A paring knife doesn’t spring to mind as the most useful kitchen knife, and to be perfectly honest, it probably doesn’t get as much use as a mainstay like the classic 8-inch chef’s knife. However, given a choice, I would personally prefer to have a high-quality paring knife and a merely decent chef’s knife, rather than the other way around. The reason? A paring knife usually fills a niche that most other knives don’t. If you cook at all, you probably have at least three knives: a French-style chef’s knife, a 6 inch utility, and 2 inch paring knife. Because of their size, the chef’s and the utility serve a lot of the same functions, like slicing meet or dicing vegetables. What they don’t do, however, is intricate work. Ever try to devein a shrimp with a chef’s knife? How about peel a potato? You wouldn’t (I hope), because you would probably end up skewering yourself or butchering the food.
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| It's not the size of the boat, it's the motion of the ocean |
Here’s what to look for:
Blade style: Get a spearpoint. This classic style works in almost any situation, while less-common blade profiles like a sheep’s-foot generally do one thing well, and everything else mediocre. Serrated is dumb.
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| Top: Spearpoint Middle: Sheepsfoot Bottom: Crazy moon knife |
Blade steel: A good steel is important in any knife, but it is doubly true for a paring knife. Given the tight space and intricate work you are going to be doing with the paring knife, a dull blade that will catch or slide on the food you’re working with can easily end up with a trip to the emergency room. 440C or above, no exceptions.
Guard: The guard is the point just between the edge and the handle, and protects your hand from running under the blade. This is somewhat counter-intuitive, but a thinner guard works better in a paring knife, as you can fully take advantage of the limited cutting area- as long as the guard extends past your finder and you pay attention, you should be safe enough.
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| Living on the edge with no guard |
Get: Any of the brands I mentioned in this post will work great, but I would lean toward the mid-range or higher.
Really nice knives you got here ;D
ReplyDeleteNice, I get a lot of use out of my paring knives. I have a spearpoint and sheepsfoot, and the spearpoint definitely does more work. I would actually prefer no edge guard, since I like to use the whole length of the blade sometimes.
ReplyDeleteoooh i love cooking knifes, the sharper the better! :D
ReplyDeleteThe parring knife is so useful. Spearpoints are very good
ReplyDeletei need some new cooking knifes, i only have a few worn down steak knives.
ReplyDeletecrazy moon knife looks awesome haha
ReplyDeleteHmmm, well put, I guess I have to go get a new knife then
ReplyDeleteI think I do the majority of my work with a non-serrated steak knife. I've been interested in getting a ceramic knife, but the most useful thing I can think of is seeing how many metal detectors I can get past with one.
ReplyDeleteYou know your shit dude :D
ReplyDeleteThe paring knife is actually my favorite, I find larger knives are rather cumbersome for most things.
ReplyDeletecool, some practical info here. :D
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeletethis is great information
ReplyDeletesince I am trying to become a better chef, this helps a lot...thank you!
ReplyDeleteAhhhh. I love my paring knife. I think I use that thing more than any other *kitchen* knife that I own.
ReplyDeleteI thought it was:
ReplyDeleteIt's not the size of the swell, it's the motion of the ocean.
Cus like, you know, alliteration? :P
Nice knives though!