Knife Skills 101

Knowing how to use your knives is at the heart of being able to get your dishes prepared quickly and efficiently. Wednesday night my husband and I cook the Knife Skills 1 class at the Recreational Division of the Institute for Culinary Education in New York City. The instructor was Norman Weinstein, author of Mastering Knife Skills (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, 2008).

There were 12 students in the class and we each got our own station which included a cutting board and a set of knives. Mr. Weinstein walked us through what he calls the basic four knives you need to get started; a bread or serrated knife, a 8 or 10 inch chef's knife a paring knife and a utility knife. We all preferred the 10 in chef's knife over the 8 inch. At the heart of the class is the few basic "strokes" I'll call them, that you need to know. We found out, we are all working way too hard in the way we cut food. "Relax your shoulder." "Your arm is too tense." "Your grip is too tight." See a pattern here? Slicing and dicing is really much easier than we think, with the right knives and the right techniques. The guy next to me was so tense I thought for sure he was going to lose a few fingers over the course of our three hours. He didn't and Mr. Weinstein never gave up on him.

The environment was very comfortable and light, except when we first arrived being about 15 minutes late. We disrupted things and the instructor let us know that. Unfortunately we were at the mercy of the Lincoln Tunnel which seemed to close off an artery adding an extra hour to our commute.

Below is the class description from the school. Give it a try!

Online at: https://web.iceculinary.com/icereg/details.asp?cid=KNIFE1&DT=

Class description:
Knowing how to use knives skillfully is critical for cooks, yet many people have never mastered proper technique. Similarly, good knives form the foundation of a well-equipped kitchen, yet even some accomplished home cooks don’t know how to select and care for them. In Knife Skills 1, you’ll use Wüsthof-Trident knives to slice, dice, and chop in the safest and most efficient manner. You’ll also learn the proper way to sharpen your knives. Note that Knife Skill courses may be taken in any order. Chef-Instructor Norman Weinstein has been teaching everyone from first-time cooks to professional chefs how to better select and use knives for more than 20 years. He is the author of Mastering Knife Skills (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, 2008). He’s been profiled in Wine Spectator and the New York Times Magazine, and has appeared on the Food Network. He was the 2003 honoree of the New York Association of Culinary Professionals.