Why good knives should be the first thing you buy for your kitchen!
As with many things we do, having the best possible tools for the job is a very important factor. If you’ve never heard of Shun Knives, let me educate you. Basically, I learnt a long time ago, that the most important tool you can have in the kitchen is a good knife and the skills to use it.
While there are many awesome tools on the market to help you out in the kitchen, time spent learning to use and care for your knives is time well spent, as they will help you with many kitchen tasks.
I have a set of 5 premier Shun knives. We also supplement our set with a boning knife, but I’ll get to that in another post. Let’s be honest. These are expensive knives. But they are worth every penny and are an investment in good cooking. And really, if you look after them, then they are the only set you will need.
The way to start is to buy the biggest set you can afford and supplement them with others as you need them. This set has all you need for basic cooking, with a paring knife, santoku knife and chef’s knife. Basically, the paring knife is the one I use the most, for all fruit, veggie chopping. Then when I’m chopping meat I usually use the Santoku and for hard veggies, I use the chef’s knife. The handy kitchen shears are awesome too and I often use them for chopping herbs, or even shredding prosciutto.
So what is it that makes Shun knives so amazing? Firstly, it’s their construction They are made with 16 layers of Damascus steel cladding on each side. With over 100 handcraft steps to each knife. That’s impressive! These knives are also full tang- what? Well, that means the blade is constructed in one solid piece and the handle is attached by pins through the blade shaft.
Balance and feel are really important when selecting knives, and often people can prefer a different type to another family member. But interestingly, these knives feel just as home in my smaller hand as they do in my husband's larger hand. The pakka wood handles are smooth and feel good to hold onto and the cylindrical shape is comfortable to hold.
If you’ve read my posts before, you will know that I’m not a fan of handwashing. The difference here is that the handwashing has a purpose, to help keep my knives in tip-top shape! Made in Japan, these handcrafted beauties have a limited lifetime warranty, which helps to ensure the quality of them.
As with all handcrafted items, it is important to take good care of them, washing and drying them carefully before returning to their bamboo knife block. If they need to be sharpened, there are lots of youtube videos that will teach you how to do it properly.
I recommend getting a set of sharpening stones or taking them to a local butcher for sharpening. You need to think of your knives as a long term investment. They will serve you for a long time when treated properly and used properly. These are not the right knives to deseed an avocado with or cut open a coconut…or anything risky! The best way to ensure you get the maximum use out of them between sharpenings is to use a wooden chopping block, as it won’t actively blunt the knives.
About the author:
Kylie blogs at Kidgredients. She is a mum to Miss 7 and Master 5 and loves to feed them wholefoods and homemade meals. Her blog is full of easy to make family meals and lunchbox items. Have a look, you might find a new family favourite.
You can check out kidgredients here: https://kidgredients.com.au
