's knife- this is what is usually called a large universal knife, which stands out among others for its respectable size. The length of such a knife is usually 35-45 cm, the length of the blade is 20-30 cm. In the most massive part, at the handle, the blade has a width of up to 4 cm, which smoothly decreases towards the tip. Knowing how to use this knife is a real science. But these are the knives they wield professional chefs, amazing us with speed and virtuosity. Use the thin part of a chef's knife to cut and chop the greens. Middle part used for chopping cabbage and cutting vegetables into cubes. The thickest part, closest to the handle, is used to cut meat, chop chicken or fish bones. With the thick butt of such a knife you can beat off meat and crack nut shells. IN in capable hands A chef's knife is a very functional tool.
Carving knife It has a long, hard and fairly wide blade, with a cutting edge rounded upward towards the butt. It is great for cutting meat, poultry, fish, removing skin, cutting and chopping large vegetables (zucchini, cabbage, beets), slicing melon or watermelon. But it will be difficult for them to process small products that require precise movements.
Slicing knife In terms of its functionality, it can also be considered universal - it is designed for slicing a variety of products, for example, ham, sausage, cheese or red fish. You can also cut fillets with it raw meat. It has a long, not very wide blade, its cutting edge is smooth, gradually tapering towards the end, with a pointed tip.
Have you ever encountered a situation where, when slicing boiled sausage, its edges turned out to be somewhat shaggy, as if they had been bitten off? This happens when you start cutting a thick loaf of sausage with a medium-sized knife, so each time you need to make several movements to cut a circle of sausage. The slicing knife, having a long, narrow blade, allows you to cut the product with just one movement of the hand, obtaining an even, neat cut. And your plate of cold cuts or sandwiches will look very appetizing.
Specialized knives
Unlike universal knives, they are designed either to perform certain types of work or to process individual species products. Each specialized knife has its own characteristic shape and size. After all, they have to be used for cutting various products - which is what knife production technologists took into account when developing them. The sizes and shapes of some types of knives have developed historically and are time-tested.
Of course, knives from different manufacturers may differ in accordance with their corporate style, but the main character traits remain unchanged.
Bread knife
No matter how sharp your favorite utility knife is, cutting bread with it, especially fresh bread with a golden brown crust and a tender crumb, is quite difficult. The crispy crust is compressed and crumbles, the crumb is crushed. A special bread knife helps to avoid this. It has a long blade, the same across its entire width, with a tip rounded towards the cutting edge. But main feature bread knife is its wavy cutting edge. It does not allow the knife to slip off the hard crust and cuts it like a saw, and cuts the crumb like regular knife. The result is smooth, neat pieces, and no crumpled chunks or crumbs. Thanks to the long blade, this knife is convenient for cutting large loaves, pies, and cakes. It is also well suited for slicing large fruits with tough skin and delicate flesh, such as watermelons, melons, and pineapples.
Knives for meat, poultry, fish
Boning knife can rarely be found in the home kitchen, as it is more professional. But lovers meat dishes will appreciate its benefits. After all, this knife is intended for cutting meat from bones. The blade, wide at the base, sharply tapers, forming a narrow strip with a thin tip. The cutting edge rises up, the butt is straight. Such a blade will easily penetrate the most difficult places to cut and will help separate meat from bones and tendons, keeping the fibers intact. It is convenient to use for cutting not only meat such as pork and beef, but also poultry and fish.
If the flesh of meat or fish needs to be cut into thin, neat layers, it is difficult to do without fillet knife. It is easy to recognize by the characteristic shape of the blade: it is very long, narrow, with a pointed tip raised upward, and, moreover, flexible. This blade allows you to cut off a layer of meat or fish in one movement, while obtaining a perfectly even cut. In addition, the cut slices do not stick to the surface of the knife and do not wrinkle. This knife will help you cope even with tough and stringy meat.
Kitchen hatchet not often needed in the kitchen, but if you need to cut a carcass, cut big piece meat - it will be difficult to do without it. The hatchet blade is wide, up to 18 cm. It is perfectly suited not only for chopping meat, but also for cutting joints and joints.
Knives for vegetables and fruits
Knives for processing vegetables and fruits There are several types. The simplest and, perhaps, the most favorite among housewives is a knife that resembles a universal knife in shape, but with a shorter blade, only 7-10 cm, and a large, comfortable handle. They are very convenient for peeling and cutting small vegetables and fruits, and using the sharp tip to cut out eyes and dots on the surface.
Another type of vegetable knife is also a small knife with a blade of the same width along its entire length and a rounded tip. They are convenient for peeling potatoes and carrots, but cutting out eyes if necessary will be difficult.
For rounded vegetables and fruits, there is a small and convenient knife with a concave blade - it is convenient for processing rounded surfaces. The tip of the knife is very sharp to make precise cuts and cut out damaged areas.
It can be quite difficult to cut tomatoes beautifully because of their thick peel and juicy pulp. While you cut the skin, the flesh becomes wrinkled, juice begins to flow out and the cut slices do not look very appetizing. Therefore, for accurate cutting of tomatoes there is a special tomato knife- with a long, narrow blade. The cutting edge of this knife is wavy; it easily cuts tomatoes and other vegetables and fruits with thick skin and delicate pulp. And to make it convenient to pick up and place the resulting thin slices on a plate, the tip of such a knife is forked, forming a “fork.”
It is convenient to use for peeling vegetables, especially potatoes and carrots.peeler. The floating blade is fixed between two holders, forming a hole “in the body” of the knife. A sharp blade, like a razor, cuts a thin layer of skin from the surface of potatoes, carrots, beets, and apples. It is also convenient to use for cutting thin transparent slices from hard vegetables- zucchini, carrots, potatoes. It turns out quickly and beautifully.
Knife for slicing soft cheese
An original knife with a thin straight blade with a serrated cutting edge. Typically, the blade blade has holes or depressions - air pockets. This trick allows you to avoid the cheese sticking to the knife. The knife handle is located above the cutting edge line. With this knife, even soft cheese is cut in one motion - from top to bottom. Sometimes there is a small fork on the edge of the knife, which can be used to pick up pieces of cut cheese and transfer them to a plate.
Table knives
There should be several table knives in every home. After all, they are not intended for preparing food, but for setting the table and eating ready-made food and are served individually to each participant in the meal. They have a short blade with a rounded tip. Their cutting edge is smooth, but closer to the tip there are usually small teeth for better cutting of cooked meat. These knives are also convenient for spreading butter or pate on bread.
As you can see, there are many types of kitchen knives. And even if we really love to cook, it’s hardly worth chasing more variety and turning the kitchen into a kind of knife arsenal. The main part of the work is successfully handled by the so-called “ kitchen trio", or, otherwise, the "chef's troika". It includes three knives with universally shaped blades, but different sizes. The basis of the trio is a large chef's knife. Its size is usually at least 45 cm, the length of the blade is 20-30 cm. This heavyweight gets the roughest work in the kitchen: slicing meat, fish, poultry, chopping large vegetables. With proper skill - chopping vegetables for salads. A medium knife, with a blade length of 15-20 cm, does an excellent job of cutting sausage, ham, cheese, preparing salads and snacks. The smallest, 25-30 cm long with a 7-15 cm blade, is especially convenient for peeling vegetables and performing small and painstaking work.
To this chef's trio it is worth adding 2-3 more knives, depending on your food preferences. For example, a bread knife and a fillet knife - if you are a lover of well-cooked meat. Or a peeler if vegetables form the basis of your diet. And add highly specialized knives to this set. For example, a butter knife, a pastry knife, a plastic mushroom peeler. And if you like food that is not only tasty, but also beautifully prepared and served, then knives for carving - artistic cutting of food - will come in handy.
Of course, the functionality of many knives overlaps, so dividing knives into certain types depending on the type of product can be quite arbitrary. But the variety of forms also implies the possibility of choice. Therefore, choose those knives that are convenient for you to use, and with which you enjoy working. But remember, if you use a knife for other purposes, you will greatly reduce its service life.
A knife is perhaps the most necessary item in the kitchen. Many people traditionally use the same knife to cut everything they can get their hands on, complaining that the bread crumbles or that carving up a chicken is an adventure. This is understandable, because almost every product requires different knives.
We will conduct a short educational program on the topic of popular species. Information about knives was provided to us by the online store.
The first and most popular type is universal kitchen knives. They are suitable for cleaning, chopping and cutting almost any food. As mentioned above, the quality of the cut from a universal knife will not be the same as from a specialized one. It is best to use a utility knife for slicing vegetables or fillets when the final shape of the ingredient is not important.
Features of a utility knife:
— Straight blade of medium width with a pointed end.
— Long straight handle with a tapering end.
A chef's knife is used for cutting vegetables, chopping herbs, and also for boning and cutting meat. It is often chosen instead of a universal one because of its heavier handle, which allows you to cut not only poultry, but also meat and fish. Most often they choose not one, but three chef’s knives with different lengths blades (45, 35 and 25 centimeters).
Characteristics of a chef's knife:
— Wide blade from 2 to 4 millimeters.
— The total length is about 50 centimeters.
— Heavy handle with a convex bottom. As a rule, the handle is made of non-slip plastic, sometimes stainless steel.
The best choice for preparing neat appetizers is a thin slicing knife. With this knife you can make thin slices of meat and fish. This is especially important when preparing dishes that require a certain thickness of ingredients. Buying a knife for thin slicing is worth it for those who like to prepare sushi or rolls.
Characteristics of a knife for thin slicing:
— Narrow and long blade up to 1 millimeter wide.
— Smooth edge or slight rounding.
— Straight handle with a slight extension at the end.
A bread knife is suitable for even cutting of baked goods. One of the advantages is that practically no crumbs are formed when slicing. In addition, even baked goods with a soft structure do not wrinkle. Due to the shape of the blade, this knife is well suited for cutting certain fruits, such as pineapples.
Bread knife characteristics:
- Serrated blade.
— Equal blade thickness along the entire length.
— Long and wide handle.
A boning knife is used to cut the loin from the bones. Nice knives for deboning are especially valuable in small meat production plants that do not have special machines. In addition, this tool is essential in any cafe or restaurant kitchen. It is recommended to use the boning knife only for its intended purpose and not to use it for cutting hard vegetables and fruits or for chopping.
Boning knife characteristics:
— Medium blade thickness with a sharp taper at the end.
- Curved edge.
— Straight handle of medium length.
A hatchet knife is best suited for chopping bones, cartilage and tendons, as well as cutting meat and fish into large pieces. It is most often used for cutting carcasses, and a boning knife is used to separate meat from bones. But you need to keep in mind that even a large hatchet knife is not suitable for chopping large bones, such as beef.
Characteristics of the hatchet knife:
— A short and wide blade with a rounded edge or small protrusion.
- Smooth edge.
— Straight handle with finger grooves in the European version or round handle in Japanese.
You can buy these knives in the online store HerePoware. The site presents not only classic kitchen knives, but also professional ones that are used in cafes and restaurants. Note that the store has representatives from both well-known European manufacturers and japanese knives, which must be in the sous-chef’s kitchen.
