Meat knives: types and subtleties of choice

Chefs pay a lot of attention to the knives they use. For them, a quality knife is not a luxury, but a guarantee of quick and professional cooking. A good knife will be a great helper not only in the kitchen of a restaurant, but also at home. Therefore, you should not choose a cheap option in the near market. Properly chosen knife will serve you for many years without losing an attractive appearance and its properties.

Let's start with the fact that for almost every type of work it is better to buy a separate knife. Do not worry, they will not be so much. This will allow high-quality cutting and processing of products, while the necessary standards of hygiene will be observed. Meat knife is designed for rough work, so it can not be small and thin. It should be easy to cope with cutting raw meat.

For these purposes, there is a separate category of knives, cleavers. If you have no idea how the perfect meat knife should look like, then familiarize yourself with its features. This will help make the right choice when buying and pay attention to important details.

1. Meat knife It is a classic model of a kitchen knife with a rather massive handle and a blade. A distinctive feature is the presence of a notch on the handle. It is necessary so that when working the palm does not roll towards the blade. Raw meat is not so easy to cut, and therefore, at a certain pressure, slipping can lead to injury.
2. Working with coarse fiber requires certain characteristics from the instrument. One of the most important is a fairly thick blade. When cutting or deboning it should not bend.
3. As for the drawing, it is completely absent on the blade itself. Its surface should be smooth, without any chipping. Also for this type of work will not fit knives with teeth.
4. The handle is quite massive. This is logical in the presence of a fairly thick blade. It can be made of high-quality plastic or wood. Metal handles when processing meat show themselves not from the best side, therefore, experts recommend to refuse such a choice.
5. The blade itself must be made of durable material. After all, often they are not just cut, and hit on a piece of meat. At the moment there is a wide variety of high-strength metal blades, but high-carbon steel knives remain the favorites.

As it becomes clear from the summation of all the features of knives for cutting, they must be massive, durable, but at the same time comfortable and easy to use.

There are several types of knives for working with meat. It is not necessary to purchase them all. But even the presence of several basic will greatly facilitate the cooking process.

• Hatchet ax The most massive and large knife. The dimensions of the blade varies from 450 to 500 mm. It is with this knife that the carcass is cut. But even if you do not do this at home, the need to cut large pieces still arises from time to time. It is a hatchet, the blade is large, almost rectangular. The blade is below the handle line, strongly protruding downward. Because of its size is not always convenient for women. It is rather a masculine tool.

• Boning. This knife is very convenient to remove the meat from the bone. Its feature is a thin and rather flexible blade. It has a slight rounding, which favorably affects the cutting ability. Since the separation of meat from bone is not an easy process, and one has to work in different directions, special attention is paid to the handle. It should fit perfectly in your hand. It simplifies the work, minimizes the risk of slipping and cuts.

• Universal. This classic model of the knife, which can be found in almost every home. The blade is average (about 15 cm), its thickness is also close to the average parameters (1.5-2 mm). This knife can perform almost any type of work. But practice shows that it is not so convenient. Still, the use of specialized kitchen accessories for cutting and deboning meat several times simplifies the whole process.

• Sirloin. Perhaps the most subtle and elegant knife for meat. Its original purpose was thin slicing of the sirloin. But cooks and ordinary housewives quickly realized that it was very convenient for them to make thin slices from other products. Therefore, today it is often used to beautifully and finely chop cheese, bacon or vegetables. The length of the blade has a large range and depends on how large a piece of fillet you need to cut. For chicken and small pieces, knives with a blade of 15 cm will do. But you can find knives with a rather long blade of 36 cm.

• Scimitar Knife with a rather massive handle and blade, but at the same time thin and curved. On the blade can be made notches. The slight bend makes it look like a saber. Despite this sophisticated look, the knife belongs to the category of universal. It can be used for shredding, cutting products, chopping minced meat, in addition to deboning meat and cutting offal.

• Steak. A small knife with a rather thin, but durable blade. The upper line of the blade is straight, the bottom smoothly rounded closer to the end. The small size and sharp blade of the steak knife allows you to make the perfect portioned cut and enjoy a juicy piece of meat without much difficulty. There are other types of knives for working with meat. For example, a unique giymykesh, which is used in the preparation of lula kebab, or a butcher's knife, which is a necessary attribute of the real representatives of this profession, as well as the famous Turkish satyr.

There are a lot of knife manufacturers, so it’s just impossible to list them all. We present you the most worthy representatives.

1. Fiskars. Stainless steel and soft quality plastic on the handle.
2. Rondell flamberg. Choose large models with double-sided sharpening.
3. Grand. High-quality knives, proven in the market.
4. OPINEL Parallele. Stainless steel and wood handle make these knives versatile.

The choice of the knife must be approached consciously. From this will depend on the convenience of cooking and the life of the selected instance. If you do not want to “throw money away” and every year ask yourself “which knife to buy this time”, then remember the parameters on which your choice should be based.

Currently, manufacturers give us a wide selection of knives. The material of the blade itself may be different. Each of them has its pros and cons.

• Ceramics. At first glance it seems that this material is ideal in all respects. It is hygienic, the surface of the blade will not absorb odors. In addition, bacteria will not multiply on it. The material is very durable. And what is especially valuable, it can be sharpened to the desired sharpness of the blade.But if we talk about the daily use of such a knife, then problems may arise. Ceramics do not tolerate sudden changes in temperature.

• High carbon stainless steel. Perhaps this is the perfect option for the blade. This material is durable and quite elastic. In most cases, it is used to make boning and butcher knives. Steel is able to withstand heavy shocks and loads. In this case, the sharpness of the blade remains at a height. Flexibility makes it easy to separate the meat from the bone. At the same time, it will not be necessary to fear that it will break when the blade is bent. Anticorrosion properties of steel are caused by the presence of hydrogen.

• Titanium. The material became quite popular not so long ago. And he has his fans, but also those who did not like the knives, also have enough. Titanium is not as durable as steel. But this is not so critical. With frequent use, the blade will quickly become blunt. Sharpening it at home, like a normal knife, is almost impossible. We'll have to resort to the services of specialists. Another disadvantage is the high cost of such knives.

• Damascus steel. It is appreciated all over the world for unprecedented high strength. The peculiarity of this type of steel is the use of several alloys in the manufacture of the blade. The most durable will be refined Damascus steel. It is made from a homogeneous piece, and all other impurities are removed during smelting. Another type is welding. With this method of manufacturing in one blade will be connected several types of steel with different carbon content. Damascus steel is pretty easy to learn. Its surface is heterogeneous. May have beautiful stains and blotches.

The material of which the blade is made, has a key role in choosing a knife. But there are several other factors to consider.

1. Handle material. In knives for meat is better to choose the handle of wood or plastic.
2. Ergonomic handle. The knife should fit well in the hand. In this case, they will work a pleasure.
3. Price. Do not choose cheap options. Quality materials can not be cheap. But very expensive items also should not be purchased. This is a kitchen tool, not an object of art.
4. The form. You can buy a whole set of knives for appointments, and you can get by with two, if you choose the right choice.

Currently there is a wide variety of knives. Each housewife independently decides whether she will have one universal tool for working with meat, or for each type of work to purchase a separate one. In the first case, you can significantly save on the purchase. After all, with three or five knives, you get one. At the same time he copes well with all the tasks. But it is worth noting that Frequent use (especially for different purposes) can quickly dull, ruin, or simply wear a product.

In the second case, it will be necessary to lay out a large amount for the purchase of several knives at once. But they will serve you much longer. After all, a boning knife will serve only for cutting meat, and a cleaver for cutting large pieces and frozen meat. At the same time universal or loin will be waiting in the wings. There will be no additional load on any product. And it is quite possible, with such a careful and rational attitude, the products will last you much longer than even the manufacturer promises. There are a few unspoken rules when working with knives.

1. Use the meat knife only for its intended purpose. For slicing sausages, cheeses, vegetables and fruits, purchase individual copies.
2. Cut only on wooden or plastic cutting boards. It will be easier to change the board in a year than to buy a new knife, the blade of which will be spoiled on a glass or marble surface.

Competent and careful care of knives can extend their lifetimes several times. To do this is a snap. It is worth remembering only a few basic rules, and your knives for a long time will delight you with an excellent appearance and excellent cutting abilities.

1. Products with a wooden handle must not be kept damp. Also avoid prolonged contact with water. After bathing, it is better to wipe the handle and the blade immediately.
2. Meat knives are recommended to be washed by hand. Therefore, do not rush to put them in the dishwasher.
3. When washing, it is necessary to clean not only the blade itself, but also the handle in order to get rid of dangerous microbes.
4. Knives should be carefully wiped dry with a towel. Water is bad for both the blade and the handle, as well as the connecting elements.

You can buy a whole set of knives, and none of them will suit you. It is necessary to approach the choice deliberately, then the object will serve you for a long time and will be pleasant and convenient in work.

How to choose kitchen knives, see the next video.