Kitchen knives are tools needed in all kitchens no matter the size of the kitchen. With appropriate Best Kitchen Knife Set, food preparation becomes incredibly fast and easy. Apart from the ease and speed at which food can be prepared with quality set of kitchen knives, you’ll also find out that they last longer and at times, may even last a lifetime.
Best Kitchen Knife Set
There are several types of kitchen knife sets in the market today and most come in different shapes and sizes for achieving different cooking goals. Care has to be taken when purchasing any brand or else, you might end up with a set of knives that would rust after a few months of usage, or its handle becomes damaged, or the metal part gets broken. In order to avoid falling prey to such circumstances, here are some ideas you should always bear in mind when purchasing your kitchen knife set.
Full Tang knives
Knives designed in such a way that their blade and handle are in one piece are known as full tang knives. Such types of knives usually last longer than those with their handle made from a different material such as plastic or wood. By purchasing full tang knives, you can be sure that you would never replace it throughout its lifetime because the handle would never break since there is no point of attachment on the knife. Checkout How to Roast Coffee Beans in a Whirley Popcorn Popper?
Well-forged knives
The material and method used for forging knives have a huge impact on the quality of the knife. A well-forged knife using the right materials gives the knife a better impact strength, is resistant to corrosion, can easily be re-sharpened, and lasts longer. In order to achieve the aforementioned properties, manufacturers combine carbon with stainless steel to come up with knives that can be used for all cutting purposes while resisting the effect of water that causes corrosion on the metal.
Warranty
Almost everything in the market today comes with warranty and so do kitchen knives too. Before purchasing any to be used in your kitchen, always look out for the warranty as it helps you determine the quality of the knife. Since knives are metals that rarely go bad when forged properly, most manufacturers place a lifetime warranty on them. By purchasing kitchen knives with such warranty period, you can be sure that your knife will continue to be in a perfect state for years to come. However, the only thing you’ll have to do is to sharpen it from time to time since it is normal for knives to go slightly blunt after few months or years of usage.
Knife Storage
Most people ignore this part when they go shopping for their kitchen knives; but it is important in some way since various storages have an impact on the space and looks of your kitchen. If you use a wooden block storage which is usually bogus, you’ll be better off purchasing a new, sleek knife storage for your kitchen. Apart from the fact that it saves a good deal of space on your counter, it also adds to the beauty and design of your kitchen. This is not to suggest that wooden block storage is bad anyway; you can also find a sleek wooden block storage for your knives if you prefer it.
Benefits of Having a Kitchen Knife Set
Comes with Specific Range of Uses
Having just one knife (the utility knife) in your kitchen brings about difficulties in application, in the sense that this utility knife cannot do the job of others perfectly. For example, using it to cut bread makes the bread rough or you may even end up compressing it. In the same vein, using it to cut meat that has bones in it (such as chicken, turkey, etc.) just brings about unnecessary stress that could have been avoided. By purchasing a knife set which comes with a bread knife, a chef’s knife, an utility knife, a slicer, and a paring knife, all forms of difficulties are solved. Rather than using the utility knife for cutting bread and bony meats as earlier stated, the bread knife and the chef’s knife can be respectively used.
Comes with a Knife Block
Some kitchen knife set comes with a wooden or metal block for storing the knives. These blocks are usually basic and sometimes bogus, but you can always get something better if you feel you won’t be comfortable using it.
Saves Cost
Purchasing kitchen knives individually are usually more expensive than having all in one set. Apart from expenses, purchasing different brand of knives with different colors and design would make your kitchen look awkward. Having a set of knife with uniform design not only fits into the design of your kitchen, but are also capable of lasting longer and saving you some extra cash.
Elegance and Durability
Kitchen knife sets are usually manufactured with the professional environment in mind. Manufacturers are not oblivious of the fact that these knifes are often used in elegant kitchens by professional hands, and as such keep elegance and durability in mind during manufacture. This is why most knife sets usually have stylish looks with additional features such as sleek cases and magnetic knife blocks for storage. Durability is another benefit to enjoy from knife sets as they typically last several years no matter their degree of use.
In order to ease your selection process, three of the best kitchen knife set that you’ll ever find in the market today are discussed below.
1. Chicago Cutlery Fusion Knife Block Set
The Chicago fusion knife block set comes with a professional high carbon stainless steel forged blade having black grip that is really comfortable to handle. In order to provide optimum sharpness for precise cutting of all kinds of food, an exclusive taper grind edge technology is adopted on each of the 18 knife pieces in the set. The mixture of carbon with stainless steel makes the knives stronger, harder, and completely resistant to rust. The handles are designed with black cushion for a sturdy grip; and above all, stainless steel are customary for giving metals a sleek, beautiful look.
2. J.A. Henckels International Forged Premio
J.A. Henckels knife set is a 18-piece forged premio knife block set including 3 inches paring knife, 5 inches serrated utility knife, 7 inches santoku hollow edge, 6 inches utility knife, 9 inches sharpening steel, 8 inches chef’s knife, 5 inches boning knife, 8 inches bread knife, and a stamped steak knife hardwood block. It comes with a full tang design extending its length and adding a better balance and strength when gripped for all cutting purposes. The triple-riveted ergonomic handle ensures a better control and comfort especially when cutting hard foods. In order to improve style and beauty, the blades are satin-finished and the stainless steel provides for precise cutting, slicing and peeling.
3. Mercer Culinary Genesis
Mercer culinary genesis is a 6-piece forged kitchen knife set designed for those who do not want excess knives in their kitchen. The 6-piece set includes 3-1/2 inch paring knife, 8 inch chef’s knife, 5 inch utility knife, 6 inch boning knife, 8 inch bread knife and a tempered glass block to stand the knives. The knives are forged with German steel which gives them enough impact strength to withstand the forces of cutting while also giving them a stylish look. The knives come with handles made from black Santoprene nonslip material thereby ensuring excellent grip, comfort, and safety when used. The knife set is manufactured in Taiwan, a country known for their extensive use of European technology for the manufacture of most equipment.
Buying and Choosing the Right knife set for Your Kitchen
There are several types of kitchen knife sets in the market today and they all contain knives in variety of shapes and sizes. While some are used for performing one particular job only, others can be used to perform variety of tasks. The knife set to be purchased depends on several factors such as what you plan to do with the knives, whether or not you want a particular style or design, whether you have a preferred manufacturer or any good one would do, etc. Before setting out to purchase any knife set, here are some questions I recommend you ask yourself. Your answers to the questions would help you determine the kind of knife you need.
What will I do with the knife?
This is arguably the most important question you need to ask yourself before purchasing any kitchen knife because, If you don’t know what you want to achieve with the knife then it’s as good as you don’t need it at all. If for example, your plan is to use it for cutting lots of breads or tomatoes, you should go for a serrated knife blade as it easily pierces through the skin of the tomatoes or the crust of the bread better than the utility knife.
Would I prefer a particular style?
While most people do not care about style and design when purchasing knife sets, others do. These set of people who care about style and design want their kitchen to look uniform and as such are careful when selecting items to be purchased for it. By style, some people look at the colors and design of knife handles while others look at the shape and design on the blade. It all depends on you anyway so just make up your mind on the style you prefer for your kitchen in terms of color, design, and shape before carrying on with the purchase.
What quality do I need and at what cost?
The life of all tools and appliances are dependent on the quality of the materials used in the manufacture of the tool, and the quality also impacts on the price tag placed on the tool. It is best to go for high quality knives whether you cook frequently or not even though cost has to be taken into account. If however, you are capable of bearing the cost, go ahead and purchase the knife because it’ll be better you spend once, than twice or thrice on the same thing. With a lifetime warranty placed on most knife sets today, you can be sure of using the knife for several years under light and harsh conditions without having to replace it for any reason.
How to Care for your Kitchen Knives?
No matter how much quality a tool is made of, basic care have to be taken always to keep it working at its best. Knives are amongst the most important tools in all kitchens and must be properly maintained if they are to last a lifetime. The following are tips to help you elongate the lifespan of your knives.
- Wash and clean your knives immediately after use in order to prevent dried food residue from clogging around the knife which could damage it in the long run.
- Immediately after washing the knife, rinse it in warm running water in order to remove all the soapy residues on it before drying it with a soft towel and placing it in its holder. By drying it, you’ll reduce the possibility of the blade getting rust since air plus water on metal is the recipe for rust.
- Avoid storing your knives in a drawer, because they are likely to hit the sides of the drawer and other utensils thereby causing the edges of the blade to get blunt on time. Rather than placing them in a drawer, get a knife block or something similar that wouldn’t take up much space on your shelve.
- Sharpen your knives periodically to keep them performing at their peak whenever they are needed. You can do the sharpening yourself simply by holding the sharpening steel in one hand, and the knife in the other at 20 to 30 degree angle to the steel. If you find it difficult to do, get someone who can, because you might end up damaging the sharp edges of the knife or blunting it the more.
Knives are really essential tools in the kitchen and optimum care must be taken to keep them working for several years. There are several manufacturers of knives in the world today and three of the best have been highlighted above. You can always count on top knife manufacturers to get quality knives that wouldn’t go bad in the nearest future, but continue to perform their required functions for several decades to come.