Using knives...

[Scott]

Hi everyone,

And now on to another newbie question... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

I watch Food TV frequently. I enjoy watching the knifework on Iron Chef. I now have serious feelings of inadequacy... uh, about my knifework! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

I have been competent with a knife at least when it comes to cleaning fish. When I was 18, I worked on a fish processing barge in Alaska. I got to where I could cut off the head and completely clean a 10-15lb salmon in <30 seconds (we would process upwards of 30K lbs of salmon a day with a 20 person crew). And that was with a cheap 4" paring knife. (On the production line in a busy day, the cutting for the salmon was broken down into a 5 step production line.)

Interestingly, we would put all the roe in a chute that went to a small boat with 2 Japanese workers who would salt (and sometimes swallow a "string" whole) and box it for shipment to Japan.

Recently, we had a new Japanese steakhouse open near our house. We have become weekly regulars there. I have had a lifelong fascination with Japan (in particular and Asia in general through martial arts) and since going there regularly, my feelings of inadequacy have been kicking into overdrive (hey, I said about my KNIFEWORK! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif).

Since I have two distinctly different knives, I am beginning to realize that I not only need to learn a new skills, but probably two distinct styles as well. Anyway, I would appreciate any help/pointers (preferably online) you can give.

Scott

[Fred]

I believe there is a link on our links page that will send you to egullet.com where there is some information there on knife skills. I'm in the process of writing the knife skills chapter of my cutlery book and would appreciate any input in terms of what might be useful. We'll cover how to hold a knife, how to move it and how to make the various cuts. It will be divided into sections on chopping, slicing and striking. In a few months I'll have more time on my hands to be able to complete the darn thing.

[Scott]

Fred,

I tried some of the links to egullet.com, but they were bad, so I'm not sure which specific posts you were trying to refer me to.

Thanks.

Scott

[Scott]

Fred,

I just noticed that the "Knife Skills" link on the Links page only has one "l" (ie. forums.egulet.com rather than forums.egullet.com). As for the Knife Maintenance link, I'm getting a 404 error (file not found). When I took a closer look at the link you have, it is: .../index/php?... rather than .../index.php?...

You may also want to add the Q&A links for the Basic Knife Skills and Basic Knife Maintenantce. They are (respectively):

http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=25957

and

http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=26025

After taking a look around the "classes" portion of the site, I realized how neat a site this is. Thanks for the information! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Scott

[Peter]

[ QUOTE ]
We'll cover how to hold a knife, how to move it and how to make the various cuts

[/ QUOTE ]
Fred, do you plan to show the usage of Japanese knives as well? I'm curious if a nakiri should be used forward and backward like a saw or if it's a forward and down motion.

Btw., this week I had catfish in a Thai restaurant in Berlin. It had a nice decoration, a piece of cucumber like fishbones. But these decorations shurely would go beyond your book's scope(nice dictionary that I've found on the web).

Peter

[Fred]

I agree. I think decorative cuts belong in a book by themselves. That's a book that would have to be written by someone else. I'm very bad at garnishing and decorative cuts.

[Oded]

Generally speaking, Nakiri can be used either by pulling end with the tip down or pushing forward and pushing the heal down

Usuba on the other hand can only be pulled, while maintaining the vertical axis of the blade slightly anticlockwise (in a right handed knife) so that the bevel is perpendicular to the board.

I should continue my unofficial 'introduction to Usuba' at JKC next week and will share my acquired insight and wisdom...

[Peter]

fine

Peter

[esvoboda]

With a nakiri, I use a push forward motion (tsuki-giri) to slice. You can push straight down (oshi-giri) to cut through seaweed to avoid a ragged edge or to make it easier to get through things like mochi rice cakes or even cheese. Long sheets of daikon cylinders (Japanese radish) are sliced in-hand in a sawing motion and then sliced into strips as a bed for sashimi.

[Peter]

Welcome, Ed. Do you have an opinion about nakiri as a primary preparation knife compared to a Chef's knife?

I'm just a homecook and don't always stand while preparing meals. That's why I'm thinking about a nakiri or a short Chef's knife with a wide blade.

Peter

[esvoboda]

Sorry about not getting back to you sooner. I didn't have Fred's forum in my bookmarks. I've corrected that horrible omission. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

I was using a Global G-5 vegetable cleaver as my main knife for most of the last two years. I jump around between western and Japanese cooking. For cutting a big hunk of beef or halving a chicken or melon I'd switch temporarily to the 10-in. Wusthof. Other than things like that, it was nearly all nakiri. I recently realized that I wanted something larger than that Global. I thought about getting a larger nakiri or usuba from one of the other Japanese makers that I wasn't aware of when I got my Global. Then I realized that a Chinese vegetable cleaver is pretty similar to a Japanese vegetable knife. There's a fair amount of overlap. After a short learning period to get used to the larger size of the cleaver, I now get more done with it in part because the cleaver is bigger and also because I find being able to use it as a scoop is pretty nice. I've had little need to switch to a chef's knife for anything.

So, a nakiri as a main knife? Sure, I think it's possible if you also have something to handle what the nakiri doesn't do well. The nakiri is more specialized than a gyuto, chef's knife, or even Chinese cleaver.